Phone lockbox
A lockable box with a timer that puts the phone out of reach for a set period
A box the phone goes into and cannot come out of until a timer runs down, sold as a kitchen-counter safe or as a pocket pouch. It adds friction rather than removing access. The phone stays in the house, but reaching for it stops being automatic. Some people keep one on the desk for focus blocks and a second in the car. Timer boxes are cheap. Pouches used at concerts and in schools work on the same idea.
People on record
Sorted by strength of stance
Does it: documented as part of their own routine. Recommends: explicitly advises other people to do it. Discusses: covered it substantively without clear personal adoption; this can include criticism or disagreement.
- Chris WilliamsonDoes it
Host · Modern Wisdom
Bought a timed box to lock his phone in, and calls that plainly where he has ended up. The one he settled on charges the device inside and leaves holes in the lid so an emergency call still gets through.
Source: chriswillx.com: 3 Minute Monday, Regrets, Extinction & Addiction - Sahil BloomDoes it
Author · The 5 Types of Wealth
Bought two lockboxes as part of a 30 day plan to cut his phone use, one for the office during no-phone hours and one for the car. He says he did not expect to override the habit on willpower alone.
Source: The Curiosity Chronicle: How I'm Breaking My Phone Addiction in 30 Days
Aimed at the same thing
Other entries filed under focus or productivity.
- Gear$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.On record from 6 of 62 tracked people: 6 do it
- Gear$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
Standing desk
A desk that raises, so part of the working day happens on your feet
On record from 4 of 62 tracked people: 3 do it, 1 recommends it - Gear$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.On record from 3 of 62 tracked people: 3 do it
- Gear$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Paper notebook
A bound notebook for thinking on paper away from a screen
On record from 3 of 62 tracked people: 3 do it - Gear$$$Expensive: Several hundred dollars and up.On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it
- Gear$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it
Gear entry · notes paraphrased from cited sources, quoted excerpts copied from the transcript they link to. Not medical advice. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or reviewed by anyone listed. How this works.