Good Ideas To Help Cut Screen Time

As with most things there's a trade off.  We live in a world where the once unthinkable is common practice; we have instant access to almost everything you can think of via our electronic devices.  Whether it's a traditional personal computer or television, or more modern (but aging) devices like cellphones, tablets, and smart watches - we've become accustomed to being connected to the world at all times.  If you can think it, wish it, or want to know more information about it - a few clicks and the problem is solved.

But as we've enjoyed the easy, instant-access to the world via our smart devices, we've also become tethered to them as well.  Here are some statistics in regards to screen time for the average American citizen:

• 86% of Americans access the internet on a daily basis
• 5.4 hours - the average time most Americans spend on their cellphone each day
• 94% of American people between the age of 19-29 own a smartphone - able to connect to the internet
• 81% of Americans access the internet via a different source than a cellphone (i.e. a desktop computer or tablet as an example)
• 6.75 hours - the amount of time non-Americans spend accessing the internet
• 48 minutes a day - the total time American millenials spend texting
• 13% of American millenials spend more than 12 hours a day (12 hours a day!) on their smartphone or cellphone
• 4.5 hours - the average time an American spends watching television each day
• 10.75 hours - the total screen time spent by an average American each day
• All of those statistics are eye-opening in that they detail the way that electronic devices with screens have basically consumed our daily lives.  And the scary part is that they're doing it in such a passive way that most people don't even think about it - it just happens.

There is a lot of talk about "unplugging", disconnecting from the internet, and decreasing our screen time.  Easier sometimes said than done.  But there are ways we can accomplish this if we try.

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What follows are some good ideas towards decreasing screen time - some easy to do and others more difficult. Even applying one of these ideas into your daily routine would go a long way towards using electronics less.