Five Tips for Eliminating iPhone Distractions

I know, I know - your iPhone is the greatest invention ever, and it's so radically changed the way you live your life that you wouldn't ever consider it an "addiction" or a "distraction."

So open your mind a little bit and indulge me: there might be times when you'd rather be unplugged and doing something productive with your time - like getting some work done or having some silly, non-electronic-related fun.

If you fall under this category and want to eliminate some of the time you spend on your iPhone, you've come to the right place.

Even the New York Times admits the iPhone can have its distracting tendencies, like becoming the next cure-all for boredom, something to reach for when you have nothing better to do. If you believe that boredom is the opposite of happiness, and find your iPhone incapable of curing your dull-day blues, it's time to recapture your daily life. Here's how.

Tip #1: Compartmentalize your time.

One reason we're so eager to use the iPhone to cure our boredom is that we always grab it even when we're already doing something else - we're failing to compartmentalize our time. Believe it or not, doing one activity at a time can actually heighten your efficiency. How? Imagine you set aside an hour every month to handle all of your bill payments at once, setting up online transfers for the appropriate dates and monitoring your checking account. Would you rather do that once per month or worry about every bill as it came in, thinking about it on a day-to-day basis?

Chances are, you'd rather "batch" your time and do it all at once. It's the old "get it over with" strategy.

To better compartmentalize your time, start taking your entertainment a little more seriously. It's counter-intuitive, but it can help. Use music to help you relax by sitting and listening to it - and doing nothing else. You might be surprised at how your mind can't seem to sit still. (After all, isn't that what headphones are for? If we were supposed to listen to music and do other things, we'd be wearing neckphones.)

Tip #2: Give your iPhone a bed time.

Chances are you usually give yourself a bed time on nights when you have to commitments like work the next morning - so why not do the same for your iPhone? For the next week, vow that you'll put your iPhone to bed at seven o'clock, giving you some much-needed alone time with the TV, DVD player, and Xbox. Hey, one distraction at a time.

Tip #3: Delete distracting Apps.

I know you paid a good $3.99 for that one App that doesn't add anything to your life, but if you can see the logic in cutting your losses and accepting that you made a poor purchase, then there's hope for you yet. It's tempting to hang on to some Apps forever - don't become an iPhone hoarder. Your iPhone isn't as fun as playing video games on a big screen, so compartmentalize your life accordingly.

Tip #4: Take a day off.

Sundays are the days of rest, so why not take a rest from your iPhone? The world spins whether or not your iPhone is out and powered up, so take Tip #2 a step further and take a full day off from needing to Google everything you come across.

Tip #5: Find a new activity.

Finally, it's hard to get rid of an old habit without having a new one to replace it, so it might not be a bad idea to find something to do with your time that's more active and gets you out of the house. Volunteer at a soup kitchen or take salsa dancing lessons. Less iPhone, more living.