April 29, 2015

Imagine sitting with your best friend for quite a while at lunch, both of you engage in conversation throughout the time of being together. You both become bored and find yourselves staring at your smartphones for the rest of the time. No conversation about summer plans or any other chitchat occurs between the two of you. This is the time when both of you need to drop your phones.

Situations like these happen every day and are as preventable as turning off or pocketing your cell phone. Phones lead us to be distracted during many activities such as socializing, driving, studying and even walking. This is why disconnection to our cell phones is essential.

A group at Baylor University of Texas found female students spend an average of 10 hours texting per day while male students spend an average of eight, according to www.dailymail.co.uk.

This startling statistic is enough to encourage anyone to look up from their phones to pay attention to the lecture for the class they spent money on. Ever hear your professor say: “Can we put our phones away?” This is said for a reason since many students are tempted to check their phones while in class.

A study said most people check their phones at least 150 times per day according to Daily Mail. Consider how damaging this habit can be to student grades and attention spans of the student body, not to mention the frustration of professors demanding everyone’s attention.

Think about it: Paying attention to conversations is much easier when everyone is looking up. It is also easier to pay attention to what is being said and stay on topic of discussion.

No one needs to be distracted during a job interview where we are required to give the interviewer our undivided attention. There is a simple solution to this: put your phone in a location that is out of sight such as in a desk or even better leave it in your dorm or at home. This minimizes any chance that it will go off during the interview which causes unintended noise and makes a person look unprofessional.

A good place to practice spending a lengthy amount of time without your cell phone is in a movie theater. A big screen to look at and several reminders appearing on the screen before the movie begins is perfect training to use anywhere when you need to pay attention.

After you have viewed the film, pat yourself on the back for allowing yourself to go so long without your cell phone. Whenever you are without a movie theater to remind you, replay the previews reminding you to put your cell phone away while pocketing your cell phone and saying to yourself: “I can live without my cell phone for two hours.” That way, you most likely will.

When you follow this practice every day, you’ll see yourself become less and less preoccupied with your cell phone. Chances are your best friend or professor will notice as well.