The Benefit of Phones with No Internet
My life looks something like this:
Wake Up.
Check my phone.
Do yoga with a Youtube video. On my phone.
Check my phone.
Wake up kids.
Check my phone.
Receive a text.
Answer.
Drive kids to school. Try not to text in the car.
Text in the car.
Sit down to work.
Check my phone.
And so it continues for the rest of the day, until I get into bed.
Watch YouTube.
Fall asleep.
Hi, I’m Rea and I’m addicted to my phone.
According to the Pew Research Center, 30% of American adults say they are “almost constantly” online. I definitely count myself among them.
I’ve often thought about how to break the cycle. I’ve deleted certain apps, then downloaded them again. I’ve set up screen time limits on my phone, then disabled them. I’ve left my phone in the kitchen when I go to bed, then brought it upstairs.
I’ve realized this problem is beyond my control. It’s not a question of willpower; there’s no delicate balance that I can strike that will relieve me of my phone addiction.
But I still need a phone. I work with clients overseas. I have kids in school. I have to stay connected.
What I need is a phone without internet.
Luckily, there’s Kosher Cell. (“Kosher” means protected to a higher standard.) Their safe phones have no web browsing and only allow approved apps. That means phones without internet or social media or other distractions, only productive apps like email, texting, maps, and banking.
At first, a mobile phone with no internet sounds like a nightmare. But very quickly, the benefits become obvious.
Like most American adults, I spend at least three hours a day on my phone (and that’s being generous). Without the distractions that usually waste my time, I can use my phone as a productive tool for work and connection and...that’s it. I can focus on other things, be more present, make some space in my brain.
And, most importantly, I get the boundaries I need to help kick my phone addiction.
Now off to work.
Without checking my phone.