Top 21 Digital Habits You Should Adopt in 2024

Reasons to switch it up

Technology and our digital habits affect our health more than we realize. Too much screen time can result in eye strain and migraines. According to the Vision Council, over 27% of people have experienced headaches as a result of digital eye strain. Not to mention many of us suffer from sleep disturbances. Based on research from the National Sleep Foundation, 51% of people who use their phones before bed report that their sleep quality is poor or that they barely sleep at all. 

To help you live a healthier lifestyle and kick the bad tech habits, we have a list of 21 new year digital habits to adopt in 2024. 

1. Start a self care habit.
2. Own your data.
3. Backup your data. 
4. Change your passwords. 
5. Limit Screen Time. 
6. Loosen up social media time. 
7. Implement “no phone” hours.
8. No Phones in the bedroom.
9. Get a Full Night of Sleep.
10. Set your phone to “Do Not Disturb”.
11. Stop notifications.
12. Lower brightness.
13. Clean out your apps.
14. Unsubscribe to emails.
15. Unfollow accounts. 
16. Make it a dumb phone. 
17. Use that iPod. 
18. Cut back on gaming. 
19. Up your email etiquette. 
20. Take blue light breaks.
21. Wear blue light filtering glasses.

1. Start a self care habit 

We all preach it, but not a lot of us actually do it. Implementing self care doesn’t mean you have to spend loads of money on spa treatments and vacations. It just means putting the phone down and taking time to unwind from your day.

2. Own your data 

It’s 2024 and data is increasingly becoming a hot commodity. At the start of 2021 there were 4.66 billion active internet users around the world. Not to mention people create around 2.5 quintillion bytes of data per day. By harnessing the power of your data, Big Tech earns from showing you personalized ads, buying recommendations and targeted feeds. Start your new year off right with Invisibly. Our goal is to give you control of your information and let you earn along the way. Put the power of data back in your hands today.

3. Backup your data 

Only 23% of small businesses backup their data and only 50% of people decide to back up their data after a huge loss. Make sure you backup your data to prevent future disasters. It is easy to use a Cloud backup program or upload your files to a hard drive for storage.

4. Change your passwords 

Your password might not be as strong as you think. With around 2,200 cyberattacks per day, that could equate to more than 800,000 people being hacked per year. A new year digital habit to take on is to change your passwords. Try not to use the same one for multiple accounts as it can make you more vulnerable to a breach.

5. Limit screen time 

Americans spend an average screen time of 5.4 hours on their mobile phones and around 8 hours on laptops daily. It might make you feel better to limit your screen time. Take the time instead to do something in the moment, be with friends and family, or just relax. Your eyes will thank you.

6. Loosen up social media time 

In 2021, the average American spent 142 minutes a day on social media. Higher usage of social media makes people three times more likely to have perceived social isolation. Limiting yourself to 30 minutes a day is a good start to making better digital habits. Not to mention, the more time you spend on social, the more social data you produce, therefore creating a larger digital footprint.

7. Implement no phone hours

Let’s face it, we use our phones a lot. On average, Americans check their phones around 262 times per day. Because of this, many of us feel we don’t have meaningful conversations and lack mindful practices. Putting your phone in a drawer for 1-2 hours a day will free up time to exercise and make meaningful connections with loved ones.

8. No phones in the bedroom 

Around 62% of Americans say they sleep with their phone at night. Having a phone in the bedroom is a major distraction and sleep deterrent. An old fashioned alarm clock can wake you up and save you from immediately looking at your phone in the morning.

9. Get a full night’s rest

Americans spend an average of 50 minutes on their phones before bed. For a full night’s rest put the phone away 1-2 hours before bedtime. This will help prevent the excess blue light from affecting your circadian rhythms. Both you and your phone can use the down time.

10. Set your phone to “Do Not Disturb”

Setting a “Do Not Disturb” is a good digital habit to adopt. Utilizing this feature on your smartphone can help cut the daily distractions down. Go ahead and use this setting when you need to set aside time to focus or even relax.

11. Stop notifications

If you are being bombarded by too many notifications there is an easy fix. Simply going into your phone settings and adjusting your notifications, this can be the difference between being constantly distracted versus focussed. Doing this can also help limit the number of times you check your phone. If it’s not essential, you probably don’t need to be notified.

12. Lower brightness

Lowering your brightness to 50% or under is also helpful to your eyesight. Keeping the brightness down can limit the effects of digital eye strain, eye irritation and dry and fuzzy eyes.

13. Clean out your apps 

Cleaning out an old closet can put you in the right headspace. Cleaning out your apps is no different. It’s time to delete old apps that don’t serve you anymore. Not only do you ditch the clutter, you also open up space on your phone for more important things.

14. Unsubscribe to emails 

We all have spam. In the new year take on the good digital habit of cleaning out your inbox. Unsubscribe to those holiday shopping emails and countless others that only clutter your email. It is a great way to get organized and be in the right headspace for work.

15. Unfollow accounts 

Have you ever looked at social media and not recognized an account your following? That is usually a sign to unfollow it. Doing this streamlines your socials to show you what really matters to you. If you cut back on your feed you might even be able to cut back on the time you spend on social media.

16. Make it a dumb phone 

Back in the flip-phone era things were simpler. Less distractions and certainly less screen time. If you want to harken back to a simpler time, simply turn off all notifications and simplify your phone. Only use the essential apps and put it away for most of the day. Basically, treat your smart phone like a dumb phone.

17. Use that iPod 

Most of us have an iPod or old mp3 players stashed on the shelf somewhere. Instead of using your phone for gym music or cooking tunes, go retro and break your mp3 out. This way, you don’t have to rely so much on your phone and you won’t be tempted to text or go on social media.

18. Cut back on gaming 

In 2020, gamers across the world spent an average of 8 hours and 27 minutes each week playing video games. You don’t have to stop gaming all together, but it might be a good idea to adopt other leisure activities in addition to video games.

19. Up your email etiquette

Firing off emails after work hours or blatantly ignoring emails are some of the bad habits many of us have. A new year digital habit to adopt is practicing better email etiquette. Keeping emails succinct and within work hours will be a helpful habit for both you and your colleagues.

20. Take blue light breaks 

Cutting back on blue light when you can is extremely helpful to your overall health. Turning off your phone or computer every few hours can give your eyes the break they need. Standing up will also help improve your circulation and prevent bad posture which can lead to back pain.

21. Wear blue light filtering glasses 

If blue light glasses aren’t a part of your screen time routine, perhaps they should be. Wearing blue light glasses can prevent blue light from hitting your retinas and can stave off eye degeneration. It will keep your vision healthy in the long term.