Check-in: Unplugged
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All great ideas! I actually was wondering the same thing about "auto replies" like you can do with email when you are out of office. That would be a great app. I'm going to look for that! I love the idea of not talking work or checking email on Sundays too. I would love, love, love that. I find myself getting tense every Sunday just thinking about going to work on Monday.
I'm going to give this more thought and find a way to really make this a healthy new habit. Thank you for your ideas and support everyone. Sunday is going to be my unplugged/work-free day I think. I just don't know how yet...
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Did it! Unplugged all day until now, and I'm only on now to post my goals for tomorrow and log my food! What a great day! Sipped coffee this morning. My son stopped over and we chatted at the kitchen table for awhile. Then I took my granddaughter to the mall and we went shopping for work clothes for both of us. She starts a new job on Tuesday (she's 18 yo) and needs clothes to wear in an office/cubicle environment. Really enjoyed it. Came home and my DH had made chili for dinner. Now I am prepping for tomorrow (packing lunch, getting clothes ready). And then I am also going to sit down with a pen and paper and make out next week's meal plan, and pencil in appointments on my work calendar for 15 minutes of meditation time, 30 minutes "me" time, 60 minutes activity/exercise time, as well as 60 minutes unplugged wind down time before bed each night.
This will be my first week actually writing my meal plans and my activity/"me"/meditation times on my actual calendar as appts. I'm hoping the visual reminders will help me stick to it. We'll see....
This was a great challenge, and my plan is to turn Sundays into Unplugged Sundays, and hopefully this will be a lifestyle change for our house.4 -
@OConnell5483, sounds like a wonderful day and a great plan for the week! Respect!!
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OConnell5483 wrote: »Did it! Unplugged all day until now, and I'm only on now to post my goals for tomorrow and log my food! What a great day! Sipped coffee this morning. My son stopped over and we chatted at the kitchen table for awhile. Then I took my granddaughter to the mall and we went shopping for work clothes for both of us. She starts a new job on Tuesday (she's 18 yo) and needs clothes to wear in an office/cubicle environment. Really enjoyed it. Came home and my DH had made chili for dinner. Now I am prepping for tomorrow (packing lunch, getting clothes ready). And then I am also going to sit down with a pen and paper and make out next week's meal plan, and pencil in appointments on my work calendar for 15 minutes of meditation time, 30 minutes "me" time, 60 minutes activity/exercise time, as well as 60 minutes unplugged wind down time before bed each night.
This will be my first week actually writing my meal plans and my activity/"me"/meditation times on my actual calendar as appts. I'm hoping the visual reminders will help me stick to it. We'll see....
This was a great challenge, and my plan is to turn Sundays into Unplugged Sundays, and hopefully this will be a lifestyle change for our house.
@OConnell5483, it sounds like you had a terrific day yesterday. Isn't it amazing how much time our devices take from us? It isn't readily apparent until you unplug for awhile and experience the difference. I think unplugging once a week is a great strategy. I unplugged yesterday for a good chunk of the day and loved it!
And scheduling time in your calendar for meditation, you time, exercise, and unplugging would be a top recommendation of those who study habits and goals and how to achieve them. Too often, we focus on the goal and not the system or the sequence of actions necessary to achieve that goal. If you want to be a better at meditation, exercising, or unplugging, making time in your schedule to do those things is the key. And writing them down in your calendar increases the likelihood that you'll follow through and do those things. Effectively, you are saying "This is just as important to me as a doctor's appointment or hair appointment" Which it is!
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Well done @OConnell5483 !!!!2
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my unplugged day was Sunday.
I was surprised at how often I randomly wanted to go to the computer to look this or that up or check email. The desktop, for me, is the most tempting to want to use too much, and it is so much easier for me to fall down an internet rabbit hole on that than it is on my iPad or phone because of the size of the screen as well as having a real keyboard to use.
Being unplugged meant that I couldn't watch another episode of Downton Abbey
. But that wasn't really too hard on me because I have enough things that I can do.
But it was hard to give up listening to my library book because I enjoy it, and washing dishes doesn't feel so much like a chore while listening. I actually can do most things around the house while listening to podcasts or books. I can color with or without listening to a story, but listening makes it even more enjoyable.
I chose to allow incoming texting or phone calls from family as that is important to me. But I didn't initiate text or calls.
I enjoy reading whether it is on an e-reader, a devise, or an actual paper book. I use all of these interchangeably. So unplugging didn't make a difference there. However, I can easily read past midnight whether it is a paper book or on a devise. It is a matter of self control, not whether or not I'm plugged in.
My take away from this experiment/ experience was that for me the feeling of being too plugged in has less to do with actually using a devise but more to do with if what I am doing while using the devise is a time waster, or I'm not getting done what needs to be done.
Thank you for the interesting challenge.
:flowerforyou:2 -
texasgardnr wrote: »my unplugged day was Sunday.
I was surprised at how often I randomly wanted to go to the computer to look this or that up or check email. The desktop, for me, is the most tempting to want to use too much, and it is so much easier for me to fall down an internet rabbit hole on that than it is on my iPad or phone because of the size of the screen as well as having a real keyboard to use.
Being unplugged meant that I couldn't watch another episode of Downton Abbey . But that wasn't really too hard on me because I have enough things that I can do.
But it was hard to give up listening to my library book because I enjoy it, and washing dishes doesn't feel so much like a chore while listening. I actually can do most things around the house while listening to podcasts or books. I can color with or without listening to a story, but listening makes it even more enjoyable.
I chose to allow incoming texting or phone calls from family as that is important to me. But I didn't initiate text or calls.
I enjoy reading whether it is on an e-reader, a devise, or an actual paper book. I use all of these interchangeably. So unplugging didn't make a difference there. However, I can easily read past midnight whether it is a paper book or on a devise. It is a matter of self control, not whether or not I'm plugged in.
My take away from this experiment/ experience was that for me the feeling of being too plugged in has less to do with actually using a devise but more to do with if what I am doing while using the devise is a time waster, or I'm not getting done what needs to be done.
Thank you for the interesting challenge.
:flowerforyou:
Thanks for sharing your experience and insights with us, @texasgardnr.
I've had similar takeaways from our unplugging challenge. By unplugging for the whole day, I got to see the many ways I use my phone and devices. Some of them are useful, add value, and bring me greater happiness while others detract and are big time wasters. One thing I really enjoy is reading my iPad while walking slowly on my treadmill. (I can't easily balance a real book on my treadmill). It seems kind of silly to give this up for a blanket "no devices on Sunday". But I am determined to use my devices much less on Sundays, to free up time to pursue other activities. I really want to avoid going down the Internet rabbit hole once a week. No Facebook, no email, and no work projects on Sunday. (I love @77tes practice of having to put money in the swear jar if she works on Sunday). I'm also shifting to write our weekly challenges on Saturday instead of Sunday.
I love reclaiming more of my day and focusing on more relaxing and enjoyable activities.
Happy Sunday, Everyone!2 -
Yesterday was my 3rd unplugged Sunday. I have to say, I LOVE THIS! I plan to continue. I do answer texts from family but I do not initiate them. I also don't feel guilty if I have to hop onto the computer to look something up quick (a recipe). But for me, what is rewarding, is giving myself permission to NOT answer everyone immediately and to NOT have to be readily available for everyone. I plan to continue with Unplugged Sundays forever if I can and possibly add Unplugged Saturday too sometime down the road.3
