Unplug: How to Break Up with Your Phone and Reclaim Your Life

Turn off your phone and turn on your life with step-by-step instructions and success stories from dozens of people who’ve set healthy boundaries with their devices.  
 
The average American spends the equivalent of more than 75 full days a year looking at their phone. It can become an all-consuming addiction that puts a strain on virtually every facet of our existence from the way we sleep, eat, and exercise to our ability to focus and make new memories. Most importantly, it takes us away from our lives, our relationships, and the real world. But although it may seem impossible, there is always a way to overcome digital distraction: you can always turn off your phone. 

In Unplug, Richard Simon lays out a plan to detox from your phone, including things to do with your newfound time, lightly reintegrating a smartphone into your life, and finally, helping others quit. These tips and strategies are interspersed with success stories, including Simon’s own story of turning off his phone for a whole year, plus those of 25 others, including a professional baseball player (Nick Castellanos), a cable news host (Steve Hilton), as well as ordinary folks including a principal, a pastor, and a couple who quit their phones together. Plus, expert insights from bestselling authors and physicians who specialize in digital wellness including Dr. Anna Lembke (Dopamine Nation), and Brian Merchant (The One Device).

Richard Simon has directed the website strategy for Georgetown Law in Washington, DC, since 2010, and is a former reporter and webmaster for The Daily Record newspaper in Maryland. He lives in Baltimore with his wife and three children. To this day, he leaves his phone off by default.