Hey,

I hope you are well?

Im freshly back from a week away in Cornwall with the family and it was such a refreshing week.

The week was great for me as i had limited wifi access.

Having limited wifi access is a big thing in my world as a business owner. You see i am forever on the internet.

My marketing runs through the internet, my website, my client support group, our membership site, my emails and of course facebook which i used to waste a stupid amount of time on! (there will be a blog post about this!)

Whilst away i was forced into spending my time away from the internet and this allowed me to actually sit back and watch people a bit more.

Now coaching people is my career and something i enjoy and im constantly learning.

However one thing has been coming to the forefront of my mind each week and that is

HOW IMPORTANT MOBILE PHONES HAVE BECOME TO US

Now im going to throw this out there

I believe they play a big role in the fact that people are less healthy nowadays

Yep, you heard me right.

A mobile phone now not only makes phone calls and texts, it takes photo’s, it stores apps, it holds our emails, it basically runs our lives.

Now i speak from experience here

Just over a year ago i upgraded my smart phone to brand new amazing Samsung Galaxy phone and 2 months later dropped it at bootcamp and smashed the screen up!
I was mortified.
However, fast forward 12 months and its actually the best thing i have ever done!

Hear me out

Whilst i was away this is what i witnessed (oh and i would go as far as saying i witness this everyday)

People walking there children to school with there heads in there phones not even watching what there child is doing along a main road

People sitting in parks choosing to browse there phone rather than play with there kids

People sitting at home browsing there phones instead of playing with there kids or doing something productive with there lives.

Dont even get me started on the people in the gym on their phones!

No apps have become the major problem with this oh and one other major thing we see i life

EVERYONE HAS A SMART PHONE!

Now dont get me wrong, there are certain aspects of phones i think that are great like the camera’s on them and the fact we can send out pictures of our kids to loved one’s that are not local to us, oh and not forgetting the fact of emergencies etc

However what annoys me is the fact that to most people these phones are the most important part of their lives even to the point where the neglect important parts of their life like their children and their health!

Now, you can call me an old man (that happens a lot!) but honestly tell me it doesnt happen?

Next time you go out, sit back and watch it happen before your very eyes.

I want you to imagine something

What if your phone could only text and Call people?

Thats it, no apps, no camera, nothing!

How much more could you achieve in your life?

Ask yourself how much time you actually spend browsing on your phone?

Now ask yourself how much of that browsing is actually important?

How much of that time is wasted on pointless apps?

Now ask yourself what you could be doing with that time instead?

Suddenly all of this time becomes available that we are wasting.

Could you go to the gym? Spend some time cooking healthier meals, socialise (in person!), have a conversation with your family? Play with your children?

No im not blaming mobile phones solely on ruining our health but i really do feel the have become a huge factor and it worries me for the next generation.

What ever did we do before these apps were available?

Now, i dont want it to be all about moaning, there is an answer and its about being strict with ourselves.

Here are my top tips for reducing your time on your mobile and improving the quality of life you have

1) When you go out leave your phone in your bag. Take photo’s of the children etc if you want too and capture those memories but hey, you dont need to upload them to facebook straight away when you can be playing with your children!

2) Have your email and social media on a separate device – This may not be easy if you dont have multiple devices but most households now have phones, tablets and computers. I have Facebook and email on my 7 inch tablet and nothing on my phone. Im forced to not use social media during the day when im out and about. I check my email and facebook at set times during the day. The rest of the day im actually enjoying my life.

3) Be aware of how much of your life is spent on your phone. Actually take some time to make a note of it and then ask yourself is it necessary?

4) Downgrade your phone? Now this is the one most people will struggle with. Why? Because we all like to be part of the crowd and that means having a phone that others accept. Seriously. When i pull my battered old samsung phone out, you can guarantee there will be a comment “OMG, Look at your phone”. Im ready for it now, but what do these comments change? Nothing, they dont matter. My phone calls people and it texts, i bet yours does aswell?

What’s that, i dont have access to whatsapp? i dont have access to upload my 300 selfies on a night out? i have to concentrate on having a conversation rather than proving to facebook i have a life every 5 minutes?

If your somebody that struggles to get off of there phone and wants to reduce the time on it, downgrade your handset, not only we you be forced not to have access to apps, email etc etc, you will even save some money in the process. oh and no, your not going to lose friends just because you dont have an iphone!

Come on, we get one life, spend it doing something productive and focus on improving the things you hate about your life.

If your happy being on your phone all day, ignoring the world, ignoring your children, ignoring your health then this blog post probably isn’t for you!