Physically we feel like we’re running a marathon everyday. We have the attention span of a mosquito because we feel like we have a 1000 tabs open in our brain. We have a hard time being creative. There’s no time and too many to-dos.
Can you relate to any of that? I would submit to you that shifting rhythms in our life could remedy a lot of the symptoms we’re feeling. One HUGE rhythm that runs most of our days the amount of times we touch our phone.
Each of the things I mention in this article: sabbath, life rhythms, phone boundaries, etc. could all have thousands of pages written on them. So this post is really just an introduction to these topics.
If you’re here from Instagram, the list of resources is at the bottom of this page!
Realizing the problem
In 2019 I took Phylicia Masonheimer’s course called Grace-Based Productivity (still available & free!) and identified that I use social media as a way to procrastinate. Going through that course I took inventory of my life and identified that I wanted to create more space to learn, grow, and do things that brought me joy (spoiler alert, it isn’t being on my phone).
The course helped me identify stressors, possible solutions, routines I could change to gain extra time, help me identify when I procrastinate, etc.
Goals don’t make you successful
Something I heard that stuck with me was the phrase ‘goals don’t make you successful, rhythms do’. So I started to take a hard look at the rhythms of my days and how they were getting in the way of the goals I had for myself.
It’s easy to say I want to read more, workout more, or have a cleaner home, but what habits do you need to change to reach those goals? The course above helps you identify these things!
Sabbath as an antidote to hurry
Another pivotal thing I started learning about was Sabbath. Both John Mark Comer and Jefferson Bethke came out with books in the fall of 2019.They talked about our culture of hustle and hurry and sabbath being the antidote to those things.
One of the quotes that Comer said that really stood out to me is “love, joy, and peace are at the heart of all Jesus is trying to grow in the soil of your life. And all three are incompatible with hurry.”
I really made the connection that if I don’t carve out time to restore my mind, body, and soul, I will always be giving my friends and family the stressed out, inpatient, tired version of myself and no one likes that version of me… including me.
The issue of our phones
One large thing I noticed is that the more I’m on my phone, the more I am impatient and hurried. I am also far less creative. Obviously being creative is part of my job. But I think it’s important and biblical that we all create and are creative.
If we are constantly in a state of hurry, fight or flight, we never come down to recognize the beauty around us or take time to create something instead of just constantly consuming.
Phone boundaries
One of the things that rules our life rhythms the most is our connection to our phone. A recent BBC report found that adults in the US check their phones 344 times a day – once every 4 minutes. No wonder we feel like we have no time for anything!
Over the course of the last 5 years I have tried to create boundaries that allow me to have a healthy relationship with my phone.
Ideas for phone boundaries
- Don’t sleep with your phone by your bed
- Don’t look at your phone until you’ve gotten the sun in your eye, read your bible, prayed, etc.
- Set your phone down at a set time each night
- Take a day off from social media, games, etc. each week
- Use the do not disturb function to do deep work
- Don’t bring your phone to the bathroom
- Practice leaving your phone in another room (or leave it home while on a walk, etc)
Phone boundaries I try to practice consistently
- Word (bible reading) before world (social media)
- Social media apps shut down at 8pm
- No social media on Sunday
Social free Sunday
Say you choose to not get on social media on Sunday. The first day you try that boundary, it is amazing how many times you will catch yourself opening your phone for no reason. As you implement new rhythms you will realize more and more how much you are dependent on Instagram or your favorite game, etc.
As you start to realize that your phone is a pacifier to your day, it becomes easier to start to break those attachments and find freedom in not needing to fill every spare second of your day with a quick scroll. And then your mind is free to process your emotions, pray, or have a moment of quiet.
Resources for creating healthy rhythms
Here are some of the resources that greatly shaped my thoughts and practices. Many of them are free and are a great jumping off point if you are new to evaluating these things.
iPhone tools
- Use downtime to set apps to shut down at certain times
- Use screentime to understand how much time you spend on your phone each day and set limits
Digital Course
- This course by Phylicia Masonheimer is a short, quick, free, 5 day email course that will help you identify what rhythms and habits are sabotaging your day and help you change them.
Books
- To Hell with the Hustle by Jefferson Bethke
- Taking Back Your Family: From the Tyrants of Burnout, Busyness, Individualism, and the Nuclear Ideal by Jefferson Bethke
- The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer
- Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport
Podcasts
- Short, quick podcast series with John Mark Comer and Jefferson Bethke
- Rest for Your Soul by John Mark Comer
- Ep 1: Sabbath
- Ep 2: Sabbath as a Rhythm
- Ep 3: Sabbath as Resistance
- Ep 4: Stop, Rest, Delight, Worship
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