How Should You Manage Your Smartphone?

Camala Bailey, CPA, CVA, at Camala C. Bailey, CPA, PC, discusses the importance of managing your smartphone and gives some advice on how to do just that.

Interview Transcript (slightly modified for readability)

“Did you know that two-thirds of Americans own smartphones? Forty-six percent say they can’t live without it. Thirty-six percent would choose it over TV. Eighty-seven percent of millennials say it never leaves their side. Seventy-eight percent of millennials say they use it more than two hours a day. Oh my! How do we manage our smartphones?

I love my smartphone. I just got an iPhone not too long ago and, oh my gosh, it’s made such a huge difference in my life. And it really has. But, my suggestions for managing your smartphone are to get real. What do I mean by that? I mean turn it off when you’re talking to your family. I know. Can you imagine? Get real. Get real. Talk with people. Don’t be talking to them while you’re looking at your smartphone. Another one is car ban. Now, if you live in a state where they don’t allow you to talk on the phone, I have heard they allow blue tooth. Well, how about just turning it off when you’re in the car. If you’re with somebody, you can have a conversation. If you like to listen to the radio, you can listen to the radio instead of worrying about the dings on your smartphone. How about some no phone time zones? This is a great idea. When you’re home and you’re sitting down to have your family dinner, put the phones away. Don’t let your kids use phones, don’t you use phones, let’s have a real conversation.

And, how about the first thing you do when you wake up in the morning? How many of us reach for that phone to see what kind of emails you got overnight? Not a good idea. Let’s take the first 30 minutes of our day and meditate, have some coffee, read the newspaper, relax. What a great way to start the day instead of seeing if you have a client email that says, ‘Oh my gosh! This has happened! I need help!’ You can start your day relaxed. And last but not least, turn it off before you actually get into bed. That way you’re not reading through Facebook, reading through emails, right before you go to sleep. Because you know what, it stays in your brain and you can’t sleep as well. So turn it off. Don’t’ read it at night.”