I got a flip phone.
I woke up the a few mornings ago and was quite literally over having a smartphone.
I picked up my iPhone that morning and stared at it with disgust. The notifications, the emails, the jumping-from-one-social-media-app-to-the-next ritual was no longer serving me. I actually felt obligated to participate in all of it. And not only participate, but to begin participating at the ripe hours of 6 AM, fresh from my head leaving the pillow. It hurt to think that my first impulse in the morning was to reach for my phone.
The moment the idea of ditching my smartphone popped in my head, the resistant thoughts immediately started rushing in. How will you be creative and share it? How will you navigate in your car? How will you discover new inspiration? How will you take photos on the go? The thoughts went on and on. And because my brain was so adamant on convincing me to keep this tiny computer on my person at all times because of *what if*…I knew I had to get rid of it.
My husband and I drove to Best Buy later that morning and snagged me a flip phone.
I think ripping my smartphone off of me like a bandaid was the best approach. Don’t overthink, just dump it. Figuring out life with a dumb phone sounded like an adventure to me — A slightly scary and painful one to be honest, but an adventure nonetheless. I’ve had an iPhone for almost 12 years. For the most formative years of my life, I’ve carried a tiny computer in my pocket. Always. And I wanted to see life beyond the screen. I named my whole Substack off of this concept, I want to live life deliberately. And for me, that mean’t trying life without a smartphone.
I’m not anti-social media or anti-technology. But I don’t really need it in my pocket 24/7. It’s too tempting to pull out my phone and start scrolling. And half the time, I do it out of habit. Not even because I’m looking for something or I'm ready to catch up on a few things, just because my hand is used to reaching for the screen. I found myself pulling out my phone at the most random times and doom-scrolling. And over the last few weeks I kept catching myself and asking, “What am I looking for?”
Usually, I didn’t have an answer. And that started to really get to me.
The first day without my iPhone, I felt irritated. I kept questioning my decision over and over again. While also feeling frustrated that my usual comforts were stripped from me. Not being able to just pull out my phone and google something quickly or have a quick scroll while standing in line. And that’s when I noticed I was trying to fit my “old” (as in a few days) smartphone lifestyle, into my new dumb phone lifestyle. And getting frustrated that I couldn’t do that easily. When, that’s really not the point of switching to a flip phone. It’s a big lifestyle change and I learned I needed to embrace it rather than fight it to reap the benefits I’m desiring.
As a few days past, the irritation let up. I set up my calendar on my computer, got a bit quicker at texting on the ol’ flip, discovered my car had built-in GPS, and I found a few radio stations to enjoy. I also started carrying around my camera and a little notepad with me to jot down any thoughts, dates, or things I’d like to remember. (Or things I’d like to google later when I got home.)
Because the truth is, I don’t need instant gratification all the time. I can wait to get home to check my email, share on Instagram, or what have you. I don’t need to be able to scroll through Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, etc. whenever I am needing a quick escape from myself. Instead, I can be still. I can sit with myself, observe, ponder, jot a thought down, take a photo, smile at a stranger, pray. I can just be. Having a tiny computer attached to my person at all times is not a requirement for living on Earth — Even though society makes us feel that way.
My hope is to live more, create more, be more present with my family, talk to strangers, and live without a glowing screen tempting me in my pocket 24/7. It’s amazing how many times I’ve felt my hand twitch towards grabbing my iPhone but realizing I don’t have it. It’s been super eye-opening while at the same time, pretty freeing to leave the house without it.
I’m so eager to see how this adventure continues — I’m curious what I discover about myself and the world along the way. What I see, what I find myself doing instead of scrolling, who I meet, what I notice. I’m really excited to have a flip phone.
Thanks for reading and I’ll see you next week! <3
— Jak
Yes!!! Been minimizing my tech lately and it's the best feeling. Also !! We're reading the same book! Luv Rick Rubin