Put Away Your Phone
You know how I feel about phones.
On the one hand, they are a great place to keep your schedules, memories, and relationships. On the other hand, they are a major source of distraction and addiction to mind-numbing content and instantly gratifying updates. You see it everywhere that people are: phones are no longer just tools for communication and order, but for the constant diversion of their focus.
Unfortunately, people keep this psychologically harmful tool close at all times.
They keep it on their desk when they work. They pull it out on the train to school. They cannot have a single focused conversation without looking at their screens every time it lights up with a notification.
And in my head, I am begging for them to put their phones away.
Stop dividing your focus.
In any situation that requires your focus (which is, arguably, most situations), it is entirely unnecessary to have your phone close nearby.
If you are working on an important assignment, there is no reason for you to place it right beside you. If you are talking with a friend or partner, there is no reason for you to keep it face-up on the table. (The only excuse would be if you needed to be present for an actually important notification.)
You do not need to check every message that shows up on your screen.
You are in a situation that requires you to be present and focused. You cannot go chasing other conversations and other tasks if you have one before you. Notifications are just distractions from your current goal: unlike your chance to pursue the task that needs doing, the things on your phone will not disappear just because you ignore them for a day.
Ultimately, you cannot reach your goals if you keep distracting yourself with other pursuits.
You are rude to your friend when you prioritize a conversation onscreen over the one right before you. And you are hurting your own health and future if you focus on something so meaningless as a social media update over a task that matters more. In the long run, you will lose your ability to maintain focus, and you will be at the whim of your surroundings rather than your own self-control.
This is why (if the situation warrants it) you need to choose to focus.
Put your phone away.
If you don’t need your phone to be present, put it away.
If you need to study, put it away. If you want to spend time with your friend, put it away. If you have to focus, put it away.
It is one decision, but it makes all the difference.
And the benefits are notable. You will improve your attention span and become more able to focus on the tasks before you. In turn, this will make you more capable of actually working toward your goals and achieve them.
At its core, it is a question of what you prioritize most.
The things that are meaningful to you and your future are rarely ones that require you to constantly check your phone for small updates. The things that matter require you to focus on something before you. Indeed, making sure to answer each text that pops up on your screen will not offer you a meaningful conversation; but focusing on your friend for an hour will.
So, put away your phone.
Your progress depends on your undivided focus — not your notifications.
