🪶7 Lessons from 7 Challenges
Tips & Tricks as a celebration for the 7th wave of Unplug & Unfold
The 7 lessons 🪶
Next week, the 7th wave of the “Unplug & Unfold”-challenge will start.
I thought it would be fun, as a celebration, to share 7 tips on how to positively change our relationship with digital distractions. The 7 things that had the most impact on my own life and others who went through the challenge.
Don’t worry, I won’t overload you with too much information right away. I will share the lessons one by one in the following newsletters ;)
Let’s start with the first one:
Tip: Take a month-long break
Tip: Calculate …
Tip: Explore …
Tip: Investigate …
Tip: Buy …
Tip: Block …
Tip: Challenge …
Tip 1: Take a month-long break
I feel the urge. I have to watch. I missed you so much.
It’s September 2021, and I just finished a month without YouTube.
All these videos that I missed.
A month earlier, I had read a book called “Digital Minimalism” by Cal Newport. This book had inspired me to take a month-long break from several digital distractions.
At the end of the month, the cravings for Instagram and Facebook had completely faded away, but YouTube was a different story.
I wondered if the channels I was subscribed to had posted a new video, so I reinstalled the YouTube app and opened it.
With big eyes, I saw an attractive thumbnail and clicked on it.
…
Three minutes into the video, I pushed the pause button.
Why does this suddenly feel so boring? What used to be so exciting about this that made me watch for YouTube for hours?
My whole experience of YouTube had changed. My urge for binge-watching YouTube videos was gone. In exchange, I had gained several hours extra in my day to do the stuff I really wanted to do.
Imagine yourself holding a snow globe. Every time you spend time on a digital distraction such as YouTube, it is like shaking the snow globe. When you do it regularly, the white snowflakes in this crystal ball are everywhere and blocking the view. It is difficult to see what is truly inside of the snow globe.
Now, take a break from shaking the snow globe and see what happens. It might take up to a month, but if you wait long enough, one day, all the snow will be settled and you can observe the digital distractions as they truly are. Now, you can clearly see if it provides any real value or if it is just distracting you..
By taking a month-long break from your digital distractions, you give yourself the opportunity to let the snow settle and have a similar experience as I had with YouTube.
I’m strongly convinced this is the best way to positively change your long-term relationship with digital distractions such as YouTube, Instagram or Netflix. Period.
(read the following newsletters to get more tips)
The 7th challenge:
Interested in changing your relationship with digital distractions so that you can finally do what you really want? Then join the 7th wave of the “Unplug & Unfold”-challenge and get to know some other like-minded people!
Wave 7: “Unplug & Unfold”-challenge starting on Tuesday the 22nd of April
