How to Get 1 Hour of Your Life Back Every Day: Smart Smartphone Tactics

10 little nudges improve life by reducing stressful, wasted time on your phone

Image: Unsplash/Yanapi Senaud

We can argue for hours on social media whether excessive smartphone use is an addiction or not, but since the average person spends 20% of their life on their phone—risking additional anxiety, depression, and ultimately loneliness — our time might be better spent figuring out how to recover just a fraction of that valuable commodity for healthier pursuits.

A new study tested several ways to reduce wasted time on smartphones, revealing 10 little nudges that generated a full hour of time recovered each day for the average participant.

The tests involved university students who employed, on average, about eight of the suggested nudges for a few weeks. Compared to a control group, they not only gained free time but also reported improved sleep quality.

The nudges, in order of effectiveness:

1. Reduce notifications
2. Enable screen-time tracking
3. Keep your phone away while sleeping
4. Set your phone screen to grayscale
5. Hide social media apps
6. Make your phone less accessible