Online stress and mental pressure from social media

Years ago, you would simply stare into the distance while waiting at the bus stop. On the train, you read a newspaper someone had left behind. In a café, if your date went to the bathroom, you would strike up a conversation with the bartender.

Now we reach for our phones instead. It's an easy way to pass the time, but it can quickly turn into doomscrolling.

Before you know it, you've looked through all the holiday photos of your neighbour's second cousin, saved ten new gym exercises you'll never look at again, and somehow convinced yourself that you need twelve new skincare products.

Always Distracted

Your phone, social media, games, emails. You carry instant entertainment and distraction in your pocket wherever you go. It's a bit like Las Vegas, where it's always daytime inside the casinos: highly addictive and surprisingly exhausting, often without you even noticing.

Maybe you catch yourself reaching for your phone every few minutes, even though you're supposed to be working. Or perhaps you keep telling yourself you'll only scroll for five minutes before bed, only to realise an hour has passed. If you're an influencer, entrepreneur or content creator, the pressure to stay visible and relevant can feel overwhelming.

Does this sound familiar?

• You are constantly comparing yourself to other people.

• It feels like everyone else is happier, more successful or more attractive than you.

• You feel pressure to post photos or videos.

• You struggle with severe FOMO (Fear of Missing Out).

• You automatically reach for your phone whenever you have a spare moment.

• You're finding it harder and harder to concentrate.

• You're doomscrolling past midnight even though you wanted an early night.

• Your mood depends on likes, comments or the lack of them.

• You often feel insecure or not good enough.

• You find yourself becoming more forgetful.

Do You Ever Get Bored Anymore?

I used to be able to spend hours reading a book on the beach or in bed. I could easily watch an entire film without getting distracted. These days I struggle to follow the plot and have to set myself rules like, "Don't look at your phone for the next 30 minutes." Often,  I don't even enjoy scrolling that much anymore. It feels as though I've already seen everything, and I'm wasting time I'll never get back. Yet I still keep doing it. Even while writing this, I notice my mind drifting every few minutes. "Maybe you should check your phone..."

Before smartphones existed, I got bored quite often. And strangely enough, that was when my best ideas appeared. We wanted to go outside, discover new places, meet new people and try new things. Today it's much harder to be bored. At every quiet moment, we reach for our phones. As a result, our brains get fewer opportunities to wander, become creative and surprise us with new ideas.

Practice Doing Nothing

Our brains have become used to receiving a new stimulus every few seconds. The good news is that this habit can be unlearned. With the right guidance, you can gradually rebuild your attention span, improve your concentration and strengthen your memory. That's something Anytime Coach can help you with. But I should warn you, you'll probably receive the most boring homework you've ever had: Go and get gloriously, wonderfully bored.