Yesterday I experimented with a day from electronics.
These are the rules I set for myself:
- I would not get on the internet to do things like surfing
- I would not use apps
- I would not check email
- I would not watch TV
I did allow myself to make phone calls and test since I did not want to cut communication. Also, I allowed myself to read books on my Kindle.
This is that I learned:
This is harder than I thought. It is almost like an addiction to want to waste time mindlessly doing things on the internet. It is like a neurosis.
It is difficult to be with my own thoughts because it forces me to reflect on things that might be uncomfortable. This is the main reason I think I need to do this more often. Though, had tons and tons of creative ideas.
I found that a lot of my self talk is negative. I need to resolve this.
I got bored and I was really lost on what to do with myself. This is something I need to overcome. Also, it tells me I need to come up with bigger things to do that do not require the internet. Maybe learning something or building something.
It made me want to find ways to spend more time with my friends. it was like I was drawn to them without the internet to hold my attention.
It also helped me to realize I need to interact with the world more not just the electronic world.
The following day I felt a bit refreshed and the best I can explain it is that I had low emotional jitters that are always humming unnoticed in the background. I did not feel these through the day or the morning of the following day.
Initially I had a goal to do this once a month but I realize I have some stuff to work through so I am bumping this up to every other week.