1---
 2template:
 3title: Thoughts on digital minimalism 
 4subtitle: Put that screen down!
 5date: 2019-10-05
 6---
 7
 8Ah yes, yet another article on the internet on this beaten to death
 9subject. But this is inherently different, since it's _my_ opinion on
10the matter, and _my_ technique(s) to achieve "digital minimalism".
11
12According to me, minimalism can be achieved on two primary fronts --
13the phone & the computer. Let's start with the phone. The daily carry.
14The device that's on our person from when we get out of bed, till we get
15back in bed.
16
17### The phone
18
19I've read about a lot of methods people employ to curb their phone
20usage. Some have tried grouping "distracting" apps into a separate
21folder, and this supposedly helps reduce their usage. Now, I fail to see
22how this would work, but YMMV. Another technique I see often is using
23a time governance app---like OnePlus' Zen Mode---to enforce how much
24time you spend using specific apps, or the phone itself. I've tried this
25for myself, but I constantly found myself counting down the minutes
26after which the phone would become usable again. Not helpful.
27
28My solution to this is a lot more brutal. I straight up uninstalled the
29apps that I found myself using too often. There's a simple principle
30behind it -- if the app has a desktop alternative, like Twitter,
31Reddit, etc. use that instead. Here's a list of apps that got nuked from
32my phone:
33
34* Twitter
35* Instagram (an exception, no desktop client)
36* Relay for Reddit
37* YouTube (disabled, ships with stock OOS)
38
39The only non-productive app that I've let remain is Clover, 
40a 4chan client. I didn't find myself using it as much earlier, but we'll see how that 
41holds up. I've also allowed my personal messaging apps to remain, since 
42removing those would be inconveniencing others.
43
44I must admit, I often find myself reaching for my phone out of habit
45just to check Twitter, only to find that its gone. I also subconsciously
46tap the place where its icon used to exist (now replaced with my mail
47client) on my launcher. The only "fun" thing left on my phone to do is
48read or listen to music. Which is okay, in my opinion.
49
50### The computer
51
52I didn't do anything too nutty here, and most of the minimalism is
53mostly aesthetic. I like UIs that get out of the way. 
54
55My setup right now is just a simple bar at the top showing the time,
56date, current volume and battery %, along with my workspace indicators.
57No fancy colors, no flashy buttons and sliders. And that's it. I don't
58try to force myself to not use stuff -- after all, I've reduced it
59elsewhere. :)
60
61Now the question arises: Is this just a phase, or will I stick to it?
62What's going to stop me from heading over to the Play Store and
63installing those apps back? Well, I never said this was going to be
64easy. There's definitely some will power needed to pull this off.
65I guess time will tell.