The Gift Of Screen Free Time
Hi there, and welcome back.
This month, since we’re celebrating Screen Free Week I thought it might be a good time to offer some advice on how to increase your ability to pay attention to tasks you choose to undertake.
After two years of constantly being told we were in danger of contracting a serious illness, many people feel their ability to concentrate on anything else has been damaged. They’re both right and wrong.
The body’s response to potential danger is to produce increased amounts of cortisol to help us fight or escape the danger, so the continued high levels of cortisol we’ve endured has indeed made a negative impact on our ability to focus on topics of our choice. This is not, however, irreversible. Just as you learned to stay on high alert for long periods, you can relearn how to let down your guard and focus on what you choose. One way to make this relearning easier is to put your phone away—turned off, out of reach, and out of sight.
This is illustrated beautifully in two experiments carried out by Adrian Ward at the University of Texas and colleagues across California. They recruited participants to complete a challenging pencil and paper task. Some participants were told to leave their phones in another room; some were instructed to put their phone in their bag or pocket; while others were allowed to keep their phone on the table beside them—turned on for some and off for others, and either face up or face down.
The result? Participants whose phones were in another room significantly out-performed all the others, while those whose phones were on the table beside them did worst—and it made no difference whether the phone was face up or face down, or even whether it was turned on or off.
Therefore, be warned: our phones are powerful distractors. Even their presence, turned off, is enough to disrupt concentration. Why not give yourself a regular gift: every day for a set period of time, turn your phone off and put it somewhere out of sight and out of reach. Then enjoy the ability to focus properly on whatever you choose.
Until next time,
Best wishes,
Linda