Stop Staring at Screens: ★★☆☆☆

My thoughts on Stop Staring at Screens?

It is a relatively short book (A half hour read for a slow reader like me), and I feel that was it's downfall. There was nothing to sink your teeth into. As much as I liked the premise, it did not deliver as much as I thought it would. 

After a quick flick through I could gather the main points. These were set time limits, take breaks, and suggested other things that you could do instead of device time. Though the advice is valid, I feel it is surface level and lacked depth. The points were often common sense or cliché at best like the 20-20-20 rule etc. 

What did I takeaway?

Although the depth wasn't as much as I'd desire there were some pieces of advice that stood out. The main two were having 10 minutes of mindfulness and to assess how much time you spend on devices.

10 minutes without/with minimal external stimuli can seem insignificant, but can seem like a really long time if you are not used to it. This is advice I have heard before, but I had not fully grasped the importance of it. We are constantly bombarded with emails, funny videos from friends and countless assignments/deadlines. This can leave little time for ourselves to unwind. 

The second advice is one that I heard during part of a "Time of Your Life" course by Tony Robbins. He explained how though we may 'feel that we want more time' but do not realise we actually have it. The time scrolling Facebook, or consuming media, can be exchanged for more fulfilling activity's. This isn't to say to stop watching your favourite show but it shows that we have to be mindful of the time we spend on devices. 

How did this book affect me?

Personally, I have started to implement a ten minute slot where I dedicate it to mindfulness. From my experience it doesn't have to be meditation. It could just be journaling or just being aware of your thoughts. By doing this I can close thought loops and destress.

Carrying on from mindfulness, I believe that the book did reiterate the fact that we must be mindful of how we spend our time. By being mindful of my time, I can better priorities what is important to me. 

As for device time, I do not think this book has helped me limit my screen time. For me, going out without my phone, installing apps that stop me from viewing shorts (NoScroll is my chosen app) and being conscious of when I am scrolling has been more helpful. 

The verdict?

If you are a parent seeking ideas on how to get your kids off devices, this will provide some suggestions for that. However, if you are reading for yourself, I do not feel that it delves deep enough to be overly useful.  

Was there anything that I missed? Have you read the book yourself? Be sure to comment and let me know your thoughts!