Why I'm trialling a "Dumb Phone"

Why I'm considering a dumb-phone 

Notifications!  Distractions, disruption - the constant pinging.  The constant belief from clients and colleagues that you should be instantly communicable during every waking minute.

Research suggests that it takes some 20 minutes for our brains to re-focus on a task which we were otherwise distracted from.  No wonder therefore so many of us ramble through the day turning in alternative directions like a rabbit in the headlights.

It today's society we all lack focus.  We have the attention span of a goldfish - not because we're dumb ourselves, but there is so much content to consume that we are continually moving onto the next article in a 'grass is always greener' kind of way.  We're so easily distracted that we can barely commit to a conversation without our minds wondering off on a tangent.  This very issues is why I am applying focus to every single task or process I undergo on a daily basis.  Mono-tasking is the way forward and one can only mono task if he or she is willing to focus on said task for as long as it takes to complete said task fully and effectively.  Otherwise we end up with half hearted output and generally poor performance in everything we apply ourselves to.

This focus is not possible with the level of distractions we face - most of which, for most of us arise from our mobile phones.  Remember those days when the 6310 in your pocket would vibrate or ring and you knew someone needed to speak to you - or get a 160 character message to you?  Phones used to passively provide only a useful if not essential function to us - now they provide the whole world in our pocket.  We have all been down that rabbit hole of reading some random news article or social media feed after unlocking our phone to see what the buzz was - only to find it was a marketing text or a pointless notification.  The once useful/ vital function is now only a small fraction of what our phones can provide us.

So what's the answer?  We should control our devices rather than them control us.  Indeed we can turn notifications off or manage them - but one easy solution is to adopt a simple dumb-phone. No apps, no browser - just calls and texts.  Maybe the ability to provide a hotspot.  Why a hotspot if the phone has no browser or apps?  Well I personally carry a Samsung S8 10" tablet in my bag whilst travelling or working.  If I want to check emails, read the news, browse online - I can take out my tablet and go in search of the info rather than letting my phone feed random info to me.

I'm currently trialling the Punkt Phone - a simple handset with great call and text quality.  So far it works well and my focus is weighed so more heavily on my tasks or goals for the day.  As well as my family.

I'll let you know how I get on in a few weeks - it will be interesting to see how the productivity improves!

Check out the Punkt phone here:-

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