our ideas

When I go out to dinner, I look around to see a majority of people hiding behind a screen. I’m sure a lot of people (including me), find it frustrating when trying to talk with someone who can’t look up from their phone.

For those of you with iPhones, you may be aware of the Screen Time feature in your settings or widgets. Screen Time breaks down time spent on your phone through different categories of apps and activities (social media, gaming, creativity, other, etc.). It also tells you how many times you pick up your phone… yikes. You can see usage data by day or by week, and it compares your current average usage to previous weeks. 

The Screen Time feature allows you to set limits on different factors to lessen the time spent on your phone. I changed my preferences and set a daily limit of 45 minutes for social media with a 5-minute warning before my social apps are disabled. 

Another feature that should be set around when you go to bed for the full benefits is Downtime. Downtime is simply time you should spend away from your screen, and only allows access to specific apps.

Now I see how I spend time on my phone, I will implement changes to my screen time, in hopes of positive effects. How much time have you spent social networking instead of socializing, just today? Change your screen time settings and have interactions beyond the screen.