Is Your Cell Phone Your Best Friend or Enemy?

It’s not just kids who are always on their cell phones or iPad.

Your cell phone could easily be both your best friend and enemy and you not be aware of it.

I found out the hard way.

I tend to have a thirst for current news; business, sports, and politics pique my interest the most. On my phone I spend a lot of time reading articles from the Wall Street Journal, Citizen’s Free Press, Barstool Sports, and Real Clear Politics, however, Twitter was my main source of article content.

It seemed that whenever I had a free couple of minutes, I would reach for my phone and start scrolling. This was true first thing in the morning to any break while working, while on hold, while watching TV, you get the idea. My cell phone had become a time-sucking enemy, disguised as my friend. It never crossed my mind just how much of my free time was spent scrolling. Until I stopped altogether.

About one month ago, I stopped cold turkey.  When you spend time on apps like Twitter and Facebook you get ads and pop-ups sent to you whether you want them or not. It’s not just ads, it could be unsolicited gross sexual emails like my own mother and sister recently shared that showed up in their inbox. It’s everywhere online!

Often the ads are for things you shouldn’t be entertaining like gambling or adult-related sites.  They are designed to “make you look’.’ I looked more than once and shouldn’t have. I’m glad that is behind me and it was a wake-up call to remind yourself that when used wrongly, your cell phone can be your worst enemy.

So, what’s it like when you delete all the social apps and time-wasting bookmarks on your cell phone? It’s potentially life-altering. It allows you to become focused on the people and things going on around you. It’s hard to remember, but most of my life was lived pre-cell phone. The “Good Old Days” in many ways.

I’m able to focus much better on my work at hand. I am more engaged in every activity in which I am participating. I’ve taken it a step further this past week or so. I’m actually turning my phone off when I don’t need it. Therefore, I have no distractions or temptation to peek at my texts, emails, or news apps. It’s been awesome so far!

Instead, I’m taking control of my phone. Of course, I need to review texts, emails, and voicemails, but now I do it a few times each day and I’m not available to be distracted during every waking hour.

Maybe, I’m taking it too far, that’s my tendency, but I suggest you consider how much time you spend on your cell phone or iPad.  If you want to test out what I did, give it a try for one week. Delete the apps you spend (waste??) the most time on each week and see what you do with that time instead.

The amazing convenience and functionality of the cell phone, the apps, and the online material are both amazing and potentially dangerous. Relook at your personal use of this friend so it isn’t really an enemy in disguise.