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Comment by TFNA | Hacker News Reader

This doesn't work for me in spite of over 10 years of trying. I am currently eating lunch and wasting time on HN on my phone, but my ebook reader full of edifying material is sitting there ignored on the table, right in front of me. I need some way of leaving the phone at home completely, but in my country so much basic everyday stuff relies on a phone (and strong bank authentication through a phone).

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I've found having draconian phone blocking rules helps. I use Jomo

https://jomo.so

but I'm sure there are other competing products.

Roughly, you can classify apps in your phone to things that

1. are fundamentally fine (various bank/payment apps, messaging app, map apps), and

2. are known time wasters (social media)

you then just block the time wasters. you can configure it so that to edit the settings of the app, you have to enter some 150 character randomized code. it is very annoying to do.

this is the point though. there are other ways you can add friction to using your phone. setting its display to be black and white makes it much less enjoyable to use, for example. if you add in enough friction (and stick with it over an initial "hump"), you'll findi yourself reaching for other options.

For me it’s about building a routine. I go to a coffee shop every morning with my kindle and phone. Phone in my pocket on do not disturb and just read for an hour.

It’s not that hard to disconnect if you really want to.

I am an academic and do the same reading of books for hours each day without phone distractions. The problem is precisely the less formal environments where, instead of a serious book, I'm going to be reading news or other light content. Hard to go for the ereader then instead of the phone.

What about adding some lighter content to the e-reader, even some fiction, to match the vibe you’re looking for in those less formal environments? If your e-reader is only associated with serious book, I can see where that would be a lot for a casual lunch that you want to feel like a break.

I always hear the “I need my phone for bank stuff” but can’t you just leave your phone at home and then schedule going to the bank if it’s that necessary to a part of your day? I can’t imagine you need to be interacting with the bank 24/7/365.

In some countries, authentication to a wide variety of non-bank services and payments is done through bank apps. The bank has done the work to verify who you are, so they conveniently serve as the proof of your identity to everyone else.

"Going to the bank"? Banks around here began to close physical branches well over a decade ago now, and visiting one of the remaining branches often requires a multi-hour wait in the queue, if not an appointment made many days in advance.

But my point stands, do you need to do the type of banking that requires constant identification every day to the point where you need it always around it distracts you from what you’d like to be doing? If that’s true then the bank has completely captured you. Or leave your phone in your bag or at home and you shouldn’t have this issue.

The “I need my phone for banking” excuse is a vague reason to keep using it. They don’t need their phone for banking, they want their phone and banking is a convenient reason to placate that want.

Again, we are not talking about banks or banking. In my country one's bank app functions as the strong authentication used to log in to all the other services where one has to prove one's identity. And yes, pretty much every day while I am on the go, I have to authenticate to some service or another.

Again YOU are choosing to live that lifestyle of on-the-go always phone-in-hand. The inability to stop using the phone while desiring to not do phone activities is not because of the banking/authentication.

> In my country...

It's not your country. It's the banks' country if they own it to the extent that they own your identity.

Payment of any bill, any online purchase usually requires 2FA and a phone. No phone? No online bill payment or online purchases. Were it not so...

Great, schedule your bills to be paid or start cancelling services if you simply cannot live a day without having to pay bills online. Sounds like living in excess then complaining about it.

Do you need to bring your phone everywhere to pay your bills? Or can you leave it at home for paying your bills? That's what the original commenter is referring to, if I understood him.

Set your phone to display only in greyscale. It takes all the fun and cartoonishness out of it, which is a good thing.

sure ppl still take cash. also what are you buying all the time?

just go out and dont buy anything

schedule a meeting on your calendar for no phone time

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