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Dear Bernard,,
What do you do with your downtime? You know, those few moments during commercials or while standing in line at a store.
If you're like me, and I am very guilty of this, you pull out your phone and scroll through messages, emails, news feeds, or more.
According to a survey by Review.org, today Americans checked their phone 205 times a day. This is up from 144 times per day in 2023. This is an average of once every 5 minutes you are awake.
Part of this survey also found that over 80% of Americans check their phones within 10 minutes of waking up, and more than half keep their devices within arm’s reach while they sleep.
This desire to stay connected has led to some bad habits:
- 78.2% feel uneasy leaving their phone at home.
- 76% check their phones within five minutes of receiving a notification.
- 65.7% use their phone on the toilet.
- 53.7% have texted someone in the same room.
- 51.3% sleep with their phone at night.
- 43.2% consider themselves “addicted” to their phones.
- 48.3% have never gone longer than 24 hours without their cell phone.
- 39.6% feel panic or anxiety when their phone battery goes below 20%.
- 38.1% use or look at their phone while on a date.
- 27% use or look at their phone while driving.
While these numbers are not the same for all, there are trends by generation:
Generation Z - 6h 18m
Millennials - 6h 2m
Generation X - 4h 54m
Boomers - 3h 18m
Silent Generation - 1h 16m
As you can see, engagement varies across generations in both frequency and duration. Millennials lead with the most frequent phone pickups, averaging 324 daily or 20 per hour, indicating short, frequent interactions. Generation X follows with 238 daily pickups, or 15 per hour, showing a more moderate engagement.
Like many bad habits, this has become a learned response to an enjoyable stimulus. The real question is, at what cost?
After looking at this data, I know I will take steps to put my phone away more often. Face-to-face, real conversations can be so much more rewarding.
As always, thanks for reading.
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