Did you know that it is REALLY hard to stop checking your phone or social apps on your computer when you’re trying to work, or do anything else basically? Did you know that it is so hard that there are oodles of apps out there just to stop you from doing those very things? Check out these articles on apps designed to block your social media/phone habit so that you can be more productive.
- Inc. Magazine: 6 Apps to Stop Your Smartphone Addiction
- The Guardian: The internet restriction apps that help improve productivity
- NPR: Apps Block Social Media Because Users Can’t Stop Themselves
The lists go on and on.
We here at The Complete Legal Writer Blog have you covered though. You don’t need a fancy app. All you need is a piece of paper and one very pointed question:
Do you want to be doing this task tomorrow?
My Complete Legal Writer co-author Professor Alexa Chew posted her trick for keeping herself off of her “phone or other” on Twitter yesterday, and it has resonated with people far and wide.
The urges to check our phones and social media accounts exist. What I think resonated with people about Professor Chew’s sheet of paper is that it acknowledged those urges—she counted them after all—and it also acknowledged her failure to stifle the urges—she counted those, too.
It’s remarkable how strong the psychological pull is toward our devices, and it’s okay to recognize that pull. Through that recognition, we can train ourselves to change. I would imagine that, after a week or so of this exercise, the hash marks on both sides of the column would get smaller and smaller.
After all: Does your desire to give in to that pull outweigh your desire to be done with your task?
Probably not.
-KRGP