Appreciation post: my coworker told me to put my phone in a drawer during meetings

Last week, my coworker Jen noticed I kept checking my phone during our team standup. She said, "Just put it in a drawer for 30 minutes and see what happens." I tried it and I actually followed along with the whole meeting for the first time in months. The feeling of not having that buzz in my pocket was weird but good. Has anyone else tried physically moving their phone out of sight for short tasks?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_avery3d ago

Honestly, my friend tried this thing where she keeps her phone in the bathroom during dinner and just... forgets about it. She said she actually remembered what everyone talked about for the first time in weeks. Tbh I think half the problem is that phantom buzz feeling, you know? Like your brain tricks you into thinking it went off. Moving it to another room sounds weird at first but it really works for getting you to focus on whatever's in front of you.

wright.rowan2d ago

Wait, wait. The bathroom? Like, she actually puts it in the bathroom? I don't know if I could do that, the whole time I'd just be thinking about my phone sitting on the counter next to the sink. The phantom buzz thing is real though, I've definitely pulled my phone out just because I thought I felt it vibrate when it didn't. And then you're stuck scrolling for twenty minutes.