28/09/2026 “It’s the 28th of September today. I cannot believe how fast time has been passing once again this year. I remember making my vision board at the beginning of the year. And while many things have come true, the main one has not yet been achieved. Consume less. Create more. And I am finding myself frustrated by that.
Where does that frustration come from, you may ask? Ironically, it circles back. Consume less. Create more. Consumption is what confuses our emotions and brings us out of balance. The solution? Be creative, create. Experiences, Connections, Memories, Art, Ideas, Opportunities, A life. Whatever it is, it doesn’t matter. As long as you create.
When we were sailing around the islands of Maine on Nimbus, my very beloved Nimbus, was probably the only time I’ve ever been true to that since ..well, since the internet became such a big part of my life, and everybody else’s. Those two weeks of actual detox were an absolute whirlwind of emotions, with highs like our time on Swans Island, and lows like spiraling deeper and deeper into my head. I could tell, I was understimulated at times, which unfortunately brought out the intrusive thoughts that seem to creep up on me every now and again. But, they were thoughts i needed to think, that I wouldn’t have thought if I’d had the possibility to drown those negative feelings in digitally produced endorphins. And let’s talk about the highs! Oh, the highs.. When I think back to Swans Island, my whole body feels so warm, happy, and full. We ventured around without knowing what to expect, finding our way with a map on a postcard and asking the locals, meeting incredible people along the way whom we probably wouldn't even have noticed had we had our phones. I was able to be SO PRESENT there, like I can’t remember being in.. years?
It’s funny, in a way, how a smartphone is meant to make your life so much easier, with just about every piece of information and tool you could need right there with you, at all times. However, wandering down the roads of this island with empty pockets, I felt so much ‘Leichtigkeit’ and so at ease, I couldn’t remember the last time I’d felt that way. It was almost like a dream, we had nowhere to be, no one to reply to on our phones, and I could just go about my day without ever knowing what time it was. I felt like I was LIVING again.
And I know, I preach it all the time. ‘Go live your life, fulfill your wildest dreams, just LIVE!’. But do I really listen to my own advice? In the grand scheme of things, I believe I do. I go after my dreams and don’t let anything stop me. But in my day-to-day life? Quite a lot of my time is spent scrolling, comparing myself, and worrying. Granted, this is less the case when I’m actually out there sailing boats or riding horses, but that’s simply not my everyday life all the time. Sometimes, there are months like this one, when I reset, do land-people things, and try to catch up on different dreams and passions. This time, there’s going to be quite a long stretch of that, which is why I want to, no, why I need to make changes. I want to treat these upcoming four months with more respect than I usually would. Because I have grown. I am not the person I used to be anymore. The one who would fall into a hole of Instagram, Netflix, and nothingness. I have learnt a lot this year, specifically over these past months, about what I want from life. My time is too precious to be given away to meaningless inventions.
What that will look like instead, you’re asking? Today I deleted Netflix from all devices and told my family that I want out of the subscription plan. From now on, I will use my Brick again, to get the most out of my time. Period. Not just my time in Maine, Florida, Annapolis or at home. Just my time. Because truthfully, it shouldn’t matter where you are, or what you’re doing. Your time is the most precious thing you will ever own. And it is about time we treat it that way.
From now on, I will make it a habit to leave my phone behind when leaving the house. I will wear a watch and take my little notebook and a pen with me instead. And you know what? It will be inconvenient at times. But it will allow me to be more present. To observe my surroundings when waiting for a friend, an appointment or a bus, instead of looking straight down at my phone. And I know from experience, I will feel more at ease, more fully just me. Because hear me out: When carrying your phone with you, you’re never just you. You always have your family, your friends, the internet, your memories, basically the whole world with you, right there in your back pocket. My theory is that it’s part of what makes us feel like we’re not enough. But when it’s just me, without my phone, oh boy. I feel full. Like a complete, whole version of just me. Confident that exactly as I am, right there in that moment, I am enough. Try it sometime!”
Ask yourself:
How many times a day do you pick up your phone for no real reason at all?
How often do you catch yourself after an hour of doomscrolling?
How long would you be able to go without checking your pockets for your phone?
I want you to open your settings and check your screen time for today. If it’s higher than the amount of time you’ve spent doing something fun or creating something today - you should probably reevaluate your smartphone use.
We spend an average of almost four hours a day using the internet on our phones - just the internet - without even realizing it. And now think about this: Even if your screen time is as low as 2 hours every day over the course of one year (which is probably not the case), you will spend over 30 full days on your phone within that one year. That is an entire month of just staring down at a flashy rectangle. If you keep those two hours a day up, assuming you started using a smartphone at 12 years old and will stop at 80, you will lose 6 full years of your life to your phone. And that’s only 2 hours a day. Now imagine what 4 or 5 hours would add up to. And truthfully, we are all closer to an average like that.
When I first thought about this, it absolutely blew my mind. That is not what I want to do with 6+ years of my life. So I will be cutting down. What about you?