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What I Learned From Two Weeks Without My Cell Phone


I watched my phone sit in the bag of rice. 72 hours. I was counting down. Waiting to get it back and see who texted me, who Snapchatted me, who emailed me, who missed me while I was off the grid. Seventy-two hours went, but my phone did not come back to life.

Two weeks before I was next slated to go home, my phone broke and I decided to wait to get a new one until I was home. As a sophomore in college, I would be going the longest I had gone without a cell phone since I was in fifth grade. That’s right, I had had a phone glued to my palm for nine straight years, and it was just ripped out of my hand. In this time, several things became clear to me, and I’ve made a couple of resolutions for when I get my phone back.

I worked harder when I didn’t have my phone to distract me.

This revelation wasn’t particularly shocking to me. However, since this occurred over a heavy loaded work week, I found it extremely helpful to not have my phone. I wasn’t taking breaks to check Instagram; instead I kept working while those around me goofed off, and I got grades on my exams that reflected my hard work. I’m not necessarily lazy when I have my cell phone on me, but I waste a lot of extra time checking social media when I get frustrated in my studies, whereas, without my phone, I powered through.

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In the future, when I have my baby back, I’m going to try and leave it in my dorm room when I have a major study session planned, such as before a big exam or before an essay is due.

I cared less what people thought of me when I didn’t have a cell phone. 

These two things sound unrelated, but hear me out. Without my phone, I was off of social media. I was away from touched-up pictures of pretty people and my friends having fun. And as a surprising result, I spent nearly every phone-free day without makeup on. I never would’ve thought that my appearance would change if my phone was broken, however, I think that without the bombardment of filtered images on social media, I felt less pressured to look perfect, and I took the time without my phone as a break from makeup and lengthy morning routines.

I’m going to try and remember that wearing makeup should be for me. I should wear makeup when I want to put it on, because I like the way it looks. I shouldn’t feel forced into changing my appearance for other people, and especially not for the internet/social media because people pay less attention to my appearance in pictures than I think they do.

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People use cell phones as excuses to be late.


I’m sure we’ve all gotten this text: “I’m going to be a little late.” Because we have cell phones, we don’t mind keeping people waiting because we’ll let them know, right? They can just play on their phone in the restaurant until I show up. I spent a lot of time waiting in my two weeks without a phone.

I had agreed to meet someone at 8 and they showed up at 8:30. They probably didn’t think much of it. They probably showed up late a lot, were used to texting me to kill some extra time. But the wait felt much longer when I didn’t have a phone because I didn’t know when they were coming. I couldn’t walk away, because I couldn’t tell them where I was going. I do the same thing. I change my errands list on a whim and tell people to give me some extra time before I show up. But I realize now that, without a phone, I felt the last-minute late policy was rude. Just because we all have cell phones doesn’t mean we shouldn’t respect the time of our friends and family.

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I’m going to try and honor the time I set with friends. I’ll probably have to hit snooze fewer times and decide on outfits faster, but that’s definitely worth showing my friends I care. 

I’ve made a general resolution to be more present. Yes, I am thrilled to have my phone back. I’m back on all of my social media platforms and am texting around the clock. But, I think that any time I shut my phone off or leave it behind in 2016 will be time I cherish. It’ll be time I can focus on the people I’m with and the places I’m blessed to be at, and my schoolwork, too.

Casey Schmauder is a Campus Correspondent and the President of Her Campus at the University of Pittsburgh. She is a senior at Pitt studying English Nonfiction Writing with a concentration in Public and Professional Writing. 
Cara Sprunk has been the Managing Editor of Her Campus since fall 2009. She is a 2010 graduate of Cornell University where she majored in American Studies with a concentration in cultural studies. At Cornell Cara served as the Assistant Editor of Red Letter Daze, the weekend supplement to the Cornell Daily Sun where she also wrote for the news and arts section and blogged about pop culture. In her free time Cara enjoys reading, shopping, going to the movies, exploring and writing.