I have an addiction to my phone and laptop. I spend far too much of my time scrolling through Facebook or checking emails. I know this is a problem, and yet it persists. The magnetic letters on my fridge remind me to “be present.” I have the Space app on my phone to track my phone usage, and send me little reminders like “isn’t it time you took a break?” And yet my five year old daughter still finds opportunities to say things like “you pay more attention to your phone than me.” Nothing like a pre-schooler to tell you the truth.

I actually held out on getting a smart phone longer than most, because I predicted that I would struggle with finding the right phone-life balance. In 2011, I went on a work trip and remember sitting on the bus quietly while everyone played on their phones. Seeing as I’m also an introvert and don’t often engage others in small talk, I had only my own thoughts to entertain me. It was not long after that trip that I decided to get my first smart phone.

I do believe that a lot of great things come from social media. It is a great way to connect and share information. That is why I have not tried removing social media as a whole from my life. The Space app is a great tool when I actually utilize it and don’t just ignore its comments, as I’ve tended to do lately. Like I stated earlier, preschoolers are probably the best protection against overuse of the internet. Sometimes I just have to listen to my daughter and stop everything to color a picture of My Little Pony or play a round of Hide and Seek. What do you do to remind yourself to live in the real world and not just in the internet world?