LPT, Phone needs to go!

Submitted by Next-Conclusion-3071 t3_z6ptcn in LifeProTips

I have noticed a few problems as of late.

Phone is taking to much time out of my day with social media.

I spend to much on in app purchases.

It is getting in the way of quality time with family.

I want to downgrade my phone to a level where I can't really play any type of game but keep gps I do not need internet and don't want any social media.

Are there any phones that can do this? I just noticed that this nasty cancer in my hand is the crux of many of my life's issues due to my own poor impulse control and want to fix it

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Cheriecoko t1_iy2n7b1 wrote

I say bite the bullet and delete the social media. I spent almost a week without my phone when it went for a repair and wow.

Now I have it back, I don't really use it that much. Delete the apps or use app timers.

I even found there are apps that let you block yourself from using your phone.

Good luck

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crazybutthole t1_iy2nmjp wrote

>Are there any phones that can do this?

Yes. The perfect phone to do this would be the one you are holding in your hand to read this post!

It is not about spending more money to get a different device.

This is on you friend. If you want it, all you have to do is either quit clicking on the app or delete the app. Its not that hard. But your self control must come from your self.

If you buy some cheap very limited phone you will not fix anything. You will probably just be unhappy for a week and then go back to your current phone.

When you say you are soending too much on in.app purchases.....it would be a worse decision to spend more on a new phone right?

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knowerofexpatthings t1_iy2mouw wrote

Why don't you delete the apps you don't want and then block them?

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Next-Conclusion-3071 OP t1_iy2rvsz wrote

I tried that, tried everything you could think of. I get so bad.

Most of these people are telling an alcoholic the equivalent of just sip don't throw the bottle away. It is a-little frustraighting

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LuckForJug t1_iy2zdce wrote

Please don’t compare alcoholism with your phone addiction.

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Jaded-Moose983 t1_iy3hb50 wrote

Willpower is a myth. What you are correctly proposing is the start of new healthier habits.

AFAIK, all phones have a GPS chip now for emergency services. If you are looking to keep navigation services, then I think any phone capable of doing that will also be able to use social media apps. In which case, using an app locker might be your best option.

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Next-Conclusion-3071 OP t1_iy3rfjx wrote

The best solution I have come up with that takes the bad away but keeps the positive aspects is getting an Apple Watch/smart watch and using that. Leaving the phone at home. I'll have all the convenience of the smart phone without a robust distraction system built into it. App blockers don't work past like a week or two for me. I need to change the environment I live in to quit, this is how I quit cigarettes as well. I have recognized my "willpower" is just not as genetically gifted as others so I need to have a-little more ingenuity when I solve my problems then just using brute force.

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hagridsumbrellla t1_iy3f2dr wrote

Good for you to recognize this issue! Wish that I had good advice for you but I have none. Good Luck and enjoy everything that you’ll be able to do with the time that is freed up.

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crossy1686 t1_iy2mp1j wrote

Maybe this isn’t obvious to you but it’s not the phone that’s the issue, it’s you. Delete the apps and stop looking at your phone so much, work on your behaviour instead of radically changing your lifestyle because you can’t behave properly.

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Kaliniaczek t1_iy2o7dh wrote

It's on you. If you are unable to control yourself, instal parental app. My niece has one, it basically allows parents to set time to certain apps for example 1h of til tok per day or after 10pm it shows night time screen and allows you to only make calls and nothing else up to certain hour.

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HardcoreKaraoke t1_iy2oom1 wrote

Buy a prepaid flip phone and a dashboard GPS for your car.

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Next-Conclusion-3071 OP t1_iy2rkyu wrote

This is what I was thinking, the other option is get a Apple Watch so I have gps and texting alittle smother and just use the watch and leave the phone at home.

I don't think most of these people understand they are just saying do better quit using your phone when that is not a solution at all

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karthie_a t1_iy2pfoy wrote

You still can use the same phone, uninstall all distractions from the phone. Use a computer to close all accounts. Keep either one or two media accounts only. Mute notifications from the media app which you decide to keep. Buy a wrist watch and use it for time. Avoid checking your phone. Set up a schedule on your phone which locks all apps during downtime. Personally I tried moving to a non smart phone due to banking and finance could not do so.

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benjiyon t1_iy2rahu wrote

I know this isn’t what you want to hear, but spending money on a new phone won’t solve the problem. Even the biggest app addiction can be beaten with willpower.

The trick is to challenge yourself to quit for a short time - like 3 days without gaming or social media. When you’ve completed that, you can re-download the app, or challenge yourself self to go one more day without. You’ll soon realise you don’t really need it even if it’s there.

Most of the time we go on our phones automatically without thinking. Whenever I pick up my phone automatically, I stop and ask myself why I need to go on my phone - if I don’t have a good reason, I put it back down because it’s good to feel bored sometimes.

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keepthetips t1_iy2m8m3 wrote

Hello and welcome to r/LifeProTips!

Please help us decide if this post is a good fit for the subreddit by up or downvoting this comment.

If you think that this is great advice to improve your life, please upvote. If you think this doesn't help you in any way, please downvote. If you don't care, leave it for the others to decide.

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alihowie t1_iy2minb wrote

Tempted to go flip as well. Take the smartphone when I super need it.

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ClearOfMind t1_iy2sotz wrote

Careful not to dismiss this as a “use more willpower” conversation. For some, smartphones are as much an addiction as alcohol for others. You wouldn’t suggest “it’s on you to just not drink as much liquor from the bottle”… that ain’t gonna work out so well.

Google “dumb phones” and look at the results. Hopefully you’ll find something that can meet your needs.

I also spend WAY too much time on my phone and have deleted apps, set limits, created reminders, but seem to revert back to over-use. Phones, apps & social media have been designed to stimulate dopamine hits that keep you hooked. Losing my phone last year was actually amazing and I really didn’t want to reconnect, but here I am at 2:42am replying to your post.

You can do this… but the others are correct that in the end, it is up to you to change your habits.

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Next-Conclusion-3071 OP t1_iy2rpcc wrote

I appreciate all of your feedback,

I will just get a flip phone they are 20 bucks and less stress then battling an addiction I have all-ready tried to quit a million times

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hagridsumbrellla t1_iy3gwsm wrote

To me, that sounds like an alcoholic saying they’ll switch to just beer. That said, on the way to not smoking at all, I switched from menthol to non-menthol, lol.

I also did things like didn’t smoke while drinking certain beverages or driving, and then kept adding things to the list that I didn’t do it during. The hardest were not doing it in the car, in my bedroom, or when angry.

Keep in mind that we don’t actually stop doing something… it’s more like replacing one behavior with another. Start with replacement behavior that is enjoyable or rewarding, keeping in mind to make it something that you would want incorporated into your life and not one more thing to have to change later.

Good Luck!

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