The Challenge that Fixed How I Consume Online Content
“Ok enough! It’s time to do something about it”
Let’s say that from time to time, I indulge a bit too much on the wonders of the internet. Binge-watching Youtube more specifically.
My curse. And once I go down the rabbit hole, it’s hard to crawl back out.
So I design a challenge specifically to address all my pain points regarding online entertainment.
In here I lay down the rules and their reason to be, as well as some tips and insights that I think it might help someone who is as screwed as I am.
While doing the challenge, I was also documenting it with a video which you can find below. In it, you will also get my experience going through the challenge and all the lessons learned.
I consider myself more of a filmmaker than a writer, but I guess you will figure that out by yourself.
For who?
I designed this challenge to address all the problems I have with online entertainment…
But I suspect we have a lot of things in common regarding how we use the web. You:
- Spend hours watching Youtube by mindlessly jumping around your recommendations.
- Feel like you didn’t do anything productive but that you are tired at the end of the day.
- Get easily distracted by any random thought that prompts you to go online and “research”.
- Loss yourself on social media and cannot stop swiping up.
But most importantly:
- You are tired of this bad habit and want to change.
Did I get it? Are we connected on an emotional level? GOOD, let’s get started!
Playing by the rules
RULE #1 | Only ONE hour per day of internet access
The first rule is the cornerstone of this challenge.
The reason I developed this bad habit is the fact that I’m always connected and therefore my monkey brain is unrestrained.
The point is to eliminate any potential damage by cutting the root cause of the problem: the Internet. But you may be thinking:
“How can I work without online access?? This is crazy!”
Well, let’s all calm down… I feel you. My work consists of running this website and trying to be someone on Youtube. I NEED to be online.
But I think we all agree that our time online can sometimes by mismanaged. Even during work time. This first rule helps us to keep on target.
If you need to be connected to read and write emails, try to bulk those activities and see how long they really take.
If one hour is just not enough, adjust it to fit your WORK related needs.
RULE #2 | All online activity has to be intentional and productive
This one is self-explanatory. The first rule creates a time limit and this one makes sure that one hour is well spent.
With a hard cap on online time, important and productive activities will surface to the top and take over the majority of the hour.
Around the third day of the challenge, after using up around 30 minutes of my precious hour, I found myself without any reason to continue using the Internet…
Strange I know… Sure I could watch the good old Youtube but… something didn’t feel right.
I don’t want to sound like I had an easy time during the challenge. I will address the struggles (and how to fight them) later in the post.
RULE #3 | Create a weekly plan and time block your days
By itself, time blocking is already an EXTREMELY powerful tool. Combine it with this challenge? Strap yourself, because it’s about to go down!
If you never tried time blocking, don’t panic. You don’t need to mastermind a super detailed plan your all your activities all in one go. Let’s take it easy.
For me, it helps to first define the goals of the week and roughly define when I will be working to accomplish those goals.
It also helps me to define the time of my meals, when I go to bed and wake up. It automatically creates a structure to the calendar.
With this rough plan for my week, I keep refining it day by day. As I get more context, I can change things around to fit any unforeseen events.
FYI, I used Google Calendar. It’s easy to edit, simple looking and straightforward. Don’t get too fancy here. Focus on the important stuff.
RULE #4 | No Multitasking
The arch nemesis of productivity: multitasking.
One of my biggest problems is trying to do too many things at the same time. For example, I’m writing or planning something and I also have some music playing in the back.
Eventually, I get into the music and start searching for more. Fast forward, here I’m on Youtube looking at music videos and singing along… Well played Youtube… Well played…
To avoid this, this last rule ensures that I can only focus on whatever I have planned to do in that time block.
This is valid for work-related AND non-work related activities. If you need to have lunch at 1 PM, that’s it. No watching videos while eating, no music… You get the idea.
Of course, you can have meals with others, as long as they are worth your precious time. Stone Cold!
How long is the challenge?
One week. Why just one week?
Honestly, I define this length more for the video I was doing in parallel. A week is a short period of time but because the challenge is so strict, you will notice massive changes during the 7 days.
I enjoyed the effects so much, that I’m still implementing some of the rules after these 7 days. My goal is to turn the challenge and the rules into habits that I simply do without considering them a “challenge”.
Dealing with the Curveballs
I’m writing this post-challenge so I have some insights I would like to share with all of you that are considering going through it too.
1. Restrict Access of the Candy
There are tons of tools designed specifically to block certain websites during a defined amount of time. Tools like Cold Turkey, StayFocusd or SelfControl are great to stop unproductive impulses.
Yet, during the challenge, I didn’t use these tools. Nothing against them and if you want, feel free to use them yourself. I wanted to take responsibility and be the only line of defense against these impulses.
However, I used a Chrome extension to block all the recommendations and feeds on Youtube. Because I sometimes need Youtube while editing videos, and Youtube is my biggest weakness, this extension is GOLD.
2. Track Impulses and Valuable Queries
These impulses can sneak up on you. To become aware of them, I like to keep track of them while I work.
On my worst day, I had 9 of these impulses. By the end of the challenge, I became quite good at detecting them and as a result, stop them.
During the day, I also tracked any queries and task I wanted to follow up once I was allowed to go online. I found out that this way, I had to question whatever the thought was worth pursuing while on my precious one hour.
It turns out that most of them weren’t.
Good luck if you do the challenge. If you have any question, ask :) Until the next one.
