Start the year off right, and take back control of your digital life

January 14, 2024

Welcome to The Productivity Blueprint newsletter đŸ—žïž

We hope everyone is off to a great start to 2024! We would love to know your progress in breaking down your resolutions using the SMART framework. Respond back and let us know your goals for added accountability and help in achieving them 🙏

If you missed our goal setting newsletter, you can catch up here đŸ™‚

Today, we’re taking a look at all of digital workspaces, and how they may be impacting our productivity. Let’s dive in!

This article discusses the concept of digital minimalism, a term coined by Cal Newport. It's described as a philosophy of technology use that requires more intention and nuance in our relationship with digital tools, apps, and phones. The article emphasizes that digital tools can be both beneficial and distracting, and digital minimalism seeks to find a balance between these aspects.

The key principles of digital minimalism involves living with less digital clutter and being more intentional about why and how digital tools are used. It's not just about reducing usage, but shaping one's digital life around personal values to feel good about the tools used daily.

However, applying digital minimalism can be challenging. Digital technologies combine both positive and negative aspects, making it difficult to reduce their usage without missing their benefits.

If you’re looking to reduce your technology use, here are some tips:

  1. Define your core values (and how technology helps and hurts them): When you clearly understand your values and how they influence your philosophy of technology use, you can make informed and confident decisions about what to use and when. You become able to prioritize long-term meaning over short-term satisfaction.

  2. Drop all ‘optional’ technologies for 30 days: ‘Optional’, in this case, means any tool or app where their “temporary removal would harm or significantly disrupt the daily operation of your profession or personal life.”

  3. Track your ‘technology triggers’ and explore other activities: During the 30 days of your ‘declutter’ you have two goals:

    1. Pay special attention to when you feel the pull of technology. When do you find yourself reaching for your phone? Do you procrastinate on work tasks or sending emails by checking Twitter? Often our technology usage masks some other underlying issue.

    2. Explore ‘higher quality’ activities to fill the void of time. A major part of this declutter is actively trying out other activities in place of technology. Fill the space by reading books or going for walks with friends or working on a hobby you’ve neglected or just daydreaming.

  4. Create ‘operating procedures’ for the tools you let back in: After the break, reintroduce technologies that align with core values and set rules for their use.

  5. Actively ignore the rest: Focus only on technologies that serve important life aspects.

Digital minimalism helps in defining which technologies are allowed in one's life and how to use them, leading to a more intentional, empowered, and productive way of living.

CCleaner is a trusted free utility tool that helps you declutter your computer by removing unnecessary files, temporary data, and unwanted cookies.

What we love: CCleaner's "Health Check" helps streamlines your digital workspace by removing junk files, ensuring smoother and faster operation.

StayFocusd is a Google Chrome extension that assists users in controlling their browsing habits. It enables setting limits on time spent on specific websites, reducing distractions and promoting focused work sessions.

What we love: Set the rules for blocking by days, exactly when it is most important for you to be in focus and not waste time on distracting sites.

💡 Challenge of the week

Challenge yourself to the 30-day digital minimalism plan outlined in the article đŸ€–

Best of luck taking back control of your digital life đŸ”„

The Productivity Blueprint Team