The Internet of Things (IoT) refers to the global network of connected devices. Cell phones, TVs, smartwatches, appliances, and machines connected to the Internet make up the IoT. As you are undoubtedly aware, these products are everywhere.
Connected devices allow for collecting and exchanging information at a click or swipe. However, their 24/7 access to information and entertainment might expose you to the top three connectivity challenges.
- Notification Distraction
Your phone plays a selected sound to notify you of incoming information. You can silence notifications, but will that cause you to miss the latest laughing baby post on Facebook? What if you miss a text from a friend?
Email alerts notify you of a new digital delivery to your inbox. Your smartwatch constantly informs you of your blood pressure, heart rate, calories burned, and the number of steps you’ve walked.
This relentless delivery of status updates is mainly unnecessary and very distracting.
Silence notifications on your electronic devices. Set a schedule for checking your email, social media accounts, and other sources of information.
Give yourself a time limit. Perhaps you will spend no more than 15 minutes sorting through your notifications every three or four hours.
- FOMO
FOMO is an acronym for Fear of Missing Out. It also refers to a Fear of Missing Opportunities. People believe they will miss something important if they put down their phones or log off the Internet.
FOMO keeps you checking one more email and sending one more text. Remember that the world won’t end if you don’t know everything happening online.
If you can’t disconnect, unplug, and log off-line regularly, what you are really missing out on is life.
- Endless Google Searching and Social Media Scrolling
The Internet has over a billion websites. More than 250,000 new sites are published on the Internet every 24 hours. That’s a new website every three seconds.
There is no way to Google or otherwise search all of that information, even with superhuman web searching powers.
Doomscrolling describes the addictive practice of scrolling endlessly through social media. This common habit challenges your mental health because chronic social media exposure is proven to raise levels of stress, anxiety, and depression.
Use the following apps to help manage the time spent on the Internet and staring at a screen, monitor, or display.
- Canopy
- Forest
- RescueTime
- Minimalist Phone
- StayFocused
