Going Analog This Year: Small Changes in a Hyper-Connected World

This is the year I go analog.

I intend to spend more time away from my devices. More time reading. More time reflecting. This is the year I get back to doing more of what matters.

I invite anyone who feels inspired by these words to heed the call and try spending a little time each day going analog—whatever that means to you. This is not another self-help, wellness, life-hack, or optimization blog. God knows there are enough of those (and yes, I subscribe to many of them).

Here’s the thing: I’m no guru. I’m not a barefoot holy man on a pilgrimage, urging you to cast your phone off the edge of the Earth or drown it in the depths of the ocean.

In fact, I kind of suck at going analog.

When I take beautiful morning walks, I’m rarely without my earbuds intent on suffocating my eardrums, blocking out the songs of no fewer than twenty species of birds calling for my attention. Instead, I subject myself to the prattling of some news podcast or podcast bro trying to improve my life—or at least make me laugh.

My morning walk

Even in the sauna, I struggle to resist bringing my phone with me, despite even knowing full well that delicate electronics are not designed to survive thirty minutes in a cedar box at those temperatures. But I can’t help it. I must scroll mindlessly through social media or play Block Blast to avoid focusing on the heat and how my body actually feels.

Why would I need a phone in here?!

It’s sad.

But honestly, my intention isn’t to judge myself for my poor digital hygiene—and I’m certainly not here to judge anyone else for theirs. We’re up against tech giants with balance sheets full of zeros, companies that have mathematically engineered their algorithms to seize our attention. They’ve hijacked our amygdalas. And we’ve given our full consent.

So no—this blog isn’t about perfection.

Instead, it’s about personal growth. Mine.

I plan to make minuscule changes by carving out bite-sized chunks of analog time each day. You’re welcome to follow along if you feel compelled, but attempting a wholesale lifestyle overhaul—ditching all devices at once—feels like an overly ambitious New Year’s resolution. Too much to chew.

My hope is that small, consistent changes will slowly—perhaps imperceptibly—create new habits. That over time, they’ll help me move through my days with more mental clarity, less stress, and a deeper reconnection to nature, friends, family, and even myself.

Afternoon analog reading

My version of analog living looks like this:
reading physical books, having uninterrupted conversations with my wife and friends, being present in nature, listening to birds sing, cooking with all my senses, focusing on my movement and form in the gym, listening to my own thoughts, and spending time in meditation.

Even cooking can be analog

And with that, it’s time for me to wrap this up and shut off my computer.

I hope some of you will come along on this journey with me.