Digital minimalism in the time of social distancing

Less screen time doesn’t mean less contact or information

Photo by Sanni Sahil on Unsplash

Quite frankly, I wouldn’t have enough of it. Especially now, when digital platforms are still for many of us, the only way to work, learn and stay in touch with our loved ones. They are the remaining option for us to be creative, entertained and informed.

When the world closed its borders, moving online in almost every single aspect of our lives became a ‘natural thing’ to do.

At first, I didn’t realize how much my behaviour and habits changed. From an average of ten hours, I went to being online for roughly fifteen hours a day. While trying to stay inside, the rest of my analog activities converted into their digital version. I would never believe I’d say these words, but I even managed to Skype with our dog. When you add my phone-time into this mash-up, you will get another one or two hours on top of my daily rate.

Undoubtedly, having the ability to be online expands our opportunities to face social distancing together while being separated and somehow continue living our lives.

However, in the same way as with almost everything else, there are two sides to our online-networking world.

It doesn’t take us much effort to fall down the internet rabbit hall.

It’s nearly impossible to avoid it with the increasing screen time right now. And why would you? I asked myself the same question. But you know what? After a while, being online turned just to another groundhog day activity.

I started noticing recurring headaches. My sleeping routine was partly gone. I realized I was often sitting and working behind the computer without taking a proper break. It was easier than I thought to forget about it. I became a bit of a stranger to productivity. Just because you spend a long time on your computer or phone, it doesn’t mean you are productive.

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