ScreenZen continues to be a winner
Check out these streaks, unbroken since I first installed the app:
The best part is that it's been easy. This doesn't feel like streak-based habit tracking, which I've consistently failed at and generally don't like. Because this isn't trying to do something every day; it's avoiding doing something, like opening a browser on my phone, when ScreenZen jumps in front of it and reminds me that I want to avoid it. That's been surprisingly easy for me, and I don't have the world's greatest powers of restraint.
It doesn't mean I never open a browser. Rather, it means I have to go get my iPad, or laptop, or work phone, and do it there. And that's fine, because it creates enough friction to dramatically reduce the amount of time I burn on my phone. When I go fetch my iPad, which usually involves a flight of stairs, I'm doing so deliberately, not out of a boredom reflex.
I donated $20 to ScreenZen a while ago, and I'll probably send them some more bucks soon. I'd say it's one of the best apps on my phone!