The smartphone, as I’m sure you’ll agree, is a truly incredible invention. Just imagine being able to hop in your DeLorean and visit yourself twenty years ago to show off such an amazing device! Now, while I absolutely love technology, I’m sure you’ll agree that some of us spend way too much time on our smartphones. It’s great to have the whole world at your fingertips, but not at the cost of letting the world pass you by! Here are a few signs that you’re spending far too much time on your phone.
You Fall Back on Your Phone in Awkward Situations
Like everyone, you’ve probably arrived at some party or other gathering before all of your friends once, and immediately felt intimidated by all the strangers in the room. Before the dawn of the smartphone, you would have downed some liquid courage, approached a friendly-looking face, and tried to make some new friends. Now, you reach straight for your smartphone, and start checking your Twitter feed or playing slots. Don’t take the coward’s way out, and try to actually mingle next time!
It’s the First Thing You See in the Morning, and the Last Thing You See at Night
Aside from setting your alarm or turning it off after it wakes you up, it’s really not healthy for your smartphone screen to mark the beginning and end of every day. Too much time looking at screens has been proven to have various adverse health effects, and aside from that you’ll be letting all the more important things in life pass you by! The next time you’re settling down for bed and you feel like checking out your smartphone, do something else. Talk to your spouse, read that book that’s been sitting on your shelf for too long, and generally make a point to unplug.
Being Away from It Induces Anxiety
The last time you were on a plane, and you had to switch to flight mode, how did that make you feel? If you were struck by a mini panic-attack, and you spent the whole flight worrying about the text you were waiting on or how many likes one of your social media posts is getting, then it may be time to take a break. I know that flights are long, uncomfortable and boring, but try to find some other way to occupy yourself!
You Open Apps Without Doing Anything
This is where it really becomes a problem. If every time you’re left alone you systematically scroll across your apps, opening your social media platforms even though you know there’s nothing new, and not really doing much of anything, then you’ve got a serious case of smartphone addiction. When your device stops being useful for anything, and you simply want to touch your thumb to the screen as a comfort thing, make a point to leave it alone until you hear it buzz again!
Although smartphones aren’t exactly hard drugs, they can certainly impede on your life in all the wrong ways. Take a step back, and mull over whether you have a problem.