Several months ago I knocked a bottle of water straight onto my phone, dumping liquid into its electronic heart and causing it a cardiac arrest. Whilst it was not completely unusable (I could answer calls) it turned my Samsung from a Smartphone to a Dumbphone, causing me to try surviving phoneless. In the modern era this is about as debilitating as losing an arm (or perhaps a more pertinent metaphor would be a neural network). However, I decided I should suffer for my negligence and not immediately rush out to by a new one. In reality, this was not painful at all.
Indeed, I found it liberating.
Unless something is removed, you don’t quite realise just how reliant you are on it. I’m sure this is true of people going through break-ups and readjusting to single life. There’s an intense calibration which must occur as a result. Losing mobile access to the internet felt similar. Being unable to Google the answer to questions which plagued me took a week or so to mentally adapt to. Even worse was the crack-like form Twitter takes in the mobile app. However, as the withdrawals, err, withdrew, I could see things in a clearer light. I realised just how maladapted we have become due to Smartphones.
‘Postcard Mentality’
Listening to Adam Townsend speak recently on Logocentrifugal’s podcast (you should give it a listen if you like highbrow discussion) I was struck by how accurate his speech on humans having adapted a ‘Postcard Mentality’ was. He described how the overwhelming majority can no-longer build a complete picture of an event, or issue, before coming to a conclusion. Instead, most see a snapshot and fill in all the details themselves from this ‘postcard’ image.
I’ve seen this discussed in a similar light prior. Indeed, the political polarization taking place in the lead-up to this election (and in reality much before) is one prong of the same process. And at the heart of this is synaptic overload caused by Smartphones. We are constantly exposed to a continual stream of nonsense for us to consume. And because Smartphones suck us in so fully, we never leave room to ruminate.
For example, I recently posted a Tweet about how I believe phones should be banned in gyms and challenged people to give a reason why I’m wrong. Honestly, none of them met the mark and were all excuses for distracting yourself when you should concentrate on working out. The only one I could even mildly countenance was due to poor music being played at the gym. This I sympathise with. However, many were giving the argument of needing to distract themselves – listening to podcasts or work on business deals (your workout is the time and place for that?). This right here is the core of the problem with Smartphones.
Instead of focusing on your immediate purpose, you split your mind into two separate parts. This creates a lack of attention on the moment. By diverting yourself from the NOW, you break the intensity of your workout. I didn’t notice this until I tried surviving phoneless. Instead of the same workout taking 1 hour, it took 45 minutes – and I’m not someone who (thought) they used their phone a lot whilst there.
If you apply this to other areas of your life, you realise how much time is wasted on these diversions — and how much you can gain by surviving phoneless. Focus is fast becoming a superpower and Smartphones are the reasons why. But when we think about the ‘postcard mentality’ Townsend discussed and realise that – even whilst working out – people are exposing themselves to online distractions, it hints at how much we are being overwhelmed by this change. When you live without a phone, you cannot ignore this any longer.
No Space to Ruminate
A big part of this change comes from Smartphones removing the space to ruminate. Traditionally, in our downtime, humans had to entertain themselves. If we were waiting for a bus, were early to a doctor’s appointment or waiting to be served a coffee we had a small window to address the problems we were facing in our life. Or we could simply reflect on what happened earlier in the day. Maybe we could daydream, and imagine a new reality. It didn’t matter exactly what we used these spaces for, but we used them to think. This is absolutely essential for good mental health, as humans are designed for this.
But Smartphones have clogged that time where we develop ourselves, our thoughts and our minds. Instead of personal reflection, we allow the thoughts of others precedence in our brain. Instead of meditating on what we think we are told what somebody else thinks. This subtly programs humans, allowing them to be more easily manipulated and led astray.
When we are bombarded with information, we lose the ability to think properly, manifesting as the ‘Postcard Mentality’. Instead of noticing logical flaws, or realising we have a lack of data to extrapolate from, we instead fill in the blanks with preconceptions. We see two unrelated dots and draw Pinocchio. If more people tried surviving phoneless, this would remedy.
Another key factor behind these changes is the lack of desire to find out more depth about issues.
Again, this is due to the shortening attention spans produced by Smartphones. In the past, most understanding of issues came from reading books. Long, in depth magazine articles were also more prevalent. These would require far more research to write and would wrestle with ideas in a more rigorous way than a 280 character Tweet can.
This could be avoided; it is possible, of course, to not use our phone so much. And many can enact that discipline. However, in general, most adapt to the environment they find themselves in – not to mention that phones are designed to be addictive. There are entire teams who work on how an App can override discipline and suck you in.
Surviving Phoneless?
And for those who actually wish to live entirely without a Smartphone, the way society is geared means doing so is increasingly difficult.
I found this myself in my period surviving phoneless. Once my motorcycle broke down on the way to work, and I was stuck. I had no way to contact people (I could only receive calls, not make them). Luckily, a mechanic spotted me on the way to work and came over to help me. Crisis averted; this problem was solved the old-fashioned way. However other issues arose, too; issues which are endemic to modern life. Due to these, I decided it was prudent to replace my broken device. My 3 months without a phone were up.
But as a result of this period I will be far more intentional with its usage. I am only going to use it for communication. Twitter will be staying off of my phone and I will not succumb to temptation and use it to distract myself, when I could be ruminating. I would advise you all to take some time to think about how you use your phone – or whether it is using you.
Always Reflect
In reality it will often take a time without something to make you appreciate what it’s doing for you, both for better or worse. Absence makes the heart grow fonder, as the saying goes, but absence can also provide respite. For me, living without a phone reminds me why I was so resistant to buying one in the first place. It was only 4 years ago I got my first Smartphone, often citing that “if I don’t have one, I won’t need one.” There was wisdom in these words, and I regret succumbing to temptation. I don’t know if it would be possible to live entirely without one in the country I live – particularly with changes resulting from the Coronavirus.
The desire to phase out cash (which has long been a goal of certain political factions) has been furthered in this period. If that were ever to occur, life without a Smartphone may well become impossible. Perhaps that is the goal of their ubiquitous presence. Perhaps they aim to be a mark of Revelation. Who knows.
Certainly not me.
But one thing’s for sure; these three months without a phone have been eye-opening. Perhaps you should give it a go.
You never know, you might just learn something.
PS. “Weaponized Sex: Feminism’s Assault on Women” is out now! The result of months of writing and years of thinking, I’m very proud of this work. If you enjoy my writings, please consider supporting me through its purchase, as well as rewarding yourself with a fascinating tale of Sex, Soul and Society.
As a result of publishing, I will be dedicating more time to my blog again, so expect a greater frequency articles in the coming months.
Thanks for reading.