Welcome to the Digital Declutter issue of The Flame. If your inbox or smart phone looks anything like mine—hundreds of emails, both read and unread, waiting to be addressed and apps you forgot existed—then this issue of The Flame is for you!
We are tackling that digital declutter in the hopes of reclaiming some sanity, one deleted email at a time. We are suggesting some tips and tricks to streamline your digital life and free up space!
— Betty Long, RN, MHA, President/CEO, Guardian Nurses Health Advocates
Clean Sweep: Decluttering Your Digital Life
We charge our phones more often than we recharge ourselves. Notifications ping, emails pile up, tabs multiply, and somewhere between the sixth Zoom meeting and the 142nd screenshot, we start to feel it—that low-level digital hum of stress.
In this issue of The Flame, we’re diving into a modern mess that doesn’t live in your junk drawer, but in your inbox, your apps, your desktop, and—let’s be honest—maybe your mind. Digital clutter may not take up space on your kitchen counter, but it takes up mental real estate. It steals focus, chips away at productivity, and quietly saps our energy.
The good news? Just like you can spring clean a closet, you can de-junk your digital life. This isn’t about deleting everything and going off-grid (unless that’s your dream). It’s about taking small, intentional steps to reduce digital overwhelm and create a cleaner, calmer relationship with technology.
Here are some tips:
Clean Up Your Phone
- Delete any apps you haven’t used in 30 days. You likely will not miss them!
- Move time-wasting apps (you know which ones they are—social media, games) off your home screen
- Turn off non-essential notifications (yes, you can live without knowing every ‘like’)
- Set your phone to grayscale for one day – watch the magic. It definitely makes looking at your smart phone less intriguing
- Enable app limits for your top 3 time-wasters
Clean Up Your Email Inbox
- Unsubscribe ruthlessly. If you’re not reading it, lose it. Use tools like Unroll.me or just search ‘unsubscribe’ in your inbox.
- Create folders (that you’ll actually use). Set up folders like ‘to do’ or ‘waiting’ or ‘newsletters.’
- Use the 2 minute rule. If it takes under 2 minutes to read or reply, do it now. Otherwise, move it to ‘to do.’
- Archive, don’t hoard! If you’re afraid to delete, archive it. It’s still searchable but out of your face.
Audit Your Screens At Work
- Close unused browser tabs right now (your brain will thank you)
- Try working in full-screen mode to limit distraction
- Schedule two email check-in times instead of constant monitoring. If it’s urgent, they’ll call you.
- Turn off ding sounds for email, Slack, Teams, etc.
- Use ‘Do Not Disturb’ mode for deep focus hours
Detox Your Evenings
- Set a tech curfew: No screens 30-60 minutes before bed
- Charge your phone outside the bedroom
- Swap one night of Netflix for a book, bath, or podcast
- Use a real alarm clock. (Retro is in.)
Weekly Detox
Pick one day next week to stay off social media entirely
- Go for a walk or meal without your phone – feel the freedom
- Have one tech-free zone at home (kitchen table, bedroom, bathroom, etc.)
- Try a 24-hour screen break – just once (Don’t worry, you can cheat with GPS, we won’t tell)
Reflection (Optional but Powerful)
- • What felt easy? What felt hard?
- • What do you want to keep doing regularly?
- • How did your brain feel afterward?