Do the preparation task first. Then listen to the audio and do the exercises.
Preparation
Transcript
Presenter: So, we're back in the studio. Welcome back, everyone. My name's Rick Walker. From our laptops to our televisions, from the displays on our smartphones to those on our satnavs, we are in front of screens all the time. Have you ever wondered what it would be like to disconnect completely? To choose not to have access to the internet? If you have, you may be in need of a digital detox – a total switch-off from all things digital. The idea of people taking a digital detox is becoming more and more popular, especially amongst young people – and today we're joined by someone who's tried a number of digital detox activities and is here to give us some advice about it. Amanda Vince, welcome to the studio.
Amanda: Thank you very much.
Presenter: So, Amanda, you work for a fashion magazine in London, right? I guess your work means you need to be online a lot.
Amanda: Oh, yes. Apart from the hundreds of emails I get every day, I'm always browsing fashion websites, as well as online videos. I also need to be very active online, especially on Twitter and Instagram – sharing what we're doing in the magazine, interacting with designers, photographers, influencers … it never stops, literally. Then of course there's my friends and family to keep in touch with online too, and for me, my work grew out of my passion, so friends and work colleagues aren't two totally separate groups of people and it all gets a bit messy online sometimes. I think I'm online for at least 12 hours a day.
Presenter: So, how did you get the idea for a digital detox?
Amanda: I read a book about it, called Log Off: How to Stay Connected after Disconnecting. The author's name is Blake Snow. That book gave me some really good advice and made me think about trying to change some of my digital habits. I started with removing distraction.
Presenter: What do you mean by that?
Amanda: That means turning off alerts, buzzes, alarms or notifications of any kind. I had notifications set up for everything, and it meant I was always being forced to look at my phone. Removing all of them except for important contacts helped me focus immediately. The book also made a really good point, that we should ask ourselves 'Why?' every time we take out our phone. I realised that most of the times I looked at my phone were because I was trying to avoid or ignore something else happening right in front of me. It was an automatic habit.
Presenter: I have to confess, that happens to me too. But what else are you going to do when you're standing in line at the bank or waiting for your train?
Amanda: OK, yes, I'm the first to admit that it's great for helping time go by. But speaking personally, I found I wasn't just checking my phone to kill time when I was alone. I was also doing it with friends or family around.
Presenter: Hmmm … right. Well, so far, this doesn't sound too drastic. Turning off notifications and becoming aware of when we use our devices. That sounds easy.
Amanda: Yes, it's the first step. Once we begin to realise just how much of a grip our devices have on us, then we're ready to really take the next step. First, my partner and I did a weekend with absolutely no screens. She found it easier than I did. For me, it was a little bit scary at first but it turned out to be a pretty rewarding experience.
Presenter: A whole weekend, huh? I don't know if I could ...
Amanda: I think everyone has to do this at their own pace. If a weekend feels too much, maybe just try for an evening. Then work your way up to more. I guarantee, once you've tried it, you'll want to try it again. We're going to try for a whole week in the summer.
Presenter: OK, let's pause there then and see what our listeners have to say. You can call us here directly, or send us a message on any of our social media channels ... oops, should I be saying that? Anyway, more after the break.
No, I don’t want to try but I couldn’t do it anyway with university because I need to be updated on my classes and my schedules communicated by the website.
what do you think about doing that on a weekend evening?
not really, lol. i believe that i have a healthy relationship with the internet, i´m not addicted and i can stay hours without looking at my phone.
Once, I tried to do digital detox for a day and in a few hours it solved my headache.
I would like to do a digital detox. Because I am unhappy with spending time on the digital platform. I will get sick If I use it for a long time. I need to relax. However, at the same time, I need the phone. And, I need the computer. Because I live actively in the world.
I am addicted to my smart phone. I sometimes use it over 10 hours in one day. I know that I need turn off my digital devices because I sometimes cannot sleep deeply... However, they are so useful that I use them in various ways like listening music, finding my way, chatting with my friends and so on. That's why I cannot stop using them anymore...
As for me, a digital detox is a good opportunity to forget social networking sites for some time, and concentrate on real-life. By this, you can do all your tasks that you had been replacing for a long time. For example, I spend six hours in Tik-Tok per week. I can spend this time for studying IT or slovak language, which I need for my future. So, I`m going to try it, and I advise you too.
I would love to try a digital detox. I have been thinking of doing that for a long time, but school and preparation for the exams didn't make me possible to do so. I also feel like I am a little reliant on my electronic device, especially because I use it when I work out, practise English or meditate. So personally it is quite scary for me to quit, cause my device allows me to complete my morning or night routine.
But I need to admit that around two years ago, when I was hospitalised I didn't use my phone at all for a whole year, cause I wasn't allowed to have it. And looking back what I realised is that I actually cherished every moment, and days weren't going by so fast. I spent my time doing more creative and fun activities like drawing, writing, interacting with people at the hospital, playing board games and so on. I must say I had the best time.
I would love to do a digital detox this year. How ever, I would have to wait till summer. I can't have the pleausere of leaving my phone right now. University makes a prisoner of thecnology. But, I can start with turning off the notifications except ones from my family and university
Digital Detox is an intereting topic, it will allow us to reduce stress, fatigue and tehcnological addiction, because is very common in our lifes that we normalize the fact to check the phone many times during day and avoid to spend energy doing others things. It is learn to dedicated quality time for family and friends and myself..