How to Stop Being on Your Phone And Start Being Productive

This blog post is all about how to stop being on your phone

Phone addiction is real. It is so easy to spend hours scrolling through social media and avoiding reality. The endless content on TikTok has started making it even easier.

But there are a couple of problems with this. You don’t get anything done and it begins to affect your mental health.

This was a major problem for me when I was in college. I would spend hours scrolling through my phone instead of studying. This resulted in late nights and a constant feeling of overwhelming stress. The problem hasn’t gotten much better since graduating and starting my big girl job.

Once I started grad school, on top of a full-time job, I had to get serious about spending less time on my phone. So I researched and tried various methods to keep me unplugged. And thankfully, I managed to find several things that worked.

Here are tips to help you stop being on your phone

Put the phone down and in another room

Now this is the most obvious. But sometimes we just need to put our phone down and walk away. Think ‘out of sight, out of mind.’

This was a method that I learned accidentally. We all hear to put our phones somewhere else. But I never really did this unless my phone was too dead to use. I would be forced to place it on the charger and do other things. A lot of times I would get wrapped up in what I was working on and forget about my phone.

Find a location to place your phone. A great place is your charger. But for this to work, you can’t move the charger. Not only will this help you not lose your chargers, but you then can’t use it.

If you struggle with still using your phone on the charger, put the charger in a place that isn’t comfortable. (i.e. a place you would have to stand to use your phone.) Or purchase a wireless charger. This is the one I have been using for years off of Amazon. We also keep this one in a commonplace.

Get a smartwatch

Sometimes the idea of putting our phone somewhere else gives us anxiety. Lots of us have now developed phone separation anxiety. We feel that we will miss out on an important text or notification when we never get anything at all.

This was something I dealt a lot with when I was younger. Even though my phone didn’t get anything important, I was always worried I might miss something. My phone was always at my hip making me more likely to use it.

But this changed once I got a smartwatch. I could put my phone in another room because I knew I would get a notification on my watch. This made a huge difference in being attached to my phone. I began to love not having my phone on me.

I currently use an Apple Watch. But you don’t need an expensive watch to do the job. FitBits are also great and keep track of health related things. And they cost waaaay less.

Use coworking videos

Sometimes we need to be on our phones without being on our phones. You could be addicted to being on your phone because you need the extra stimulation.

I started using coworker or Study With Me videos to help me concentrate when getting things done. It was so easy to get distracted even when I put my phone away. That was when I learned about body doubling and decided to try it. Over time I learned that this works because it feels like I am being on my phone when I am not.

There are so many coworking videos of groups to join. I great place to look is YouTube. Or if you want a more live interaction, TikTok live has lots of creators who do Work With Me lives.

Of course, you can always create your own by facetiming a friend you want to work with.

Go somewhere else

Sometimes we just need a different environment. It is easy to feel bored when we are stuck in the same place all day. And what do we do when we are bored? We get on our phones.

Like body doubling, I like to go to coffee shops or libraries to get stuff done. These are places where being on your phone feels kinda weird. It’s quiet and everyone is working on something. It also helps me feel more motivated to do work.

Go sit somewhere nice and put your phone up. If you still struggle with being on your phone, don’t bring headphones. You are less likely to consume media when you can’t hear it.

You can also go sit outside. It is harder to use your phone when there is no wifi.

Give yourself time limits

You don’t need to stay off your phone all day to be productive. It isn’t practical and you will eventually need a break from your work.

My favorite method is the Pomodoro timer. There are several ways to use this, but the popular methods are 45 minutes work/ 15 minute break or 25 minutes work/ 5 minute breaks.

You also don’t need anything fancy to do this. Just google Pomodoro timer and one will pull up. YouTube also has lots of Study With Me creators who use this method and have a timer on the screen. Or you can buy a timer specifically designed for the method.

My favorite method is the Forest App. I love earning gold stars and seeing my progress. You can create categories for what you are working on and keep track of each area. You can start a timer or do a countdown. Then you earn coins to purchase things for your garden. It’s like a game but you are forced to do your work. As you can see, I love the app.

It’s not hard to stop being on your phone

Phone addiction seems impossible to overcome. Which is what they want! It feels like you can never stop being on your phone. But there are so many ways to get things done. Even with your phone next to you.