Johan Versteegh

  A strategy you can introduce is to declare out loud to yourself why you are going for your smartphone. Your actions should be intentional. So be clear about why you go for your phone and what apps you are planning to use. If you are in a situation where you are not alone and …

Declare Out Loud Why You’re On Your Phone Read More »

  We are very ambitious when we think about introducing change in our lives. Oftentimes we declare bold statements like cutting our social media use by 50% or using a dumbphone that will replace our smartphone. These declarations are made with the best of intentions of course. Unfortunately, we often underestimate the willpower that is …

Start With Daily Mini Digital Detoxes Read More »

  Many times I’ve said it: I understand why many people are reluctant to delete all social media apps. There are many reasons why one wants to keep using social media apps. Although it is a strategy to simply delete at least 1 social media app, let’s try something else. Game apps have no reason …

Delete News Apps From Your Smartphone Read More »

  The idea to disable all your social media push notifications can be daunting.How would you know instantly what is happening in your account right?Of course, we can debate about the importance of being constantly up to date, (and I do talk about this in many other videos), but let’s focus now on that feeling of …

Check Your Social Media Notifications Every 30 Minutes Read More »

  Airplane mode and Do Not Disturb have both their unique benefits. We all know we have to enable airplane mode when we’re on the plane and it is about to take off. Nowadays we are sometimes allowed to enable Wi-Fi so there is access to the internet up in the air. Nevertheless, no one …

Airplane Mode VS Do Not Disturb VS Disabling Mobile Data Read More »

  In an earlier blog, I mentioned how time is our most valuable currency. The more we become aware of this, the more we won’t allow ourselves to scroll our lives away. There will be a day where we wish we had more time. If we can envision ourselves in the future looking back on …

Invest Your Time Instead of Just Spending Your Time Read More »

  In a previous blog, I wrote about the brain chemical dopamine. Dopamine is the reason why we can’t wait to run to our device when it demands our attention.Nothing can stop us when we want to grab our phone.Our full focus is immediately on our device.The reward center in your brain releases dopamine in …

Dopamine Rush Results in a False Sense of Accomplishment Read More »

  The battle that we constantly fight our entire lives, is the one between our shoulder angel and shoulder devil. I never forget those cartoons like the Looney Tunes and Tom & Jerry where you see the shoulder angel and should devil quibbling about what the character should be doing. Fascinating. That’s exactly the battle …

Control Your Screen Time With an Accountability Partner Read More »

  If you’ve done some research on phone addiction, then you probably came across dopamine. Neurons that release dopamine are activated when we expect to receive a reward. The reason why we grab our phones quickly, is that the chemical dopamine is released, a key neurotransmitter for regulating our sense of craving. This pleasure related receptor in the …

Dopamine Makes You Feel Excited to Use Your Phone Read More »

  Time is our most valuable currency.Time is literally ticking away and every single second that is passing is forever gone.Our lives equate to an hourglass, slowly we’re running out of time.The big mystery is how much time will we end up having.40 years? 10 years? 18 months? We just don’t know.That’s why one of the …

Schedule Time Blocks For Your Social Media Use Read More »

  Apps have their own features that help you to use the app more mindfully. The YouTube app is one of them. Multiple times have I mentioned that YouTube is my most challenging app. YouTube offers loads of content including informative, educative and inspiring content. But whatever can be found on that platform, there is …

Use YouTube Features to Help You Stay in Control Read More »

  You have probably seen the thought-provoking documentary The Social Dilemma on Netflix by now. The documentary shares many insights about social media and delves into the implications of social media addiction as an invasive force in our everyday lives. You will realize why it is so important to be mindful of the time you …

5 tips From Docu The Social Dilemma to Control Your Social Media Time Read More »

  We want to be socially connected constantly no matter what we’re doing. The problem is that this desire keeps people from fully experiencing what they are actually doing. Instead of landing in the moment, we have to witness the moment in order to share it. Social media gives people a platform for the most …

Don’t See Posting on Social Media as an Obligation Read More »

  When we’re immersed in our devices and someone enters the room to ask us a question, we have to (annoyingly) look up.Whether we have our devices in our hands or not, we have to leave our phones alone when someone wants our attention in the offline world.It’s common courtesy.Now ask yourself: when the conversation …

Wait for the Person to be Out of Sight Before Grabbing Your Phone! Read More »

  We used to unlock our devices with a short passcode. This short passcode changed into long passcodes the more stories were shared about security breaches. Then in 2013 Apple introduced Touch ID. Passcodes were no longer necessary to unlock our smartphones. A finger would suffice. Since 2017 fingers are no longer needed (theoretically) to …

Unlock Your iPhone With Just Your Voice Read More »

  Apple’s built-in fingerprint sensor Touch ID made its introduction in 2013 with the advent of the iPhone 5S. Since then every subsequent iPhone included the Touch ID option till it got replaced with Face ID. Face ID is Apple’s facial recognition system which made its introduction on the iPhone X in 2017. Now our …

Disable Touch ID & Face ID on Your iPhone Read More »

  If you just want to “waste” time online because you’ve nothing else to do, be careful that you don’t get triggered by some post that you happen to disagree with. Using Twitter aimlessly is similar to walking around aimlessly somewhere while analyzing if someone is saying something you like or dislike. The focus is …

Have Already a Purpose When Using Twitter Read More »

  Multiple times I have referred to the phone lounge: a place where you leave your phone when an area in your home becomes a no phone zone.An example of a phone lounge is a drawer in the hallway, a closed box, and a different room.What you also want to set up aside from this …

Have a Designated Mini Lounge in the Area You’re In Read More »

  The news feed is often the first thing we see when we go on social media. We are immediately confronted with photos of our friends, “friends” and people we follow. Such posts can make us react in various ways. We can become sad and frustrated because of other people’s highlight reels. This doesn’t necessarily …

Mess Up Your News feed and End the Endless Scrolling Read More »

  One of the first lessons we receive when it comes to using computers is to use a strong password. Many years ago when we created an account, we didn’t think more than a few seconds about our password. Many years ago our computer and account passwords consisted of 6 characters and we never worried …

Use a Sentence as a Passcode For Your iPhone Read More »

  Rarely do I say to simply delete social media apps. When you’re used to using a specific app not just on a daily basis, but on an hourly basis, the chances are high you will resist deleting that app. So oftentimes I introduce other strategies that will hopefully make you more aware of your …

Delete Your Social Media Apps (At Least One) Read More »

  Lately, I have asked you various times if you have watched the Social Dilemma documentary on Netflix. I think it is not necessary to ask you again. I have mentioned this documentary multiple times in my videos and blogs. Doesn’t mean I will stop talking about it 😀 There were various revelations that shocked …

The Social Dilemma Reveals AI Knows Us Better Than We Know Ourselves Read More »

  Step 3 of my 6 step formula to curb phone and social media addiction is Digital Citizenship. This step is about embracing tech and learning how to use tech, social media, and the internet wisely. One of the strategies I recommend is to stay up to date on platforms and devices you are using …

Use Google Alerts to Stay Up to Date on Tech Read More »

  The documentary the Social Dilemma available on Netflix is a must-watch. There is no better moment than now to watch this, especially now that we are currently in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. If you’re thinking of deleting any social media accounts, then this documentary can result in that final push. The documentary …

Have You Watched the Social Dilemma on Netflix? Read More »

  Do you know what boundaries you want to introduce in order to reduce your phone usage? There are both online and offline boundaries you can activate to create friction. The question is do you have a list of strategies you want to use? Examples of digital boundaries are Do Not Disturb, blocking apps, greyscale, …

Let the Alarm Remind You to Activate Boundaries Read More »

  We are wired for connection. To belong. To matter. It’s very important to have social interactions. When we don’t, it can have detrimental effects on our mental health and wellbeing. Many of us can attest to this due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We are home and can’t meet our friends and family who are …

Transform Your Loneliness into Aloneness Read More »

  We quickly gravitate to a bright red color, that’s why many apps have bright and warmer icons. It’s the reason why the notification bubbles are red.  They jump out so we need to know what that notification is all about! A major contribution to why our smartphones can be addictive is because of those …

Enable the Greyscale Feature on Your iPhone Read More »

  With the COVID-19 pandemic, we are forced to remain indoors as much as we can. We can still go outside, but many activities that we always took for granted are not possible or are organized in such a way that there is a maximum amount of people. This means the majority of our time …

Focus on How and Why You’re On Your Screen Read More »