For 24 hours, challenge yourself to not pick up your phone during moments of boredom and to, instead, take in the world around you.

Would you share your phone’s screen time average with your friends? How about with your colleagues? If you’re like most people, the answer to that question is probably no.

It’s a common experience to feel embarrassed by the amount of time you spend on your phone and to make it a goal to spend less time scrolling and texting. According to a 2022 Gallup poll, 58% of adults in the United States said they’re on their phone too much, and a 2024 Pew Research Center survey found that 39% of teens have made a concerted effort to be on their phone less.

Being on your phone isn’t inherently bad; smartphones offer services such as map functionality, banking capabilities and the ability to stay in touch with long-distance family and friends. But there is a fine line. Too much phone use can lead to lost time, increased symptoms of depression and anxiety, and a lack of connection with loved ones, making it understandable why lots of folks do want to unplug a little more.

It isn’t an easy feat to break up with your phone, though ― especially if you’re used to being on it for hours each day. This is where a practice from Christine Rosen, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, a public policy research group in Washington, D.C., comes in. I first heard about this practice on an episode of Vox’s “The Gray Area” podcast, where Rosen talked with host Sean Illing about phone use.

The exercise outlined on the podcast is pretty straightforward:

For a 24-hour period, don’t pick up your phone during the ‘in-between’ moments, like........

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