Digital Detox at AB Tasty, Are You Ready?

 

Is it truly possible to work remotely and do a digital detox at the same time? It seems impossible and completely preposterous. However, digital detox does not mean cutting out digital completely. Instead, digital detox refers to a period of time when a person refrains from using tech devices such as smartphones, televisions, computers, tablets, or social media sites. 

For many people, a typical day goes something like this: Wake up and check emails on your cell phone, listen to a podcast on the drive into work then spend the next seven hours staring at your desktop or laptop screen. Later, during your coffee break, you scroll through social media on your mobile phone, listen to another podcast on the way home and finally watch Netflix or play video games until it’s time for bed.

So before you decide if it is right for you, consider some of the reasons for a digital detox, the potential benefits, and the methods of doing it.

 

1/ Four Reasons for a Digital Detox ✅

 

• Technology Can be Stressful 🤯

While people often feel that they can’t imagine life without their tech devices, research and surveys have found that technology can contribute to stress. For many, the constant need to keep checking emails, texts, and social media accounted for the majority of this tech stress.

 

• Digital Devices Can Disrupt Sleep 😴

Heavy device use, particularly before bedtime, can interfere with sleep quality and quantity. In addition, using social media when you are in bed at night increases the likelihood of anxiety, insomnia, and shorter sleep duration.

 

• Constant Connectivity Affects Work/Life Balance ⚖️

That feeling of always being connected can make it difficult to create boundaries between your home life and work life. Even when you are at home or on vacation, it can be hard to resist the temptation to check your email, respond to a text from a colleague, or check in on your social media accounts. 

 

• Social Comparison Makes It Hard to Be Content 😓

If you spend time on social media, you have probably compared your own life to your friends, family, total strangers, and celebrities. As a result, you might think that everyone else seems to be leading a fuller, richer, or more exciting life based on the tiny, curated glimpse you see on their Instagram or Facebook posts. 

As the saying goes, comparison really can be the thief of joy. Detoxing from your social connections can be an excellent way to focus on what’s essential in your own life without comparing yourself to others.

Doing a digital detox may help you establish a healthier, less stressful work-life balance. The key is to do it without feeling cut off from what’s happening in your digital world.

 

2/ The Benefits of Digital Detox ✨

 

There are several and more or less powerful benefits depending on your situation or personality: 

• Reduces stress 😊
• Reduces FOMO 😇
• It helps maintain a work-life balance ⚖️
• Allows for a more positive life perspective ☀️
• Strengthen  relationships 💛
• Boosts  productivity 💪
• Increases  attention 🤓
• Contributes to better sleep 🤗

 

From this perspective, we will measure the need to do a digital detox and try to reach these benefits.

 

3/ Are You Able to Say If You Need a Digital Detox? 🤔

 

Take some time to read the following ten points, and if you answered yes to more than six points, a digital detox could be what you need! 📝

• Are you feeling anxious or stressed out when you can’t find your phone? 
• Are you checking your phone every few minutes? 
• Are you reaching for your phone at the dinner table?
• Is it complicated to find time to sleep? 
• Are you feeling depressed or anxious after spending time on social media?
• Are you preoccupied with likes, comments, or reshare counts on your social posts?
• Are you having trouble concentrating on one thing without having to check your phone?
• Are you afraid of missing something if you don’t keep checking your device?
• Are you often staying up late or getting up early to play on your phone?
• Have you unplugged for 24 hours recently? 

 

4/ So Now, How to Do a Digital Detox ⚒️

 

A digital detox does not require complete separation from all digital devices and social media connections. 

The idea is to be realistic. The key is to disconnect something that works for your schedule and your life. 

So first, set yourself one or several objectives. Then, set up an action plan. Break it down into small steps and find your own pace. You can modify this plan as you go along.

🥅 Objectives:

For instance:

• If you need your devices during the day for your job, try doing a mini-detox at the end of the workday. 
• If you can do a complete digital detox for a certain amount of time try doing it for the AB Tasty One Year Retreat Day. 🧘🏿

 

Or you might want to only limit your digital device usage:

• When you are waking up or going to bed
• When you are eating meals, particularly when having lunch with your colleagues or during the Thank-you Office Weekly Breakfast 🥐 ☕
• When you are working on a project 💻
• By removing distractions such as push notifications on your phone on Slack.
• When you are spending time with friends or family 👪
• By setting aside a specific time each day when you’ll check your messages or mentions. ✔️
• By picking a day of the month to go device-free 📅
• By focusing on a particular app and restricting or deleting it for a specific period of time. 📱
• Before you go to sleep each night

 

If you find it is difficult to slow down, you can let your friends, colleagues, and family know that you are on a digital detox. And you can ask for help and support from MindDay and talk to a specialist. 

And if you feel isolated or alone, encourage yourself to do activities on Windoo like yoga, cooking, meditation away from your cellphone, and socializing with other people!

Are you ready to try it now? Let us know, and good luck! 🍀