I am back online after a short hiatus.
The need for change is how I began this digital minimalism.. I was deep into mindless social media scrolling, online searches, YouTube watching and sometimes game playing. Although I began to spend less time using my phone, I felt the need to make a bigger change. The idea began when I discovered Cal Newport’s book, Digital Minimalism. I read the book twice and made a commitment to try a month of detox suggested in the book.. It was a great way to start fresh.
I’m not going to lie, the first few days were rough. I would mindlessly reach for my phone out of habit.
Instead of randomly picking up my phone, I would pick up a book to read. I was prepared with an arsenal of good reads.
As days passed it got easier, I forget about my phone and what I was missing online, it felt like freedom. After the 31 days I re-evaluated how and why I use online sites, social media apps and what was necessary to keep or let go. The digital detox was an eye opening experience.
How I spent my time during the 31 days of digital detox:
- I finished 4 books and Digital Minimalism I read twice.
- Painted my art studio (spare bedroom) purged items, repaired walls and organized the space
- Found my old iPod during a clean up (it still worked!) I used it to listen to music
- Early morning walks, and sometimes an afternoon hike with my daughter
- Evening stargazing on my deck with the binoculars
- Organized every closet, and kitchen drawer or cabinet in the house
- Purged and donated many things we didn’t need anymore
- Created a reading nook in my living room
- Phone conversations and less texting
- More daydreaming
When my art space was back to normal I began to create and experiment with my art supplies. Somedays I only doodled, lots of ink doodles.
I highly recommend any of the books above. The Practice by Seth Godin a great read for any creative.
Thank you for taking time to read my journey.
