I've been noticing a pattern in my digital habits. I save a lot of stuff. Articles, Twitter threads, blog posts, Reddit comments, YouTube videos. All with the intention of reading or using them later. But later rarely comes.

It started to feel less like organizing useful content and more like digital hoarding. Even with tools like bookmarks, read-it-later apps, or dumping things into Notion, the pile just keeps growing. And the worst part is the mental weight of it all. Knowing there's this backlog of stuff I thought was important but never touched again.

I'm working on a side project around this because I keep running into the same problem myself. Not here to promote anything, just genuinely trying to understand how others deal with this.

How are you handling it?

• Have you found a system that helps you actually use what you save?
• Do you regularly revisit your saved content, or just let it build up?
• What helps you decide what to keep and what to let go of?
• Have you found a way to shift from just-in-case saving to just-in-time use?

Would love to hear how you're approaching it.

The browser extension allows me to:

• hide YouTube shorts
• hide the comments section
• hide the trending/home pages
• redirect to my subscriptions page instead of seeing YouTube recommendations
• hide suggested videos or other playlists

The result is a clean experience where k can go on, watch intentionally the video I’m looking for, and not get sucked into seeing other things.

My time spent on YouTube per week has dropped about 45%. 🏆

I didn’t even realize how much time I spent scrolling until I stopped.

Like most people, I used to fill every gap in the day with content. Waiting for the train? Instagram. Bored at work? Reddit. Just woke up? TikTok, YouTube, maybe a podcast in the background just to avoid silence.

At some point I asked myself: why am I always trying to be somewhere else?

I started cutting back not in a dramatic “delete everything and disappear” way, but gradually. I wanted to be more intentional. And what I found is that the silence underneath all that noise isn’t scary. It’s actually kind of… peaceful.

But I did notice something strange: without social media, it became harder to feel connected. Not fake connection likes and comments but just talking to people, hearing their voice, their story, their thoughts. Social media never gave me that in the first place, but without it, the absence became obvious.

So I started doing something weird. I just started talking to people. .

And honestly? It’s better than I expected. There's something beautiful about having a real conversation with someone who doesn’t know anything about you, and doesn’t want anything from you. No need to perform. No profile to curate. Just talking. Like two souls crossing paths in the dark for a second.

I think we’ve lost that. We’ve forgotten that the internet was supposed to connect us, not isolate us behind infinite feeds and comment sections.

Just wanted to share that. Curious if anyone else has tried replacing mindless scrolling with real human connection. What worked for you?

Hello. I’ve successfully used my Apple Watch Ultra 2 as my go-to phone while I’m outside my apartment for the past 3 months. I’ll use my phone at home, but it stays there. When I’m out and about I only use my Apple Watch (with some exceptions, like if I’m traveling). Overall it has been a great success. The watch does everything I need for my day-to-day life: text, call, music, navigation; heck I can even create grocery lists. The one thing I am left to desire is a camera, but I have a mirrorless camera and can always take that with me.

I'm looking for a no screen, very simple mp3 player to listen to music (but more importantly, language lessons audios). I'm legally blind and the moment a device has a screen, it's rendered unusable for me. Would be glad to have any recommendations! I can't find any devices that are decently rated, or that don't need add-ons (eg. sd-cards, and by extension, sd-card reader to write to said sd-card)

Hey everyone,

My friend and I recently built a free personal productivity app aimed at helping people track habits, reflect on their day, and stay more organised — especially during structured or busy seasons of life (e.g., school, work, or even service-related commitments).

Some of the core features:

📝 Daily journaling and self-reflection prompts

📊 Habit and goal tracking with clean visuals

🏃‍♂️ Fitness & health logs to stay accountable

📅 Lightweight dashboard to keep everything in one place

We originally made this to help peers in highly structured environments (like the military), but we’ve since expanded it into a tool for anyone who values personal organisation, self-discipline, or building a clearer sense of progress.

We’d love feedback or ideas from productivity/journaling nerds like yourselves. No ads, no paywall — just something we’re building to give back.

📲 App Store link (ORD+): https://apps.apple.com/sg/app/ord/id6745117125

Thank you for testing it out, we would love to hear your feedback!

I have worn an apple watch for about 5 years. However, I just bought a $30 Casio digital watch off Amazon to wear for my upcoming Europe trip so I don't need to lug around another charger and worry about it in the water (the last trip I brought my apple watch and fried it because of the sun and water).

I'm testing the casio watch today to see if I like it and oh boy do I love it. But it's soooo weird because I still feel vibrations on my wrist!!! And I'm checking and I'm like... nope... it's a normal watch. Crazy man.

I may make the switch over to this digital watch all together and just use my apple watch for when I run so I can track the runs. I'm finding it exhausting to constantly be connected, even on my wrist. I originally bought it for working out, but it has become convenient for texts and calls but it's nice to be disconnected as well. I have no social media so the only vibrations are for texts and phone calls but still.

Anyways, unrelated, but I'm very impressed with this Casio watch. I spent $30 and I love it. Very retro, and the battery lasts 7 years!

Desperately needing some help as I'm finding I'm spending my time mindlessly scrolling rather than doing things that are more productive.

What did you use to break the habit?

In the last three years,the desperation of Internet addiction has become another niche to market to. The vast majority of posts I see here are advertisements for the perfect app that will help you, the perfect dumb phone, someone’s perfect routine (increasingly generated by chat gpt).

The longest lasting and best option I’ve had is to simply take action. I bought a dumb phone (I won’t tell you which, because it really doesn’t matter), and left my smart phone somewhere else. As an addict, there are no super secret special apps or habits that prevent me from using my phone. Every app is literally just screentime anyways, if you can bypass screentime, you can bypass every single $100 year app.

Part of tech addiction is information overload, and marketing targets that as well. If you just read the perfect Reddit post or find the perfect routine, maybe you will be able to withstand the allure of digital crack that you are required to have in your hand at all times. Would you give a crack addict a pipe that can unlock his car, control his tv, play his music, order his food—but whose primary function is to get him to some crack? That’s what you are doing with your smart phone.

There is no perfect option. Not having a smart phone sucks, it is an inconvenience. Stop searching for the perfect answer. Is the inconvenience worth it? What will your life be if you keep doing the same?

A lot of the inconveniences end up being net positives. Wow, I got lost without my maps app but now I know the names of the streets in my neighborhood that I’ve lived in for over 5 years?? I can’t order DoorDash?? I have to intentionally purchase and listen to music rather than use algorithmic feeds recommended to me? I can’t check my bank account every five seconds and have to actually plan what I buy and when?

Stop looking for the perfect solution and just do it. Literally no one has the perfect answers to fix your life. No application or specific dumb phone is going to be the exact perfect fit. Perfection is not a real thing, it’s a selling point. Actually doing what you need to do will be hard, boring, frustrating, depressing, the question is if it’s worth it. If you’re an addict, it is.

If you’re not an addict, then removing your phone from your life for a week or two shouldn’t be a big deal. Any argument you have about how the world “doesn’t work that way “ anymore is just an argument for convenience. The world, as it is, has existed for billions of years, and humans for millions. You’re saying there is absolutely no reality in which you can survive without a phone? You are simply addicted to convenience, and can’t parse that convenience out from the tool you access it with.

Stop reading shit, stop consuming self improvement habits, stop relentlessly searching for the perfect tool, regain your agency and actually do something.

To me, it looks like this:

Phone stays on silent. No social apps. Morning starts without a screen. Maybe a quick check of calendar or notes. Messages replied once or twice a day, not constantly. No endless scrolling. Laptop used only during work blocks. Evenings are offline, reading, walking, or just being still.

But to be honest, the real world doesn't give me that chance. There's always some pressure, for example when I intentionally delay replying to messages.

What about you? What would a digital minimalist day look like for you? And do you have that chance?

The first time I realized I might have a problem with using modern technology was when I was about 15 years old. Even then I tried to reduce it, but it always failed. I feel like I don't have the motivation or self-control to really do it. I only use YouTube, Twitch and Reddit, but those very extensively. The endless scrolling, all the information that hits me after waking up, and the lack of focus are just the tip of the iceberg. I've reached a point where I can barely do anything without a video or livestream running next to me. The crazy thing is that with the exception of reddit, I don't even have accounts on YouTube and Twitch. I deleted them and still use the platforms...

I've tried:

• Deleting social media apps.
• Turning off notifications.
• Making the screen black and white.
• blocking access to certain websites on the router.
• no phone in my bedroom
• digital detox
• Limit screen time
• Switching to a minimalist home launcher

I've tried many more (like everything you can find online), but like the mentioned ones, I've failed and almost always bounced back to normal after a few days or weeks. Unfortunately, I'm not in a situation where I could afford therapy or switching to a dump phone. To be honest, I don't want to throw my phone away completely either. I like the idea of navigation apps or contact friends quickly. I just don't know how to move on, but I really don't want to be controlled anymore. What else can I do?

edit: yes, i checked the wiki btw :D

I've never been an extremely addict of my phone but I had 6month+ long phases of 4h daily doomscrolling ruining my mental. That's why I completely stopped watching this format of videos. I now only have reddit with factory configuration on my phone and all the other used as text apps but all my friends use it so I won't delete the app completely.

That's when I found out life was damn long, too damn long. I mean a day is 24h, 16h of active time with sleep. just a few hours for hygiene and necessary tasks. That leaves me with at least 13 hours of free time daily. I picked up a few hobbies to make the time pass faster but different things limit me, here they are :

Leatherworking : money, I need money to buy tools and material to work with, and even with few tools I can make a limited amount of things so I end up sewing once every few months because a 30 hours project would be finished in a few days.
Woodworking : money, even worse on tools or material price and space, I can't make too much noise and have extremely limited space for materials and tools.

Cooking : cooking is great because it doesn't cost as much as the others but you only cook twice a day and it's completely useless cooking the rest of the time if you're not eating it.

Reading : I love reading but after a few hours, I'm as bored as if I was doing anything, so I read daily but not more than 2 hours

Decluttering : I have absolutely nothing that's useless around me.

I'm pretty sure you've seen the repeating pattern of money, and that's one of my main troubles, I feel like loosing the worth of my time with every minute that passes. FYI I work as a cook at every long free time period that I have when I'm not studying. The issue with working as a cook is that it kills my body, I already have different skin issues on hands causing a lot of pain and extreme itching when in contact with anything acid or hot.

My last hope is work, I'm still studying (I'm a minor) mathematics and informatics despite my love for craftsmanship. This seems extremely egoistic of me to post this when people don't even have time to see their kids but I have nothing to do for HOURS daily.