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Tuesday Tip # 6: Find time to leave your phone at home
This tip might be the most anxiety-inducing tip yet. If you’re like me and millions of other people, you probably NEVER leave the house without your phone.
It’s the classic routine before you leave your home: Wallet - check. Keys - check. Phone - check.
Even with that routine, I’ve been locked out of my apartment countless times because I’ve forgotten my keys. But I have never once accidentally left my phone at home.
For a lot of people, the simple thought of leaving the house without their phone inspires fear and panic. Scientists even gave it a name - it’s called nomophobia, which I just found out stands for No Mobile Phone Phobia. Learn something new every day.
But I’m here to tell you there is nothing to fear.
My girlfriend and I just got back from a walk outside without our phones. Instead of looking at our phones every couple of minutes, we were able to take in our surroundings - the crisp autumn air, the changing of the leaves, and each other’s company.
When you don’t have your phone with you in the outside world you’re forced to actually experience life. You’ll notice things you’ve long taken for granted. Things that as a kid you probably thought were extremely fascinating, but now you hardly notice as you march through life.
I recommend you start small. I know it’s impractical to leave your phone at home for an entire day at a time.
But maybe try a short walk around your home, or the next time you go to the grocery store, or when you go out to dinner with a friend.
When you do this, you’ll begin to develop a renewed appreciation for the ordinary things in life, and your desire to constantly distract yourself with your phone will diminish.
As I’m writing this I’m reminded of a great quote from Rick Roll (who you should definitely check out if you haven’t) - “Your ordinary life is not separate from the extraordinary world”.
Sometimes in the shuffle of life, I think we can forget to slow down and take it all in. Leaving my phone at home has helped me remember that even the simple things have extraordinary wonder underneath - it’s worth not missing them.
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