👋 Hello!
This is issue #68 of Taskflow Tuesday, where I share 3 things that can help you to get digitally organized so that you can spend more time on what truly matters.
Cal Newport’s 30 Day Digital Detox
Chapter 1: The Setup
Years ago I read Cal Newport’s book Digital Minimalism, and it has inspired many changes in my life. He starts the book by explaining how our current relationship to technology is NOT working, and especially how our relationship with it is extremely passive.
The majority of us adopt new tech without really thinking about it.
He makes the point that we rarely stop to ask:
Is this tool really helping me live the life I want?
What am I giving up in exchange for the convenience or novelty?
If a tool offers any benefit, we keep it.
He contrasts this with digital minimalists, who are much more intentional and selective. They only adopt tools that clearly serve deeply held values and they use them in constrained, purposeful ways.
“the freedom that comes from inconvenience is a gateway back into life.”
Wow. Sit with that one for a minute.
After laying the groundwork, Newport shares his game plan for beginning the journey of becoming a Digital Minimalist.
Chapter 2: The Game Plan
📵 Step 1: Take a 30-Day Break from Optional Tech
For 30 days, you intentionally remove all optional digital tools from your life, including apps, websites, platforms, and devices that are not absolutely essential for your work or daily functioning.
The detox is meant to be “extreme” (aka live life how most people have lived for millennia, lol) so that when you intentionally reintroduce the optional tech, you can do so with real experience of what life is like without it (probably better!).
📋 Here’s the plan that I’m currently following:
YouTube is a huge distraction for me, so in completely eliminating it, I am training my brain focus and perform Deep Work every day.
Notice that the ✅ Leisure list is way longer than the ❌ Rules! That brings us to Step 2 of the plan.
📚 Step 2: Rediscover High-Quality Offline Activities
During the detox, you don’t just sit in boredom, you intentionally rediscover activities and values that matter to you, including:
Reading physical books
Unhurried time with people
Outdoor walks
Creative hobbies
Quiet reflection or journaling
Projects you’ve always wanted to start
You get to live life as if you were a kid - before tech took over your life! How great is that? Go play outside barefoot till dinner! Haha. Think about what you LOVE to do that doesn’t involve a screen, and do more of that in your free time.
For me, the best part about this detox is that I’m eating most of my dinners with my wife at our dining table without our phones. Revolutionary, I know. We like to think of ourselves as pretty intentional people, but it’s amazing how easily eating dinner on the couch and watching a show can become a habit.
“Face-to-face communication is the most human - and humanizing - thing we do.”
🧐 Step 3: Reintroduce Tech Selectively and Intentionally
At the end of the 30 days, you slowly and carefully reintroduce digital tools using a strict three-part test:
Does this tech support something deeply valuable to me?
Is it the best way to support that value?
Can I use it with clear boundaries?
If the answer to all three is yes, you can bring it back, but with intentional rules in place.
Chapter 3: The Outcome
I’ll follow up this post with my post-detox thoughts and reintroduction plan.
So far this has been a wonderful experience - even if suffering withdrawal is painful, the benefits far outweigh the negative effects of living life through a screen.
That’s all for now! Have a great day. 👊🏼
David
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I absolutely love this. Last year I swapped to a flip-phone for about three months and ultimately went back to an iPhone because I didn’t like carrying two phones to the gym, and I missed listening to music/podcast/Audible on my walks. I like your digital detox idea, and I’m going to try it out. I can’t wait to read your update!
Thank you for the summary from Cal Newports book! You’ve inspired me to delete most apps from my phone and to trim back to 2 emails a day.