30-Day Digital Declutter Reflections: The Best, the Hardest and the most Surprising Parts

A couple of weeks ago, right after my 30-day digital declutter ended, I shared some more or less random thoughts I'd written down during the 30 days. I wanted to follow that up with some more thought-through reflections.

I promise this is the last post on the topic (for now). You are probably all getting a bit tired of it. But it's been such an interesting and liberating experience for me that I feel the need to share it. I'll move on to other topics after this :)

Overall thoughts:

I loved it! It's one of the best things I've ever done.
I'm pretty sure it has permanently altered my attitude towards – and use of – technology, especially mobile apps.
I feel so much calmer and more grounded overall. I'm more present and mindful and feel like I'm using time better.
Work has been very busy, and I wonder if that almost served as a bit of a distraction. It would be interesting to repeat this experiment when work is less busy, so there is more actual downtime.

The best parts:

Not filling my head with noise and unnecessary information and opinions all the time. I feel more focused on the right things and like I'm thinking more clearly.
Not being confronted with all the craziness that's going on in the world all the time. I didn't realise what a burden that has been since I removed it from my life.
Not checking emails outside of work hours and on my phone. Turns out clients don't fire me if I don't reply to emails right away ;)
Leaving my phone behind more. I no longer take it on walks or when I go to the beach for lunch breaks. It feels very freeing.

The hardest parts:

Nothing was particularly hard about it. In fact, I was surprised by how easy and natural it felt to be less connected.
One challenging part was that I still had to use a lot of tech for work most days – and work has been busy. I would have loved to be able to cut out tech even more.

Most interesting realisations:

Just how addicted to my phone I've been. I didn't think it was that bad, but within a day or two, I realised how drawn to my phone I am and how often I check it without a specific reason. Every time I would finish a task, every time I'd come back home from somewhere, and every time I had to wait for even just a few seconds (checkout lines, traffic lights, etc), my default response was to check my phone. Not having that option really highlighted how drawn I am to it.
Before, there were activities I thought I wasn't doing mainly because I didn't have enough time. Cooking and gardening are two excellent examples of this. Turns out I really just don't want to do them. I had more time, but I repeatedly chose to go for a second walk, spent even more time reading or just sat still and daydreamed instead of cooking or gardening. I've come to realise that both are just chores, regardless of how much time I have.
I noticed things I had never noticed before because I would have been on my phone, like cool artwork in the waiting room or a funny slogan on a T-shirt a guy in the supermarket checkout line was wearing. Makes me wonder what amazing things I've missed in the past.
Phone batteries can last three days or more!

What I missed most:

Passive entertainment: I didn't get bored. Reading, writing, walking and new creative activities like origami kept me entertained. But there were a few evenings when I missed the passive entertainment that Netflix, YouTube and the likes, as well as audiobooks and even podcasts provide. At the end of a busy or active day, I sometimes just wanted to crash on the couch and not have to use my brain for a few hours.

The most inconvenient part:

Checking messages only a few times a day was annoying at times. I missed out on two opportunities to connect in real life because I didn't see messages in time. Since I don't message a lot anyway, and when I do, it's usually about organising real-world activities, not checking messages felt more annoying than beneficial.

What tech am I definitely re-introducing:

Movies and TV shows: I missed the passive entertainment they provide. However, I want to set a limit to ensure it doesn't take up too much of my valuable time. I'm unsure if I will limit it to, say, 3 nights a week or if I will set an hour limit for the week (i.e., a maximum of 6 hours). I need to figure out what works best. Another key rule I will definitely put in place is to not use my phone at the same time as watching TV (something I did a lot in the past). If the TV show or movie isn't entertaining enough on its own, it's probably a sign that it's not a good use of my time.
Working on hobby projects (blog posts, Camper Trips NZ, etc.) on my laptop in the evenings and weekends. It's something I enjoy, and that enriches my life.
Notifications for messaging apps: As mentioned above, I don't get or send a lot of messages anyway most of the time, and not being notified of new messages causes more annoyance than benefit.

What tech is gone permanently:

Social media on my phone. I'm very conflicted about social media in general (more below). But one thing I know for sure is that I am not re-installing the apps on my phone.
Checking emails on my phone. There will be times when I have to make exceptions, but as a general rule, email will be a laptop task going forward.
News apps on my phone. Similarly to social media, I'm conflicted about what to do as far as the News are concerned (more below). But I won't be re-installing the apps on my phone. It just leads to excessive checking and scrolling.

What I'm conflicted about

Social media:

I've long struggled with social media (I wrote about it last year), and recent political developments haven't helped. I'm really worried about the role social media plays in our society and the power that the people who run the big platforms have (and how they choose to use that). I would love to remove it from my life completely, delete my account and be done with it. But three things are stopping me:

Knowing about real-world events and opportunities to connect. I regularly get invited to events via Facebook. If I'm no longer on the platform, I likely wouldn't know about them. I'm also part of a couple of Facebook messenger groups that enrich my life, and there are several other people I communicate with via messenger. Of course, all of this could be done in other ways, but it doesn't seem fair to expect everyone else to change their ways just because I no longer want to be on Facebook.
Groups: I'm part of a handful of Facebook groups that are super valuable and excellent sources of information and support.
My Life Done Differently community. I love feeling connected to other people who are doing life a bit differently, and social media has been such a great way to facilitate that.

With that in mind, I have decided to stay on Facebook and Instagram for now. However, I will probably be much less active than in the past. And there is one big limitation: Desktop only! I will not re-install the mobile apps. I will also use the platform more intentionally to engage with specific aspects instead of just scrolling mindlessly.

The News

I feel a commitment to knowing what's going on in the world, but it was also really nice not to know – and especially to not be exposed to the overinflated and overly sensational reporting that has become normal. I don't want to go back to excessive news scrolling, but do I want to give it up completely? I'm not sure.

Right now, I'm experimenting with very selective News consumption. I listen to the RNZ News in the morning (usually 5-8 minutes), which should cover everything I really have to know. Beyond that, I look up specific, credible sources if something really interests me. For example, I was genuinely interested in learning more about the trade tariffs situation this past week. But instead of checking the mainstream News (which probably mainly focused on the most dramatic and polarising aspects of it) I checked Tangle News, who I know do very balanced and factual reporting about US politics. It was interesting, and I learned a few things without going down the rabbit hole or losing all hope for humanity. Right now, that approach seems to be working well for me.

Alright, that's it. That's probably more than anyone really wanted to know about my Digital Declutter ;-)

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Hi, I’m Lisa. I’m a 40-something on a mission to figure out what life has to offer when you don’t want to follow the traditional path around 9-5 work, marriage and mortgages. Follow my journey.