I Was Losing Hours to My Phone Every Day - Here’s the One App That Fixed It

Stop mindlessly picking up your phone and inadvertently missing your life.

It hit me a few weeks ago — not in some grand moment of reflection, but in the middle of something completely ordinary. I was sitting down, watching a bit of TV, something I’d been looking forward to all day.

Except, when I reached halfway through, I realised I had no real idea what had happened. I’d been there, in front of the screen, but I couldn’t tell you anything meaningful about what I’d just seen. I didn’t know who was doing well, couldn’t recall any standout moments, and I certainly hadn’t felt particularly engaged.

So what was going on?

The answer was sitting right there in my hand — my phone.

I’d been picking it up, mindlessly, every few minutes. Checking for new messages, scrolling through YouTube, flicking between WhatsApp conversations. It had completely split my attention, pulling me out of the moment over and over again. I wasn’t really watching at all — I was somewhere else entirely.

And here’s the thing: in this particular case, it didn’t really matter. There was no real investment in what I was watching. But the realisation gnawed at me.

If my attention could be hijacked so easily during something as inconsequential as this, where else was it happening?

---

What am I really missing?

That was the uncomfortable question I kept coming back to.

What about when I’m with my kids?
What about those little moments of connection — the conversations, the jokes, the glances — that you can’t plan for, but that make up the fabric of family life?

How many of those am I missing because I’m checking a notification or following some fleeting curiosity?

How much of my life is happening while I’m somewhere else entirely?

It was clear something needed to change. And after a bit of searching, I found a small tool that’s made a surprisingly big difference.

---

✨ The rest of this post is for paid subscribers — including the tool I’m using to retrain my attention, how it works, and the results so far.
If you’re ready to reclaim some of your own time (and focus), you can unlock the full post by upgrading your subscription.