One of the biggest challenges college students and professors face nowadays is the distraction of smartphones. Very few students today don’t use a cell phone to communicate with their friends and family, however, this is often to the extent that they are reliant on this device. Today we’re going to discuss some of the top tips to minimize and prevent the distraction of cell phones in your everyday life when you are trying to study or work on an important project.

Remove the Distraction

Students will find they have a much better chance of concentrating on the task at hand if they go ahead and remove their phone from their vicinity when trying to work. During class time, it’s best if students turn their phone off or keep it in their bag so that they can’t distract students’ attention in the middle of a classroom professional teaching a class. When it comes to studying in your dorm, this can be more tricky, with minimal space for storage. Try to find a shelf or drawer away from your desk, where you can store your device while you are working, and minimize the temptation to keep checking social media or your latest text message when you should be focusing on your homework.

Wake Up Early

You may be wondering what waking up early has to do with minimizing the temptation of smartphones, but during the early hours of the day, you’ll find that cell phone usage decreases. There’s far less chance of you receiving a message and being distracted from your work by one of your devices going off. Many top-performing individuals in the world have found success thanks to waking up early each day, and the first hours of the morning can be a time of peace and quiet for students for work and learning. If you find you are easily disrupted, this may be a great option and can help engage students who struggle to work during the busier and more social evening hours.

Time Blocking

Time blocking is a great tool, and if you are an avid user of digital devices, you may find that the incentive of using your device keeps you more motivated when working. Choose a length of time you can focus for, whether that’s twenty, thirty or forty minutes, and after each segment of time where you avoid multitasking, you can then reward yourself with a short five-minute break to scroll or reply to messages. There will need to be some element of discipline if utilizing this technique, as you don’t want to be fully drawn away from your work and never return to it!

Organize your phone to minimize distractions

On most phones nowadays, you can personalize your home screen to hide apps from being easy to access. This is a great feature to use if you find you naturally gravitate towards Instagram or other popular apps. By keeping your work and school-related apps on the homepage, you’ll be more likely to use these first and stay focused on the task at hand. There are many great digital tools and digital education offerings designed with the young student in mind online. While technology can be a hindrance to students, it does have some benefits. If you are ever struggling with college papers, the internet nowadays allows you to pay to write research paper assignments online. If you are truly struggling with your assignments, it can be beneficial to pay for research papers and avoid the hassle and stress of writing about something you have no interest in. So while technology and devices do have some drawbacks, it’s easy to find good services and tools that may help you further your education and save you time.

Screen Time Restrictions

If you really lack self-control and feel you need extra assistance to stop you from using your phone, use the screen time feature on your mobile devices to restrict your daily usage. This can either be done by the time of the day, to minimize morning and night-time disruptions, or by a certain amount of time on an app for the day. If you know Instagram or Facebook Messenger are your weak points, then limit yourself to an hour or so a day on each app on your mobile device. Try to stop yourself from opening them up again and focus on the work you need to complete for the day instead.

Reduce Notifications

If your phone usage is mainly for social reasons, while you are trying to complete your assignment, put your phone on silent or better yet, on airplane mode. Even if it’s just to give you an hour of peace and quiet, you can enjoy working away without the distraction of constant pings and vibrations. Whenever your phone buzzes or makes a noise, it can completely take you away from your zone of focus, and you might find you lose track of where you were in your reading or writing. If you aren’t expecting any important calls, I’m sure there’s no information you can’t go without knowing for an hour. Try to create a quiet environment for working that's conducive to productive studying, and you’ll also find this will help with your mental health in the long run too.

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Phones have many advantages for life as a student but should be used sparingly during times where concentration is needed. When you have a deadline looming, the last thing you need is for your phone to draw you away from the task at hand, so try to keep it away from your desk or place of study and minimize notifications to reduce distractions. After your work is done, you can then return to the online world and enjoy chatting with your friends on your phones and celebrating the great job you’ve just done on your assignment.