AN UNHEALTHY obsession with forming real-life bonds may be stealing precious time you could be spending on your phone. Do you need to change your behaviour? Find out:
What are you doing right now?
A) Reading this quiz aloud to friends and family.
B) Reading this quiz silently on your phone while in a room with friends and family.
Describe your ideal Sunday.
A) A long, dull walk with family bleating on about their problems, followed by a monotonous dinner with friends making fumbling attempts at emotional connection. No devices allowed.
B) A lovely long lie on the sofa spent scrolling social media, followed by a microwave dinner for one and an evening catching up with friends’ former colleagues’ ex-partners’ Instagram feeds
Do you ever feel anxious when you can’t reach your family or friends for long periods of time?
A) Yes. I need to know they’re alive, well, and there for me.
B) No. If they mattered to me, they would be on my phone.
When was the last time you stayed up late, talking into the night with close friends?
A) Just this weekend when I met my best mate in a bar. We ended out out in a field, under the stars, sharing our feelings and reaffirming our long friendship.
B) Exactly five years ago. Facebook showed me the photos. I shared them but nobody liked them because they’d all checked in at some restaurant together.
Do you often feel ashamed of how much time you spend with friends and family?
A) No. I wish I could spend more time with the ones I love and who give my life meaning. But there are so many distractions.
B) Yes. I wish they were gone so I could spend more time on the phone I love that gives my life meaning. But they’re always around distracting me.
ANSWERS
Mostly As: You have an unhealthy relationship with your friends and family. Install an app on your phone to track how much time you spend with them and expose the extent of your addiction. If you can, try locking them up in a cupboard overnight so you’re not tempted to speak to them when you should be on your phone.
Mostly Bs
It sounds like you have as healthy a relationship as it’s possible to have with your friends and family, in this day and age. Congratulations on making it work.
