Cleveland Clinic Wellness highlights studies showing that smartphones affect concentration, and not in a good way. “Recent research on college students using phones during lectures confirms the harm they do to concentration, staying engaged, and critical thinking. … Another recent study showed that notifications (the sounds your smartphone makes to alert you to messages or news) break your focus and impair performance even if you don’t pick up your phone.”

The clinic offers these suggestions to address the problem:

• Turn on notifications for urgent messages only. And when you’re working or socializing, if possible, turn off your phone.
• Get a time-tracking app that will show you how much time you actually spend on your phone.
• Leave your phone at home sometimes. If it bothers you to do so (even when you’re not expecting an urgent call or message), that’s a good sign you’re too attached to it.
• Meditate. Practicing mindfulness through techniques like vipassana meditation will strengthen your ability to focus.

If you don’t need your smartphone’s online browsing functions for work, you might also consider downgrading to a phone that just lets you make and receive calls and send and receive texts. That can be a boon for your budget, too!