New Insights After Unplugging for 21 Hours
On September 30th, Crave 21 hosted a 21 hour unplug challenge to help raise awareness for addiction recovery and prevention programs. Their goal was to captivate just a little of what it is like to face addiction by unplugging from cell phones and electronics for 21 hours! The Challenge was a part of the National Campaign #SpeakingOutLouder where individuals around the U.S. opened up about their relation to addiction, end negative stigma, while also educating others on the science of addiction.
The day started off with a sudden realization that the time has come to finally unplug from the digital world and reengage with reality. My daily ritual of waking up and reaching for my cell phone came to a sudden halt. I wasn’t able to see if anyone emailed me about work, weekend plans, or even how many likes I got from my last IG post from the night before. I quickly found myself in a slight panic as I tried to focus hard on alternative routines that didn’t require technology.
After my day of unplugging I discovered some really insightful knowledge:
- Willpower: The ability to restrain impulses. When we stop ourselves from buying that new sweater or indulging in technology every 15 minutes, we strengthen our self-discipline.
- Self-discipline: the ability to control one’s feelings and overcome one’s weaknesses. Self-discipline generates more positive attitudes, higher test scores, and punctuality.
So how do we strengthen our self-discipline or willpower?
How does one find themselves engaging in the Crave 21 Challenge without that initial motivation?
Well, Starbucks ran into the same questions. They provided their employees with gym memberships hoping that they would stimulate self-discipline and carry over to better work performance. Unfortunately, the employees that lacked willpower to begin with weren’t using the gym memberships. So Starbucks had to develop a new strategy.
Starbucks created a program where employees had to assess situations and write out a plan for how to behave and act in special situations. For example, “If a customer is upset, I will perform the following actions to resolve their problem.” The more specific the plan of action, the better the employees trained themselves in self-discipline.
The Crave 21 challenge is developed in a similar fashion. Participants are encouraged to identify their triggers, find replacement habits, and develop their detailed course of action.
Before taking the Crave 21 Unplugged Challenge, I met up with my friend Brandon to discuss everything I will be doing the day of the challenge. I planned pickup times and activities surrounding the day. This detailed plan helped me to stay disconnected from my phone without too many problems. Of course, I still felt the slight temptations to pull out my phone every now and again throughout the day; however, by preventing myself from doing so, I was training myself in willpower and self-discipline.
Willpower is not a personality trait like previously thought, it is like a muscle. It can be trained and strengthened through practice. If you or someone you know is looking to train themselves in being a better employee, overcome a bad habit, or is simply looking to improve one’s behavior, I encourage you to check out the Crave 21 Challenge! For a more in depth understanding of willpower and habits, check out the book The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg. Educating one’s self on the science of craving, addiction begins to make much more sense. Addiction is a Crave cycle. Although addiction is a disease, we can train ourselves in willpower to help avoid cues and triggers that may spark the negative cycle of addiction.
Crave21.org
#SpeakingOutLouder
