It’s time to TAKE OUR ATTENTION BACK

How many times a day do you pick up your phone?

My guess, a whole lot. 

I’ve been seeing data floating around the internet lately, saying that Americans, on average, pick up their phones 144 times a day. 

ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY FOUR TIMES A DAY. 

I was curious to see my own data, so I checked my phone, and here’s what I found:

Friday: 66 pickups
Saturday: 58 pickups
Sunday: 78 pickups
Monday: 46 pickups
Tuesday: 58 pickups
Wednesday: 99 pickups
Thursday: 61 pickups

My average pickups for the week: 60 pickups per day

It’s nowhere near 144 times a day, but still, with numbers like that, I can’t help but wonder… HOW MANY OF THOSE PICKUPS WERE DRIVEN BY CONSCIOUS CHOICE, and HOW MANY WERE DRIVEN BY ESCAPISM + COMPULSION?? 

In other words, how many of those phone pick-ups were necessary (ie. I need to make a phone call), versus how many were driven by impending boredom and a guaranteed dopamine hit (ie. I want to check Instagram).  

My guess… I HAVE LESS CHOICE THAN I THINK I DO. 

That’s serious. AND, it’s on purpose. 

I am not a consumer of social media. I AM THE PRODUCT.
My attention IS THE COMMODITY. 

If these companies can KEEP ME HOOKED, they can sell my attention to advertisers. 

EWWW.

This week, I invite you to join me in CONSCIOUSLY AND INTENTIONALLY cutting back the number of times you pick up your phone. 

We all know by now that when you take something away, YOU GOTTA PUT SOMETHING IN ITS PLACE, otherwise, the behavior becomes nearly impossible to change. 

When you NEED to pick up your phone, go ahead and do it. 

But when you GET THE ITCH to pick up your phone for no-good-reason (like boredom), PAUSE, and look out the window instead. 

Notice what you see. Use all of your senses. Take it all in. 

What you see might not be EXCITING, but if you look hard enough, I guarantee, you’ll find beauty. 

It could be a parking lot. With the sky being reflected in a mud puddle.
It could be your neighbor’s broken-down home. Surrounded by lilac bushes.
It could be the forest. Lush, green, vibrant, dark, textured, thick, thorny. 

It’s time to TAKE OUR ATTENTION BACK, sisters. 

xo Stasia

NOTE: If you want to check YOUR number of phone pickups, on iphone, go to SETTINGS, SCREEN TIME, SEE ALL APP & WEBSITE ACTIVITY, and then scroll down.