5 Ways to Unplug Daily (Without Missing Anything)

There is a lot of press lately about taking mental health breaks from your mobile device. Finally. People are starting to realize that you need to get that phone out of your hand every once in a while and interact with the world.

This is key in keeping a good balance of mental health. I think for us bloggers, this is a real issue that most of us have a problem with.

We find ourselves sucked into Twitter. The job never ends. There is that new post to promote, comments and likes to address and respond to. Images to put together. Pins to create. Scheduling to keep up with. Brands to pitch to. The list goes on. Prime blogger time is also prime LIFE time and we find other parts of our lives slipping.

If you are like me, there are times when I can list more daily activities and accomplishments completed or achieved by my followers on a given day than I can things I have gotten done. Can you relate? I bet you can.

It is always advisable to take a longer break from time to time, but sometimes an hour or so is all you need, especially if you do it daily. Here is a list of easy ways to incorporate some unplugged time into your busy schedule any day of the week, without missing anything crucial.

1. Change your charging schedule. Most of us probably charge our phones at night while we sleep. If you are having trouble keeping your hands off your phone during the day and nothing is working, change that up. Make a rule that if your phone is charging, you are not using it. Plug it in somewhere out of the way, and forget about it. Start charging your phone in the evening before bed so you go to bed with a full battery and an unplugged phone. This will give you time with your family, without the distraction of the device. If you aren’t the type that uses a full battery every day, you can also swap this out so that your charging time is in the morning, allowing you to get daily tasks done before you venture into your online life. Find a schedule that works for you, but also ensures that your phone doesn’t die in the night, especially if you need it to wake up. 
2. Unplug for meals. This works for family meals at home as well as group meals or drinks out on the town. Have everyone present put their devices in the center of the table for the duration of your meal or gathering, whoever reaches for their phone first pays the bill or does all the cleanup. If everyone successfully leaves their devices alone, split the bill or the chores evenly. 
3. Do you have a laptop or desktop computer? Take social media apps off of your phone and only allow yourself to use those if you are sitting at your desk and are in work mode. You would be shocked at how much time you gain with this. It pretty much forces you to focus on your social media and engagement within a certain timeframe, and since you are at a desk in work mode, you are much more focused on the task at hand and less likely to fall down a social media rabbit hole and lose a chunk of your day. 
4. Trying to teach your kids better mobile device habits? Initiate a challenge. Bet your kids you can go longer than them without picking up the phone. Specify a time frame, and reward parameters. Suggestions for rewards could be: ‘Loser does X chore every day for a week’ or, the winner gets to pick a place to eat out. This gets the whole family involved and also interacting with each other. It’s a win-win. 
5. Establish ‘NO TECH’ areas in your home. Make rules as to where devices can go and where they cannot go. Good suggestions are the dining room, to keep family meals tech-free, or living room during the evening hours to encourage family activities without the distraction of social media. Does your husband disappear into the bathroom phone in hand only to emerge 45 mins later knowing the score to every sporting event from last week? Make your restroom a no phone zone. Whatever you feel would work best for your household. 

I hope you enjoyed this list and are inspired to get unplugged every now and then!

Thanks for reading!