This week, I listened to another great podcast. It was an interview conducted by Ken Coleman with Carlos Whittaker in the Front Row Seat podcast, linked here.
Highly recommend a listen!
The reason I listened wasn’t because I knew who Carlos Whittaker was. I didn’t. Rather, it was the title of the interview, Simple Daily Habits to Get Years of Your Life Back. My interest was piqued.
Who doesn’t want more time back in your life?
This conversation would be about Carlos’ journey with the amount of time spent on his phone.
He was spending 7 hours a day on his phone. Calculate that out…that’s 49 hours a week! That’s a full-time job! In his calculations, he discovered that maintaining this rate would lead to spending 10 years of his remaining life on his phone!
We can all be convicted about how much screen time we have each day. I know I can. My current rate is around 4 hours a day. I’d like to improve this to no more than 3 hours a day, maybe even less.
What is your daily screen time rate?
Carlos shares the extreme measures he took to re-center and reconnect his life. This includes living with monks and then an Amish family for a while!
As the interview progressed, Carlos recommended that everyone find one (1) hour each week for total silence. He gave the example of finding a park bench and sitting there with no phone. Take nothing to read. Just sit in silence. One (1) hour each week, that’s it.
He re-discovered, when he put his phone down, how much we’ve lost the art to wonder and be curious when we can Google the answer to any question in a split second. We’ve forgotten how to notice and be aware because our phones have all our attention.
I’m also a big believer in silence and stillness. I was excited that Carlos encouraged this practice!
When I share that I have attended 2 silent retreats, people often look at me like I’m crazy. But, what I have found is that silence and stillness are tools for navigating the modern world. The modern world is never quiet.
You can watch a video I made about attending Awaken Silent Retreat here.
We weren’t designed to consume so much information or to be available to everyone all the time.
The question to ask yourself is, “What am I missing?”
What are you missing by never allowing yourself a moment of
- reflection
- silence
- wonder
- curiosity?
What are you missing by allowing your phone to have all your attention?
What are you missing by filling every second with something?
What would happen if you had that 1 hour of silence every week?
What might be available for you in the hour of silence?
The truth is you don’t know until you try it. You won’t know until you try it as a practice.
Prompt: Try practicing 1 hour of silence each week for a month. Then, re-evaluate.
After listening to the podcast, I went for a walk. I walk every evening in my neighborhood.
I decided to bring my phone, but keep it in my pocket.
Notifications off.
No listening to music.
No listening to a podcast.
No talking on the phone.
No texting.
Just walk and silence.
What I found was that my mind was going 90 miles an hour. I was thinking about ALL the things I wanted to get done or needed to get done. I was making a to do list in my mind.
But after 15 minutes of walking in silence, my mind got quieter. And by the end of the walk, my to do list wasn’t important. I had downshifted.
I noticed a beautiful home for sale in my neighborhood. I also observed wild ducks perched in trees and even on top of roofs.
What would I have missed if I continued to use my phone while on my walk instead of choosing silence?
I would have missed the chance to downshift from my busy day.
I would have missed the chance to let the to-do list float away.
I would have missed smiling at the silly, wild ducks on top of roofs.
I would have missed a chance to allow myself to relax.
Our world is filled with distractions. The world is not going to allow you to not be distracted.
That’s your choice. You get to choose.
You get to decide on electing a little bit of silence in your life instead of more distraction.
If this is a goal you’d like to incorporate in your life. I can help with that!
