Think about this question carefully: why are you using social media? What is it that you are doing? What are you looking at? What type of content are you consuming? How does it make you feel? Aside from posting on your profile and killing the FOMO by looking at other people’s posts, other reasons …
Do the Following Reasons to be on Social Media Justify the Amount of Hours? Read More »
Try the following activity when you unlock your phone: Open 1 app, do whatever it is you want to do, lock your phone again, and put it away. Almost impossible right! We hardly do that. We may have the intention of opening just one app because there is a notification, but locking the phone …
Are You Really Paying Attention When You Listen on the Phone? Read More »
Your smartphone loves to show you all the possibilities the virtual world has to offer. Because we are conditioned to go for our phone once we want to escape the slightest form of discomfort, we learned to love it greatly. We sacrifice a lot for our phones. People are even sacrificing their dreams, relationships, …
Why You Want to Stop Loving Your Smartphone Above Everything Else Read More »
Smiles, happy faces, happy experiences. That’s what you often see when scrolling through any social media feed. Yes, people do post about serious events or opinions, but more than 50% of the time you’ll probably witness some uplifting posts. Because of the compare and despair phenomenon, you will quickly think that your life is …
True Happy Fulfilled People Don’t Post Constantly Online Read More »
When I tell you to think of a purple car, you will imagine a purple car in your mind. When I tell you NOT to think of a purple car, you will imagine a purple car in your mind. The same applies to the concept of the Law of Attraction. When you keep telling …
Who doesn’t love flying? The main experience starts when you enter the airplane while hearing this calm melody and a voice welcoming you aboard. You look for your seat, put away your hand baggage and finally sit down while looking for the seatbelt. Some people immediately take their book, send their last messages on …
You may have heard of intermittent fasting. You choose regular time periods to eat and fast. For instance, you might try eating only during an 8 hour period each day and fast for the remainder. Fasting for 16 hours is popular when it comes to intermittent fasting. You start your breakfast at 9 AM …
Introduce Intermittent Smartphone Fasting in Your Life Read More »
Reducing your phone use has a lot to do about what apps you have installed on it. Remove all apps and you will use your phone less. No surprise there. What we really want is to be able to use our phones less while all apps remain installed. This is possible but requires some …
It is much easier to fool someone online than offline. Online you can tell any person any story you want since all you need to do is typing the words. While typing you can decide to beautify particular details or invent details to spice up your story. I mean…who will find out right? The …
Move an Online Relationship to the Offline World Read More »
Who doesn’t love food!? A life without the pleasures of food will undoubtedly be less exciting. Food is one of the many go-to factors of life that we can feel easily grateful for. Like with anything, good high-quality food takes time. Patience, care, and dedication are required like with everything else that is great …
Enjoy Your Meal Without Posting About it on Social Media Read More »
When we approach someone or meet someone, questions will be asked. You ask questions to get information from that person. The more information you gain, the more opportunity there is to connect with the person. You learn about the person. You understand what the person is about it. You find out if this person …
Our phones have amazing high-quality cameras. The need for a separate device to film events, trips, and priceless moments is long gone. The smartphone brought many devices to old school level or made them simply obsolete. Combine that with the fact that a smartphone is not as heavy as a 90s camera, and you …
Scrolling is an addictive activity. The same applies to swiping on a dating app, you just don’t know when to stop. You tell yourself okay this is the last post I see or the last person that I will swipe left or right. But somehow you’re still scrolling or swiping 5 minutes later. Swiping …
Those days that we only have 1 screen to entertain ourselves with are long over. With the advent of the television we started to program ourselves that it is perfectly fine and normal to look at a screen for couple of hours. Then the personal computer made its introduction which was great for processing, …
Smartphones are marvelous. Smartphones are fantastic and enhance our lives in such unique ways. There are so many opportunities for grabs because of our smartphones. The invention is so phenomenal, that we often get a little bit too excited… We want to use it all the time!! If only we would be able to …
Facebook is known for its many (hidden) settings that are actually very important to be aware of! Facebook’s mission is to connect you to the world. In other words, many default settings of your profile cater to this very mission. Is this a good thing? I don’t believe it is. Facebook users should consciously …
I won’t tap dance around this very important message: Whenever you can: enable the two-step verification option. There is no way around it. It is super important that you secure all your accounts, whether they are social media accounts, email accounts, messaging accounts gaming accounts, etc. Don’t wait. Don’t postpone this. Make hacking into …
If you would go back in time to 1952 and tell people how much information we are sharing with another in our present time 2020, they may be thinking we are stalking each other. The good citizens of 1952 will probably think why we care so much about sharing so much info about ourselves. …
As they say: time is money. Time is valuable. You can lose money but you can always make money. Time passes, but we can never create more time or buy more time. The sand in the hourglass is moving downward, we just don’t know how fast. Life could end in 60 years or tomorrow …
The ego, that voice in our mind is super clever. It comes up with very good reasons why you should not do something. You might feel this burning desire to act on a particular idea you are having, but that voice has the power to quickly dismiss it. The voice tries to protect you. …
Don’t Keep Hiding Online Because of Fear of Judgement Read More »
Having a supercomputer with you at all times offers astonishing advantages. It’s not hard to appear as the smartest person in the room when you’re allowed to use your phone. That small device can show you anything you want to know. It takes literally seconds to unlock your phone, open an app, and enter …
Don’t Allow the Google Effect To Make Your Brain Lazy Read More »
You can find all sorts of information online. When you open YouTube to find a simple answer to a simple question, you never know what it could recommend you next. YouTube doesn’t necessarily try to lead you to content that is an exact copy of what you’re currently watching. What it tries to do …
Being a spectator of other people’s lives is easy. We spend lots of hours finding out what other people did, bought, or said. The more uncomfortable we feel about ourselves, the more we tend to look external. When scrolling, we see envy-inducing posts from our friends and especially influencers. Posts that make us say …
This year (2020) I’ve read the book Can’t Hurt Me by David Goggins. That’s the beauty of reading books from different writers: The ultimate message is the same, but there are so many ways of explaining just 1 concept. David Goggins has his own way of inspiring and motivating which doesn’t resonate with everyone. …
The pandemic is well underway and the situation is getting more hopeful with each week passing. Not everywhere, but in most countries. Hopefully, we can welcome 2022 with not only open arms but with the opportunity to feel the arms of society as well. This Big Pause as this pandemic is called, has changed …
Look for the Benefits While Experiencing the Big Pause Read More »
The internet is a busy place. Social media is a busy place. There is always something happening in the virtual world. Whenever you feel compelled to enter the virtual world, this busy place is ready to embrace you. All of our peers are found on the internet, it just takes a few clicks to connect with them. …
Focus On Being One Version of Yourself in the Offline and Online World Read More »
We can write a loooong list of things, people and activities, we want to have, do and be. Although many of such desires should be pursued, not all of them will make our lives necessarily better. Personally, I love M&Ms yellow and my emotional side would love to eat them every day. My rational …
Personally, I never watch all the rolling credits after finishing a movie. When I do, I check mainly the names of the actors who played the main characters. You probably notice that after seeing the names of the main actors, you start seeing e.g. cab driver number 1 or gangster number 2. You don’t …
If you follow me for a while now, you probably know that you are not Facebook’s customer. You’re the product. The advertisers are the customers since they pay money for Facebook’s services. If it wasn’t SocialMediaBreakup that made you aware of this, it was probably the Netflix documentary The Social Dilemma. Facebook wants our …
Your Data is Used to Predict and Control Your Behavior on Social Media Read More »
2 blogs ago I mentioned the idea to enable Dark Mode in your social media apps. When you enable Dark Mode, the white background changes to a black background and the font color changes from black to white. More apps are introducing the Dark Mode feature which is a positive development. Dark Mode is …
You have probably heard of the phrase “don’t get high on your own supply”. In Brian De Palma’s Scarface from 1983, Tony Montana (played by Al Pacino) does eventually fail to live by that vital rule which is the beginning of his drastic downfall. Smart dealers know how to make other people hooked on …
Personally, I have dark mode enabled on my iPhone device. When you enable Dark Mode, the white background changes to a black background and the font color changes from black to white. In low light conditions, you want to enable this option. Looking at your screen will be less “painful”. We all know how …
It’s interesting how we find it so important what people think of us. No wonder social media is so popular. We truly value other people’s opinions of us.It goes so far that we carefully craft posts and photos with the objective of gaining as many likes, hearts, and comments as possible.Unfortunately, that need for …
The smartphone is a powerful device. We keep thinking we are its master while unfortunately, it is often the other way around. The smartphone essentially is our master and we are its slave. We shouldn’t be too surprised, the smartphone is basically our new appendage. We bring it everywhere, literally everywhere with us. No …
Most of us know the saying: in order to be interesting, be interested When I ask you: what excites you in life? Do you have a clear answer? Not everyone does. We spend a lot of our time on media, activities, and people, but do they make us happy? Do we feel good about …
There are many stories of couples that are obsessed with their screens. When both partners are mindlessly scrolling, swiping, browsing, and typing without any real awareness, then this (worrying) behavior won’t be discussed in depth. However, when one partner “awakens” and becomes conscious of his/her useless activities on social media and devices while the …
Approach Your Partner Wisely When He Or Se Uses Social Media Too Much Read More »
We all know that feeling when a notification comes in. We feel that anticipation of what could be… It’s a joyful feeling (because of the release of the neurotransmitter dopamine). Who has sent me a message! What does the message say! That feeling of excitement when a notification comes in is known to us …
While we can easily expose ourselves on social media, it is daunting to show some levels of vulnerability. Posting photos online is not the hard part. There is an endless number of filters and effects you can apply to make that photo look like it came right out of a magazine. Revealing ourselves, our …
Don’t Focus on Educating Online Haters and Bullies Read More »
Many of us walk with our phone chargers on us. The idea of walking around with a dead phone is unfathomable. What would we do with ourselves if the battery of our phones ran out!? That feeling of nomophobia (no mobile phone phobia) is one we are eager to avoid at all costs. Human …
Every single activity you take on, how petty that might be, will one day be your last. We live our lives like it is something we have to get through. Do we really appreciate what we have now in this very moment? As Albert Einstein once said, “There are two ways to live your …
The wiser we become, the more we realize that experiences bring us long-term happiness, not gadgets, items, or things. We can experience with the help of things, but “a thing” in and of itself won’t bring long-term happiness, only short-term. Now that we are home a lot, we can find happiness and enjoy our …
Be Open to Connection and Fire Up Your Curiosity to Beat Loneliness Read More »
Afraid that someone will access your WhatsApp when your phone is unlocked? You can add an additional layer of security to your WhatsApp account. What about the possibility of only accessing your WhatsApp with your face or finger? Depending on the availability of the option Touch ID or Face ID on your device, you …
Enable Screen Lock in WhatsApp for Extra Security Read More »
When I was very young I watched Tom & Jerry, Cartoon Network cartoons like Dexter’s Laboratory and Johnny Bravo, and Hanna-Barbera cartoons like the Flinstones and the Jetsons. Many funny moments stuck with me, including a shoulder angel and shoulder devil bickering about what the character should or should not do. This stuck with …
Make Your Shoulder Angel and Devil Befriend Each Other Read More »
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
