Hello there!
I recently finished a ‘smart phone exile’ and it was refreshing. In this post, I’m going to share my flip phone experiences in hopes that we all can live a more fun and healthy life with our smart gadgets.
The Experiment: ditch my iPhone for an undetermined amount of time and navigate through life in 2015 with a flip phone. No internet capabilities–only call and not-so-missed t9 texting.
Personal Background: I am 22 years old and have used an iPhone for over 6 years.
So, let’s discuss the pros and cons of switching to a dumb phone and what I am doing differently with my smart phone today. By reading this, you’re stepping into my mind and seeing how I aim to live in our increasingly technology-integrated culture.
Let’s get to it.
Pros & Cons
Cons
- NO GPS. Above all, this was the biggest pain in the butt. I got the iPhone one month after I turned 16, so I’ve never driven somewhere without step-by-step directions. I gained a new respect and understanding for Carrie Underwood’s, “Jesus, Take the Wheel.” Driving became a literal act of faith.
- T9 texting. How did we get by with this in middle school? I need to give the phone companies a little credit here: it was a smart idea to shortcut traditional texting on a 12-button pad. However, replying to someone with “Pounds home” when I meant to say, “Sounds good” got old really quick! T9 predicts the correct word about as well as the PSAT predicts one's success in life.
- Being a burden to people in 2015. I had to face reality–just about every person I interact with on a daily basis uses a smart phone. When you’re the oddball with a dumb phone, you can’t keep up with people in the relevant mediums of our time (group-text, snapchat, etc…). Example: Since I was no longer in group-texts, someone in my ‘group’ had to contact me separately to keep me up to speed. What a pain.
Pros
- Increased ability to focus. Like most twentysomethings, I’m extremely connected to the internet. Because of this, I have an unlimited amount of distractions I can seek (and more than enough distractions seeking me). A smartphone is the perfect escape from daunting tasks, the mundane, or the free 30 seconds you have in line at the grocery store. Hidden gem of the dumb phone: Without the ability to focus on everything going on in the world, I was forced to focus on what was going on in the world in front of me. This is where I believe we can make the greatest impact–in the here and now (not the there and then).
- Clarification about what is important. I run an online business with multiple clients, contractors, and projects. So, when e-mail, Dropbox, the Internet, and all of my contacts did not follow me, I had to get very clear about how to spend my time online and best use those tools. My days turned from a blurred ‘always doing everything’ mode to a ‘doing what’s in front of me’ mode. Having no choice but to focus on one thing at a time made me much more productive and effective. More about this philosophy here: http://www.the1thing.com/
- More present in time with others. Next time you go out to eat, look at the people around you. I bet you’ll see a couple on their date night, a family, or a group of friends all there to enjoy one another’s presence. I bet you will also see the same groups I just mentioned, completely disconnected from one another with faces lit by the screen of their phone. If you’re with people who matter to you, why would you let people who aren’t as close to you come in and steal that time? We’re all guilty of creating this situation–myself included (even with the flip phone). The flip phone raised my awareness of these situations. Which leads me to the question: Am I going to check out too? It’s nice to have some control of my behavior again.
- Freedom. I can’t emphasize enough of how liberating it was to have a dumb phone. However, I still have this new-found freedom with my iPhone. Read below to see how you too can achieve some liberation, without having to switch to a flip phone!
What I Am Doing Differently
To achieve the same level of freedom the flip phone offered–while maintaining the unlimited benefits of a smart phone–here are some simple measures I’m taking (and you can too!):
- Turn off all notifications from 3rd party applications. You don’t need to be distracted every time someone likes your Instagram post. Your time and focus is worth more than that. Plus, it makes checking these sites more fun because you something to look forward to!
- Utilize Do Not Disturb when doing something that matters. This is one of the most amazing features on the iPhone to give you more space and control. I use it daily.
- Phone NOT on Do Not Disturb = You are open to any and every distraction.
- Phone ON Do Not Disturb = Distractions are held waiting for you.
- Take phone breaks. When you’re with people who matter, you don’t need your phone. With them you’ll hear about what’s important. A phone has no use in that moment (unless you are playing Heads Up, of course). Leave it in your room. The mental clarity I’ve gained from taking phone breaks is well worth it.
- Enjoy what smart phones can do. You have a GPS, computer, calendar, contact book, video camera, personal assistant, phone, and iPod in your pocket… How cool is that!? Take advantage of it. I missed these things so much with the dumb phone. Life in 2015 is cool.
- Own your actions. It’s your life, your relationships, your time, and your focus. I’m done with having my daily life dictated by the constant pinging and white noise of the smart phone. My relationships, work, time, and happiness are worth enough to not let a phone get in the way. Your’s is too. “Nobody can give you freedom. Nobody can give you equality or justice or anything. If you’re a man, you take it.” -Malcolm X
That's it. Thanks for reading!
Clark
Sent from my iPhone
————— BONUS CONTENT —————
For fun, I thought I’d share a personal ‘log’ I did the first 3 days of the experiment. This will take you into the daily grind and experience.
Operation Dumb Phone Log
Day 1
Excited to finally do this. I feel naked.
Day 2
Had trouble when falling asleep last night because I felt uneasy about not having checked my phone. (“checked my phone” is a responsible sounding way of saying mindlessly scroll through social media). Cool thing: I had super vivid dreams for the first time in a long time. (Chime in from today–I actually had vivid dreams every night for the first month or so when switching phones. I’m convinced that’s not an accident.)
Day 3
Had a wonderful breakfast with my family with no e-mails to wake up to. I checked my phone, responded to my one text message (again, pain in the butt to text back) and then enjoyed 2 hours of peace with the family. (Grandmother, if you’re reading, this was when you made me cinnamon toast. You're the best. Love you.)
I drove downtown for an errand and had only a vague idea of where my destination was. With no GPS, this makes life interesting. I had to call the person I was meeting and get directions over the phone. That was kinda fun!
Driving to Austin, TX today. This should be interesting with no GPS to guide me.
…
So, I picked up a date tonight in Austin. And. Had. No. GPS. She gave me an address and it meant nothing to me. Luckily, I worked in Austin last summer and had a general idea of where she lived. I called her when I got close and she had to give me step-by-step directions. Talk about great first impressions with the family! (spoiler alert: I must have done something right because we’re dating now)
If there’s anything you need to take from this post, it’s this: get a flip phone if you want to find a significant other.
Okay, that's REALLY it. Thanks for reading all the way down here! *Virtual high-five*
