I left my home without my phone today.

It was actually totally an accident. I almost never forget my phone or wallet, but here I am, writing an article on how I don’t have my phone. On the one hand, it feels strangely liberating. Nobody can call me. On the other hand, the fact that I have iMessage on my computer and could visit Gmail or Facebook means that most of my potential distractions are still available here. The real “cleanse” so to speak, only comes when you are without internet.

That was actually the nicest thing about my trip to North Korea in 2013. No internet for an entire week. I got back and had all these notifications and I just looked at them and realized that almost none of them really mattered to my life.

Of course, the realization that peace can come from not having your phone or being connected to the internet 24/7 is what let to the Light Phone, which was a great interview we did a while back.

Ultimately, perhaps the, well, ultimate, version of this would be going to a meditation retreat where you are totally cut off from the world. It’s something that, overall, seems appealing to me. Hopefully I’ll be able to do one sometime.

Connecting less but valuing the connections we have more. It’s something to think about and take seriously.

Do you have experiences leaving your phone, or disconnecting from the internet? What worked for you? Let me know in the comments.