technology • mindfulness

iPhone Simplicity

Robert Crandall bio photo By Robert Crandall

iPhone Mindfulness

Point of the article:

How do I stay mindful while using an iPhone?

Problem:

The iPhone (and other smart phones) are on us 24/7. They are extremely useful - providing GPS directions, allowing us to capture any moment (and back up the image automatically).

But they are also a constant source of distraction. They (enable other services to) demand our attention. How does one enable the usefulness of the phone, without enabling the distrations?

WORK IN PROGRESS!

I want to be honest - this is a work in progress. I’m moving this from paper to Github so I can see the history of this document.

Jake Knapp has a better article than I do. His strategies didn’t work for me, so I’m trying my own. I needed more classification.

Solution

  • For everything on the phone, answer these questions:
    • Is it useful to have this app with me, everywhere I go, 24/7?
    • If not, does this app encourage me to be who I want to be?
  • If the answers are no, move the app to another system

My setup

Things to remove:

  1. Anything that encourages checking it multiple times per hour

    Litmus test - check the app. Go away for 5 minutes. Are you tempted to check the app again? If so, that app should be consumed during dedicated time, and doesn’t need to be on you 24/7.
    Litmus test 2 - would you check this app at a red light, or during some boring drive time?

    See Jake Knapp’s Infinity apps definition

    • Facebook
    • Reddit
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • Email*
  2. Mindless Games

    Litmus test: if you’re in a grocery line, would you play this? If so, remove it.

    If you can have a satisfying game experience in less than 30 seconds, it’s mindless. Use these as de-stressers, not as boredom busters. As in, don’t carry them around 24/7.

  3. Mindless Apps

    Litmus test: if you’re driving or at a red light, would you open this app?

    Again, think if 30 seconds provides a good session on the app. If so, punt this off to a dedicated time, like using an iPad or computer

    • RSS readers

Grey Areas:

Litmus test - would you open the app or play the game on a long bus ride, or waiting at a doctor’s office? If so, keep it. Grocery store line? Get rid of it.

  1. Games

    Games by themselves are fine, but be careful what type of games they are.

    Current state: leaving 3 longer games on.

    • Plants vs Zombies
  2. Deep reading
    • Instapaper* (see below)
    • Kindle/ebook app - This is a grey area, not so much for the mindfulness, but because reading a book on a phone changes the book for me. I don’t enjoy it as much, so I’m going to remove it. This is a very personal reason, of course, and doesn’t affect the mindfulness.

    Current state: removing Kindle

  3. Consuming information

    This is hard to classify. If you use an iPad/computer to sift information, send it to Instapaper, then use the phone to read that when bored, wouldn’t this encourage deeper reading? It’s the deep reading without ruining a book. I’ll keep it for now.

    Current state: keeping Instapaper

  4. Reference material

    For example, Wikipedia and IMDB

    By themselves, these are fine. But, in my usage, most often I look up reference information on my phone in order to find out if I’m right about something, not to learn something new. If that’s the only usage, remove it from the phone.

    How often do I need to look something up when I’m not around another device?

    Current state: removing Wikipedia and IMDB

  5. Browser

    What’s the use of removing the Facebook app if you can sign onto Facebook.com?

    Current state: removing browser

Things to keep:

  1. Storing information from brain to phone/cloud
    • Grocery lists
    • To do lists
  2. Apps that encourage interests
    • Camera
    • Music
    • Podcast
    • Library app
    • Fandango? Not used often, but very useful when it is used
  3. Utilities that assist in life
    • Maps
    • Insurance app
    • Meditation / Exercise apps
    • MyFitnessPal
    • Amazon - find cheaper prices, look up reviews of products
    • Photo backup
    • Weather
    • Unit conversion apps (especially if you’ve remvoed the browser, but Siri also works)
  4. Utilities for work
    • VPN token
    • Remote desktop
    • Password storage
    • Email*

Email - this is tricky. It’s handy to have, and I’ve setup enough rules that it’s not pushed to my phone unless really important. But it also encourages checking it multiple times per hour. I’d say turn off notifications if your life/work allow.