In the summer of 2022, my phone's (Samsung Note 9) battery decided to die on me after putting up with my grunts and gaming for 4+ long years. I didn't want to give it away or change the battery; don't ask me why! Maybe I was too lazy to go to the service center or wanted to look for a new phone.
After much consideration, deliberation, contemplation, and a lot of persuasion from my dear friends, I decided to buy myself a new phone. Not just a phone but an iPhone (drum roll please). I got myself a brand new iPhone 13 in the new forest green color, why green? I am still pondering over it.
I remember the day I held the new iPhone in my hands. Surreal, premium, and a fine phone. I was new to the entire Apple iOS system. I was slowly and steadily navigating through the phone while enjoying every click and swipe I was making. It wasn't as scary as I anticipated moving from android to iOS.
Of course, ensuring I hid this beautiful forest green in a silicone case and a screen guard because it's an iPhone. I decided to not apply for Apple Care+ trusting my previous performance of not using a screen guard for four years on my Note 9 and still carried it without a scratch. For the next few weeks, this iPhone consumed most of my leisure time as I was curiously engrossed in learning a new system and trying to optimize it in ways that would suit my usage. There was a lot of collaboration happening in digital life as I had to reach out to many of my friends who were using iPhones to help me troubleshoot. The last time I remember going through a digital collaboration was when I used to play PUBG with my friends.
It's been almost 4 months since I purchased this new phone and whenever there was time I would watch youtube videos or discuss with my friends- how effectively can I put this device to use.
Last week I happened to notice something. iOS unlike android has all its applications spread out on the home screen. Although I disabled notifications for a few applications which I thought were distracting I did not disable badges for those applications. Badges are those red little indicators that are displayed over the app with the number of notifications it has.
Some people who read till here would be thinking did I read all this way to read the definition of badges? Well, not really! I am here to tell you that these little buggers were the ones that actually kept me on my toes and kept aggravating my FOMO ( Fear of Missing Out). When I simply put that thought inside my head I realized that those little badges were the ones that led me to consume most of my screen time which in turn consumed the time that otherwise could have been productive ( i am optimistic about it).
In the process of becoming more productive and making screen time more meaningful, I decided to turn off all badges and decided to replace a few of the applications on my home screen. Of course, I could simply remove all applications from my home screen but I did not want to do that. I needed to consistently use productive applications and use my screen time more effectively.
Hence, I decided to restructure my home screen, not in a way that would look cool but, in a way I wanted myself to be during my good hours(like those times when party hard and the next morning you promise never to drink again). I removed all video streaming apps and social media apps. Instead, I loaded up my home screen with Habit tracking, GTD, podcasts, and TED talk kinda apps. I know 'All work no play makes jack a dull boy ' so, I added a music app as a big widget on my home screen to remind myself to take breaks and jam to my favorites.
How's the new change coming around you ask? I personally feel good about this simple change I made to my home screen. It feels good to have this surreal, beautiful and fine machine to help me progress rather than make me feel guilty about the purchase. I know it was just reordering of the home screen and what's the big deal?
That is what I wanted to express:
A SMALL conscious change can lead to BIG IMPACT!
The feeling is beyond great because this small change I made, came from within.
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