For months, I have had a few select apps deleted from my phone, and it has dramatically changed my productivity levels, my clarity, and my focus. Who would’ve thought that deleting a few apps off my phone would make such a difference? 

This episode is all about which apps I’ve deleted off my phone, why I deleted these apps off my phone to begin with, and how this has set me up for maximum productivity and joy in my day-to-day life.

By the way, I put together a monthly newsletter for my email list with exclusive Faith-Fueled Life and Business Coaching that is sent straight to your inbox. If you are on my email list, you already know which apps I deleted off my phone because of November’s Make it Reign Mail. So, there’s a little plug if you want to get on the list for exclusive, unreleased content.

But let’s go ahead and dive right into the good stuff.

We are going to start with the apps I’ve deleted off my phone, and then we’ll get into the reasoning behind this and how it has proven to be so beneficial. 

The apps I’ve deleted off my phone are…

Get ready for it…

Instagram, Facebook, Facebook Messenger, TikTok. Gmail, Pinterest, Voxer, and YouTube.

Are you squirming yet? LOL.

That seems crazy, right? 

To be fair, I am not a stickler about keeping them off my phone. This is not a social media fast. This is more about establishing boundaries. I do re-download them when I need to use them intentionally.

What do these boundaries look like?

When I chat with my community on Instagram, I will typically do it on my computer. If I need to send a voice message or share a story, I will re-download the app, and then delete it again. When I communicate with clients, I will re-download Voxer during my office hours and then delete it off my phone when I’m no longer in office hours. I do the same with Gmail. 

The most important thing for me is that they are not on my phone outside of my work hours. 

Instagram is a little different because I really try to keep the app off my phone even during work hours, unless I have a certain time blocked off to intentionally use it. This is because it’s so easy to fall into the scroll-hole of Instagram.

I’m sure you’re probably wondering why I did this in the first place, and I’m sure you probably have a lot of questions too like…

Will Instagram and TikTok delete my video drafts if I delete the apps off my phone? 

Don’t worry. We are going to get into that next. 😉

Before I decided to officially delete them off my phone, I was in my head a lot…to the point of feeling like I was driving myself crazy and going in circles. I felt incredibly unfocused. I was experiencing a lack of clarity, motivation, and I felt like I had brain fog all the time. 

And on top of that, I was mentally exhausted, even though I was only working about 20 hours each week. I felt like I was working overtime because I was constantly thinking about work. 

But, why was I thinking about work like this? 

I felt so clouded that I felt like I needed to keep thinking about work because I wasn’t getting any clarity… 

Then I would be so mentally tired and exhausted that when I would try to think about it I would feel even more clouded.

Hence me feeling like I’m going in circles.

I know I can’t be the only one who has experienced this. If you’ve experienced this, please send me a DM on Instagram and let me know that I’m not alone here, because I know it is not fun. 

That said, I was scrolling through Instagram around midnight one night because I couldn’t fall asleep. And yes, I know that’s not the smartest move. But this is real life LOL.

When I was scrolling, I all of a sudden felt a prompting from the Holy Spirit, and I clearly heard Him tell me to delete Instagram off my phone. I remember being like, “God… really? Forever? Do I need to stop using it altogether?”

He said, “Not forever. You can re-download it when you are intentionally using it for good.”

Ooh, That got me. 

But wait, there’s more. 

If you don’t know by now, I’m a little bit sassy (LOL)… I may have had some resistance around this and I may have argued just a teeny, little bit.

I was talking to God and said, “If I delete Instagram right now, I’m going to lose the 30-something reels drafts I have saved.”

What He said next got me.

He said, “Hannah, that is bondage and it is time to break the chains.”

Let me tell you, that was enough for me to totally surrender those reels right then and there. 

Don’t get me wrong, I went and saved them all to my phone. But to be totally honest, I will probably never use them. I recorded them by using trending audio on the app, so I will probably never find the trending audio again.

But to be frank, I would rather not be confined to the shackles of Instagram.

I’m sure you’re probably wondering if I still use Instagram…

The answer is yes. I love Instagram. I still use it for my business. I’m still posting. I’m still chatting away in the DMs, and I still post my stories occasionally… But I am only using it on my computer during my work hours. I will only re-download the app if I need to send a voice memo, upload a story, or record and post a reel with a trending sound.

But to be totally honest, I don’t even use trending sounds anymore. If I’m going to utilize video, I would rather go the talking face-to-camera route or vlog style.

Like I said, I only do this during my office hours and I set times to use it. I’m not checking it every five minutes like I was before. I schedule it into my day. 

I do think it’s important to let you know that I do allow myself to have “scroll time.” I only do it once or twice a day, and I only do it from my computer.

The reason why I only do it from my computer is that it’s not as fun as when you are scrolling on your phone LOL. So, I don’t do it as often. 

This prompting from the Holy Spirit encouraged me to remove all the other apps from my phone that have been major distractions, and were sneakily and unknowingly cluttering up my mental capacity.

For apps like Facebook Messenger and TikTok, I made the decision to remove them and it has been absolutely wonderful.

In addition, I am definitely more lenient with apps like YouTube, Pinterest, and Gmail. They are re-downloaded onto my phone the most, along with Voxer for my clients.

But truth be told, I am at a point where I don’t even enjoy having them on my phone. 

This leads me to share with you how this has set me up for maximum productivity and joy in my day-to-day life. 

There are truly so many reasons why this has been so wonderful.

The list could go on and on, but I’m going to share 5 with you here.

#1 I have become much more productive with my time!

The first reason why this has been so wonderful is that I have become much more productive with my time. Now that these apps aren’t on my phone, I can actually get into my focus zone without the random thought or urge to check my notifications…

And I know you know exactly what I’m talking about.

It is truly so annoying, but it kept happening to me. I feel much more clear and level headed. I get into my focus zone faster. Everything I do has been much more effective because of this. To be totally honest, I am getting more done in less time than I ever have before. I truly feel like I’m experiencing maximum productivity right now.

I’m not exaggerating whatsoever. It has been absolutely insane for me to see how much I am able to get done with the time that I have. 

#2 My sleep schedule is BETTER and I’m able to wake up early without being exhausted

Number two is that my sleep schedule is better and I’m able to wake up early without being exhausted.

Yes, even in the winter time! This has been huge for me because the last couple of years I have been struggling with falling asleep and waking up early. I had a hard time falling asleep even when I was exhausted because my brain wouldn’t shut off. Remember how I said I felt like I was working 24/ 7? I was not kidding.

Then when I would try to wake up around 7, which isn’t really that early if you think about it…  I could not get up. 

I would then let myself sleep until 8 or 8:30, and I just ran with it. I did the best I could with the time I had, and it worked. 

But y’all…

I still was not well-rested because I was thinking about work so much, and then trying to scroll myself to sleep…

That did not work very well, as you can probably imagine.

Now, I am actually able to fall asleep pretty quickly, and I wake up at 6 well-rested. 

Honestly, this really feels like a miracle. I could cry because I’m so happy. 

#3 I’m no longer mentally clouded or exhausted

Reason number three is that I’m no longer mentally clouded or exhausted.

I’ve already gone on and on about this one, but I had to make it a separate reason all by itself.

Honestly, I feel lighter. That’s the best way to describe it. 

I don’t feel like there is this heaviness that was there before. I couldn’t explain that feeling before but now it’s totally gone.

I feel clear, light, and free. 

#4 I’m no longer comparing myself to others

Reason number 4 is that I’m no longer comparing myself to others… now that I’m no longer scrolling my life away. 

I’m not comparing myself to anyone. I am truly focused on exactly what God has led me to do. This definitely contributes to the immense clarity I’ve experienced and how I’m able to be more productive. Because when we are comparing ourselves to others, even unknowingly, this can cause confusion, mental fatigue, jealousy, resentment, anger, and a multitude of insecurities to come up.

Now that I don’t have all these apps to distract me and for me to look at everyone all the time, I’m no longer looking anywhere except at Jesus.

#5 I find myself going to God whenever I would normally go to my phone

Now, this leads me to reason number 5, which is that I find myself going to God whenever I would normally crave a dopamine hit from my phone. This is a big one.

Even though the apps are off my phone, I still sometimes experience the urge to look for notifications. This is because checking notifications or scrolling through the apps will either give you a dopamine hit or numb you from what you are currently feeling and experiencing. Now, when I get those urges, I am forced to ask myself what I’m really looking to receive from those apps.

And my answer, well…

It always leads me back to Father God, King Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. 

That is exactly why I deleted these apps off my phone and how it has set me up for maximum productivity and joy in my day-to-day life. 

Next Steps

I hope this blessed you and helps set you up for maximum productivity, focus, and joy in your day-to-day life. 

If you have any questions or want to let me know how you will be implementing these tips, please join our Facebook group. I love to interact with you over there.

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