5 digital decluttering tips to bring you some peace
8 Jun, 2023
In a world filled to the brim with excess and anxiety, digital decluttering is something that might just have the power to help us. It’s certainly not only our homes and physical spaces that have the potential to become cluttered and overwhelming. Our phones and computers can get tangled, messy and dysfunctional too, inevitably affecting our poor overtaxed brains in the same way. When our phone, and our connection to it gets messy, it is nearly impossible to be mindful. And it’s so much easier to get lost, listless and overwhelmed amongst the digital clutter.
How many of us can relate to forgetting the world around us, or at least inadvertently opting out of it, while we’re scrolling away on our phone? And we quietly ride the waves of mindless meandering until the day has turned to night. I certainly know I’ve done it. And I also certainly know, that in losing my connection to the world; as I check and recheck apps and feeds over and over again, I become overwhelmed, stressed, sad, frustrated and confused often and easily. And, I miss out on my rightful day. Whatever it had in store for me, I missed it…
It could have been a beautiful day…
I could have learned, I could have loved, I could have connected or reconnected with someone. I didn’t though. Instead I watched tiny videos about nothing memorable and scrolled through photos, advertisements, and through the potentized insecurities of people that I don’t know. My thumbs are tired. And I watered the flowers of my own insecurities all day.
I believe that the most important aspect of digital decluttering, is in the acknowledgment that we deserve a life beyond what our screens are showing us, what they are offering us, what they are taunting us with. Here’s a few ideas on how we can make a mindful effort to use our technology as a tool, instead of using it as more than it deserves to be…
1) Go through your apps and delete the ones that are not serving you
As always, the first step in digital decluttering is to go through everything in search of the things that you don’t use, don’t need, and don’t want. Apps, info, or other any unnecessary thing that you don’t want to be using, or don’t need can be purged. And while you’re at it, you can also have a quick look at your email inbox to unsubscribe to mailing lists that are trying to sell you things that you don’t need right now. When you need something, you can go looking for it of your own accord. No need to be lured in by the flash sale, or enticing ads.
At this time, you could also have a bit of a thought about erasing the apps that you could possibly be addicted or inclined to, for a designated amount of time. This is in no way time to get alarmed, my friend. Deleting apps is really no biggie, and it doesn’t have to be forever. I delete Instagram all the time. I use it and I like it, but it’s also my weakness. So when I notice that I’m suddenly scrolling it when my intention was to check the weather and then go for a walk, I remove it for a day or so. It’s simple to redownload it later. And getting rid of it for a bit helps me to lose that ease of tripping into it without thought.
2) Turn off the sound notifications for everything that you can
Digital decluttering includes sound. The random alerts as you receive a text or an email, or a sale, they all pull us in. They remind us that we’ve forgotten about our phone. And so, this may be more important that it seems. Because we’re trained so that when we hear the sound, we get excited. And we come running. “What have we missed!?”
To find a way back to not being tethered to awaiting all these random sounds, we have to stop the sounds that don’t serve us. It will feel unsettling at first. But in time, it will change the way you respond to your phone. Now there’s likely no reason to turn off the sounds to things like a phone call or a text. Those are sounds that are useful. But it’s good to mindfully make that sound decision mindfully for yourself. I will say, however, that if you keep a text sound, make it as subtle and gentle as you can possible find while still being able to hear it. We don’t want to “jump” at the sound of an alert on our phone. Calm, ease, gentle is what we are going for. Nothing frightening or jarring. Find that balance.
3) Start and end your day without your phone
When we awaken, and our sleepy brains are taking in the world as they freshly step into consciousness, why not just let them be in the world? I have noticed that when I do start my day without a phone in front of me, it’s easier to not be quite so pulled in by my phone for the rest of the day. So for some time after unconsciousness, and some time before, just let your brain relax. Let it be, whether it’s gearing up for the day, or winding down for rest. Just let your mind do what it wants to. You could socialize, read, medititate, think. You could watch tv even. Just give your brain a little time without the phone before and after bedtime. You could also try a random hour or so during the day where you put your phone out of bounds. Just see what happens 🙂
4) Teach yourself not to use your phone mindlessly
Unless you are going to do something thoughtfully, like checking the weather, checking your banking, returning a text, etc, try to leave your phone alone. If you suddenly notice that you’re tapping this and that and just randomly in some social media app, step away. Try to focus on using your phone mindfully and not using it without thought as a boredom or anxiety buster. It’s not these things, It just wears a mask of being those things. And in the long run, it’s really not all that entertaining or interesting. And this doesn’t mean that there is no space for the social media apps. It just means that you might decide to go to them thoughtfully, and maybe for a certain amount of time. Or it could mean, as well, that you might realize that they’re not quite as alluring as you once thought.
Another way to help with digital decluttering, and using your phone more mindfully is to have an empty home screen, except for 4 apps at the bottom. There you can have important apps that you use to stay in contact with people. I have my banking, texting, phone and weather. But whatever seems easy and doesn’t force us to open things for mindlessness could be perfect. When we don’t have all those little app pictures staring us down with their powerful little red dots screaming at us to have a look at whatever new information they have for us, it’s calmer, and we can stay mindful easier.
5) Cultivate a desire to be a person who’s not always on their phone
When our head is down, when we are looking into the light of our phone, people see us as preoccupied. They see us as busy. And more often than not, if they had something that they wanted to share with us, they’ll hold it in, and keep it to themselves. But, when we are interacting with life around us, with our phone in our pocket, people are more likely to feel an openness from, and towards us.
Not only that, but in our marvellously odd world, subtleties abound. Little treasures are scattered and strewn throughout the day. And these tiny little events, happenings, realizations and inspirations have the power to rejuvenate us, to fill us, and to make us smile. But, only if we catch them. If not, all those fragments and specs of connection and beauty get washed away by the blue light of our insatiable phone. So, when you are with someone, give them the kindness of your own attention. Set the phone down, and experience a few moments of simply existing in the world with someone else. Conversation is unnecessary. But, to give your entire attention to the people, to the world around you, and to the life that you’re living, is a gift for them, for you, and for the world that is genuinely made better by your presence.
Conclusion
Digital decluttering is powerful. It has the potential to change us, and to change the world. Seeing the value of being in the delicate moments of our existence, and being ready to be part of what’s going on, will inadvertently open others to wanting to be part of this forgotten phenomenon with us as well.
And although it is a lost art, just puttering around, experiencing our existence is actually quite fun. And it’s where inspiration and life lives. But we’re not so good at it anymore, and it’s not quite comfortable. But it is worth the effort. So, sometime today, let’s set down our phone when we don’t quite want to, just to take a moment to appreciate something or someone in our space 🙂
Once again, thanks for your support, and lets meet here again next Thursday.
Until then, feel free to join me on instagram too.
You truly make the world brighter,
-Lyndsay