Breaking the Spell: Unmasking Phone Addiction

Our phones can become a mental death trap, keeping us enthralled in endless nonsense.

Have you ever been glued to your phone, scrolling away, fully aware that you aren't getting much out of the time?

That feeling of frustrating discontent from the constant feed is one most of us have felt here, there, and everywhere.

If you have ADHD like me, it might be a normal occurrence. One that leaves you drained of the will to get anything else done.

It's unsurprising as they are dopamine-depleting machines that hold you and your attention captive.

But has it always been like this? And more importantly, will it always be this way?

I got my first cellphone when I was 15 years old.

It wasn't smart. It didn't really connect to the internet. It had no apps. And I had to flip it open to take calls or send a text.

Back then, I had to intentionally power up my computer to access and surf the information superhighway if I wanted to waste time online and on social media.

Then, a few years later, smartphones gained popularity, and it felt like the whole world shifted overnight.

Nowadays, we all have a supercomputer in our pockets, bringing our minds up into the clouds and farther from the reality of the here and now.

Always connected.

Always within reach.

Always ready to feed novelty.

Somehow, I miss the days when I wasn't always connected.

The Addiction to Pre-Milled Novelty and All That Instant Gratification

Our smartphones have become novelty-producing machines.

They provide us instant gratification by allowing us to listen to the latest top 40 hits, stay on top of what's happening in the world, and get immediate updates from friends and family.

On the surface, these are all good things, but all things that feel good tend to be habit-forming.

In other words, they are addictive.

Addictive novelty-producing machines.

They do so by depleting us of our dopamine, a neurotransmitter that provides us with the zest of life.

Dopamine is what gives us the will to get up in the morning, "hunt" for food when hungry, and call a friend when we are bored.

Dopamine is secreted through novelty and excitement.

But now, most of the novelty we encounter is predetermined by our smartphones through an algorithm that knows precisely how to keep and hold our attention.

Companies know this, and they exploit it.

We know this, and we enable it.

We get sucked into our phones due to mental boredom, emotional longing, and FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out).

When we don't know what to do, we scroll away on our little computers.

When we feel a little lonely, we scroll away on our little computers.

When we feel left out, we scroll away on our little computers.

The reality is that all that mindless scrolling depletes our ability to discern novelty.

It does so by force-feeding us with what IT wants US to find novel, giving us just enough of a dopamine hit to keep us coming back for more.

If you are reading this, I must believe that you, like me, want more out of life but might lack clarity on how to get there.

To find out what is truly novel to us, we must face boredom to have it revealed to us.

Picking up the Call for Relief, Sovereignty, and Our Own Novelty

What is there for you to gain by keeping your scrolling in check?

Here are a few things that come to mind:

• Joy: You can better enjoy the present moment by deciding what you want from your life and leaving the FOMO behind.

• Freedom: You feel better in control of your daily destiny.

• Fulfillment: You gain clarity over your everyday reality.

• Feeling Bored: It makes you think about what brings meaning to your life.

Really, it's about gaining agency over the forces in your lives that keep you away from pursuing what truly matters to you!

Scrolling isn't intrinsically bad, but we can agree that mindlessly scrolling with no aim or purpose is not the greatest habit to form.

It keeps the eyes glued to the screen and the mind away from pursuing what it truly desires.

Are you flipping kidding me?

I can hear some objections, but living without technology is not the goal here.

Living in harmony with technology is the goal.

I get it; we can't live without our smartphones these days — Hell, I couldn't go a day without using Siri to read to me.

But we can alter our usage and relationship with them.

Hold on here; we need to stay connected with people. — Yes, this is a basic human need we must uphold. But a call is probably worth more than a like on social media.

It's not always mindless use; we use our phones to learn and grow — Totally, phones in and of themselves have many positive attributes. But we must be honest with ourselves about the ratio of growth to boredom they offer.

It's not just about the phone; It's about low dopamine and neurochemical imbalances in our brains — Valid. But we can still nudge/shift our behaviours to better align with our deepest desires and goals.

Steps to Keep Novelty in Check

Do we need to run our whole lives from our phones?

In today's world, we sort of have to.

Alas, we still have agency!

I personally use three devices: a phone, a tablet, and a computer.

It may seem excessive, but the combination limits my tendency to get sucked into the vortex of mindless scrolling.

I restrict specific devices for certain activities, including apps and use.

• My phone is mainly my "I am leaving the house" device, which has all the apps and functionalities for those use cases. (It also includes social media apps.)

• My iPad is my lightweight, productive machine to carry to work on the go. (It also includes media consumption apps, like streaming and reading apps.)

• My computer is a bulkier machine where I do most of my high-priority productive tasks. (It can also go on social media or be used for media consumption, but why would I when I have the two previous devices for those specific purposes.)

By having different devices for different purposes, I set myself up for success by discerning which of these devices is better suited to create novelty and which are better suited to consume novelty.

But we don't all need to go to that extreme. We can make small changes that lead to big impacts!

Here's a framework and questions that will help you bring better phone usage clarity, help you discern how you want to use your phone, and lead you to greater agency.

1. Be honest: Are you using technology, or is technology using you?

2. Be realistic: What do you really need from your devices?

3. Be decisive: What apps or devices will you keep to achieve your needs?

4. Be present: How will you use your time now that you're reducing the grip technology has on you?

Ready to discover more novelty, gain better clarity, and use your phone more intelligently?

Grab my FREE notion planner (The Novelty Itinerary) and seek novelty before it seeks you!