How to (Not) Use Your Phone as a Musician/Creative

Thanks to mobile devices we have access to all the digitized knowledge of the world and a gazillion hours of incredible video performances and tutorials at our fingertips.

We can install apps that can help us:

• run our finances
• manage our tasks
• stay on track to reach our goals
• keep databases of valuable knowledge
• video chat around the globe

Basically, we could improve our effectiveness, productivity, our workflow, manage our responsibilities and learn valuable skills from anywhere – anytime.

But instead we often get suckered into:

• watching silly cat videos (meow, kittie, kittie!)
• low-quality content that is nothing more than an infomercial selling us on something
• attention-robbing apps that “steal” our time, focus and energy with nothing much to show for in return

FOMO

We musicians/creatives seem to be especially susceptible to that. We are curious creatures and we often like (or need) to be on the edge of technology. Just think of our complex DAW set-ups integrating hardware, various controllers, scripts, plugins etc.

We freelance and need to self-market. We run our own website(s) and are constantly looking for ways to promote our art, our services and reach to our audience and/or clients.

So there is a lot of FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) involved. What if this new shiny thing will make the difference? What if that next app will make everything come together and (magically) work?

This can have some serious side effects. Our looking into anything and everything leads to a fragmentation of our attention since we constantly get pulled into different directions. And we seriously underestimate or even altogether neglect the switching costs involved.

Filling our time to the brim by constantly hustling might make us feel busy and important, but in the process we are losing time for reflection and the gift to experience downtime and boredom. Yes, boredom. Boredom is a prerequisite and fertile ground to creativity. It lets our subconscious mind mull things over. We digest and marinate the inputs we’ve collected, process them and – once the time is right – create something new.

Loss of Presence

Another reason why it’s important not to constantly look at your phone’s screen: you are missing out on the “real” world around you. The environment, the people …

Instead of deeply connecting and interacting with the real-life people that are around you, the “communication” with some internet entity takes over. Fishing for likes from strangers and the dopamine hit this produces, colors and changes the perception and motivation of everything you do.

For more research into this topic check into the work of Tristan Harris and Cal Newport.

I don’t want to focus on the doom and “dark” aspects too much. Instead, let’s get into some actionable strategies that can help you stay focused on what’s important to you. And I’m not talking about getting rid of your phone altogether or switching to a dumb phone.

There’s no sense or need to go Luddite. Sure, one could then snicker at all the people who get pulled into the vortex of technology and are in the fangs of the corporate tech giants – but how helpful is that when you also lose out on all the advantages a modern smartphone provides?

Let’s set-up our mobile devices so they serve us instead.

Your Digital Philosophy

First, take a hard look at yourself and assess your needs. Define your digital philosophy, ethos and your mission!

• What are your plans with the phone?
• What do you intend to get out of using your phone?
• What are your goals and values?
• Your core philosophy?

Since this is an article on AdvancingMusician, I assume you are a musician/artist/creative. In this context, let me suggest some additional questions to ask yourself:

• What art/works of art do you want to create?
• What artistic legacy do you want to leave behind?
• How can your digital devices help you in your creative pursuits?
• What apps/activities do you need to avoid or replace?

Overall, it boils down to: what’s important to you?

Phone as Tool Instead of Status Symbol

Don’t fall into the trap of viewing a phone as a status symbol. I know, there are the bezels, the high-gloss finish, the huge screen size etc. However, take a serious look at the cost/benefit ratio. Do those features truly warrant 200, 400, 600€ (or more) of additional cost to you? That’s money that you could put aside for a “rainy day” emergency buffer.

Or you could invest into a tool like Omnisphere 2, UVI Falcon 2, the Pro Version of your DAW, a nice hardware controller, a course on a specific skill that will elevate your level. Stuff that you can actually use to create higher-quality art.

You can do (almost) anything with a smartphone in the 200-300€ range. Heck, you can do almost anything with a phone that cost 230€ a few years ago.

I manage my production workflow, access to my resource database as well as my teaching on a Moto G5+ that cost 230€ back in 2017. I’ll continue to do so for as long as the phone stays as reliable as it is. Hopefully, I’ll get at least 1-2 more years out of it. I plan to replace it with a then current phone in the same ca. 250€ price range.

Bonus tip: stash 10€/month away and you have the money for a phone replacement saved in 2 years. Worst case: the phone dies right after the 2 year warranty is up – you can immediately get a replacement because you have budgeted for it. Great peace of mind to know that such a business essential is handled and you don’t need to scramble for all the pennies under the couch.

Listen, I don’t want to prescribe how everybody should use a phone or what is allowed to buy. In no way am I assuming to know the answer for everything or everybody’s situation. If you are a visual artist and truly need the best built-in camera – then absolutely, go for the high-end phone. This article is intended to serve as a reminder (or nudge) for making intentional choices.

Practical Tips

Uninstall Distracting Apps

Remove temptations (social media apps, games – whatever you notice yourself losing time on). If something is not installed in the first place, you can’t waste time – simple as that.

For each other major area/workflow try to settle for one app – the best option. Master the app and learn to use all the features. You’ll get more out of it. By removing choices you also remove mental friction and avoid decision fatigue. No clutter also means that you need less storage and RAM and your device runs faster with less maintenance needed.

If multiple apps are needed for various reasons, that’s ok, too. Due to the Covid pandemic I currently have seven video-calling apps installed. I need them all in order to accommodate my students. Those apps are tools and I don’t waste time on them. I only use them when teaching my students.

Again, what I present are guidelines and suggestions. It’s not my mission to get you to as few apps as possible on your phones. My goal with this article is to help you make intentional choices that let you focus on your music (or other creative pursuits).

Turn Off Notifications

Don’t let your focus get hijacked by some notification. Before you know it you’ve lost your flow and wasted time on some activity that you didn’t intentionally choose.

But what if I miss out on something important? 

If you truly fear that you are missing out on some important message or notification, schedule check-ins at predetermined times. Once you are done working on your most-important projects/tasks for the day, those notifications will still be there waiting for you. You can still deal with them. The difference is that you’ve already accomplished progress on your priorities without getting thrown curve balls changing your trajectory and interrupting you in your creative pursuits.

Block Access

Block yourself from apps that you use compulsively. There are apps that help you do exactly that. Oh, the irony!

I noticed how I tended to mindlessly open Gmail first thing in the morning or whenever I had a short break. So, I’ve blocked myself. No access to Gmail until 11 am. This way, I focus on what’s important to me in the morning instead of getting distracted by other people’s agenda. Another block between noon and 6 p.m to unlearn the compulsive mail-checking during teaching breaks.

I started to make a lot of progress on projects that used to drag on forever, because I had more mental bandwidth and there were no distractions during my most productive time in the morning.

After approximately one month the block became unnecessary – I had trained myself not to check my mail multiple times throughout the day. Instead, I batch-process my inbox twice/day at scheduled times.

I still have a widget/command ready to easily block Gmail and other potentially distracting apps for 30 minutes. This is really helpful for those times when motivation might not be at the highest level and you’d easily let yourself get distracted in order to procrastinate.

Here’s the app I use for blocking access: Block Apps – Productivity & Digital Wellbeing

Choose Supportive Background Image(s)

Another easy quick win is to set up a wallpaper that reminds you to stay focused. This could be a minimalist, calming picture symbolizing order and focus. It could be a photo of your loved ones. Now, do you really want to waste time on some mindless activity or would your time be better spent with them instead? Or at least doing something on your device that helps create a better future for all of you?

How about a wallpaper that literally shows you questions like:

• Is this the best use of my time?
• Do I really want/need to do this?

Or a short mantra/affirmation like:

• Stay focused!
• Keep your goals in mind!

Whenever you unlock your phone, your wallpaper is there to remind you of what’s truly important to you.

Add Intentional Friction

On my device I keep the home screen empty. I rotate various pictures with affirmations, photos and calming landscapes as described above.

One screen to the right is my Google calendar widget with my appointments and scheduled lessons. On the other side is my “productivity” screen. There I have folders with shortcuts to my music-practice apps and the video-chat apps I need for teaching online. There’s also my task-manager-input widget and a folder with shortcuts to my most important Evernote notes like my morning-routine checklist, my daily-review checklist and my student-progress notes.

For all other apps I have to open the app drawer and search for them. This adds enough friction that I don’t just mindlessly open an app. I intentionally have to jump through some hoops and search for it.

Put the Phone Away

When you need time to focus, put the phone in another room. Newsflash: you don’t have to be reachable all the time. Nothing wrong with treating your own priorities with the respect they deserve.

If something is truly important, people will call again or leave a message. You can return the calls later during scheduled breaks.

In case that there are certain people (your boss, husband/wife/kids etc). that you want or need  to be available for at all times – program your phone so that only those calls are allowed and everything else is blocked. Basically, it’s all about creating the distraction-free environment and the procedures that help you focus on what’s important to you.

Schedule Time for Entertainment

Again, I’m not anti-fun, anti-downtime or even anti-cat videos. I’m against missing out on what truly matters in exchange for superfluous trifles.

A strategy that helped me enormously was to schedule the time for intentional “time-suck” activities. This helps to limit the damage due to the fixed amount you allow yourself. Also, when you know there’s time to watch silly cat videos, browse a meme site for giggles, peruse social media etc. later on, you’ll be able to focus better during your “serious” work time.

Give yourself thirty minutes of scheduled “fun” time (YouTube etc.) at the end of a productive day. Initially, this might be something to look forward to and that you use as a reward. Eventually you might get to a point that once the scheduled time arrives, you want to continue working instead.

Don’t do it!

This might seem counterintuitive – but stop working. You made the promise to yourself to recharge and have time for fun. Don’t break that promise. Otherwise a part of your subconscious mind won’t trust you anymore next time you truly need to focus.

Stop working, producing, practicing etc. and enjoy your entertainment time. Maybe over time you’ll upgrade from mindless consumption of whatever internet silliness you gravitate towards to a higher-quality source like watching TED talks instead – or how about going analog and reading a book? (Gasp!)

There are also non-digital activities to choose from like gardening, Yoga, baking etc.

Finally, you could even do: nothing. Be alone with your thoughts. Reflect. Let ideas grow naturally, giving them time to evolve. Don’t drown them by constant input. This is a tough idea to accept in our modern, hyper-productive society, but again, boredom can be the necessary fertilizer for great breakthroughs.

Final Words

There’s life beyond screens. Especially for us “modern” musicians with lots of DAW-production time involving multiple screens and highly-demanding focused work for hours on end – it’s more important than ever to disconnect and not to fill every available minute with even more screen time.

Instead, make sure to experience life, live beyond “digitalism” to fuel your creativity and have something valuable to share through your art. And don’t let a phone (however fancy it may seem) distract you from your higher calling. Put it in the right place and let it be the tool it is supposed to be.

For the apps I use and recommend, check out the article: Android Apps for Musicians/Creatives!