THE BAD HABITS January 2023 Vol 1 Social Media Addiction MINIMALISM & SCREEN TIME DETOX How the idea "Less is more" is related to cutting down your screen time? A MIRACLE SPELL TO STRENGTHEN FRIENDSHIP What to do with with your friends when hanging out?

Credits Tran Hoang Phuong Anh Nguyen Thi Linh Chi Content writer, Designer & Photographer Nguyen Vu Thien An Content writer Content director & Content writer Nguyen Ha Vi Content writer & Designer Hi there, Thank you for checking out The bad habits, a lifestyle magazine for adolescents and young adults that aims to help you find the balance in your life, allowing you to be the happiest, healthiest version of yourself. We are all living in the twenty-first century, an age in which digital innovations are on the rise. As a result, frequent exposure to electronic devices in general and social media platforms in particular is inevitable. Despite the life quality improvement that these technologies bring about, their use can also be associated with a number of negative behaviors. In this week’s issue, we are going to address one of the problems that people might possess: Social media addiction. In addition, we will guide you through several methods to cut down on social media usage and how to replace it with more productive activities. So let’s begin our journey! Introduction 2 Linh Chi

Table of contents SOCIAL MEDIA ADDICTION MINIMALISM & SCREEN TIME DETOX A MIRACLE SPELL TO STRENGTHEN FRIENDSHIP GETTING YOUR TASKS DONE 4 6 8 10 3

First, people who spend too much time on social media may start to appear dull and emotionless to everyone around them (VnExpress, 2021). These individuals are superficial in their outlook on life, lack the desire to communicate, and will not be proactive (VTVnews, 2022). Another common problem with social media addiction is procrastination. Many people say that once addicted to social networks, they have no desire to participate in their other planned activities. Whenever they have free time, they waste it on social media all day and inadvertently forget what tasks they should be doing (VnExpress, 2021). Even if they remember, they will make up an excuse to put it off until the next day. As a result, they might become less motivated to put in the same amount of effort they had previously, resulting in a decrease in work effiency. According to data from ComScore, Vietnam is one of the Southeast Asian nations with the highest rates of online users, accounting for 87.5 percent, with usage concentrated among the country’s young population. They use social networks for many different purposes, but mainly to update news and connect with friends and family (VHNT.org, 2021). Yet many have admitted they can’t leave their phones behind for fear of being “out-of-trend” in a matter of minutes and because of feeling unsafe without them. In order to get a ADDICTION Thien An Have you ever imagined life without your phone? Do you think you will be able to “survive” yourself without social networks? What will happen if you can’t be online for a long time? SOCIAL MEDIA VHNT.ORG.VN, accessed 25 December 2022, Trang (27 October 2021) ‘Bệnh nghiện mạng xã hội của người trẻ (Social media addiction of young people)’, VnExpress, accessed 25 December 2022, . Photo by Linh Chi Photo by Phuong Anh 4

. more precise picture, I conducted a survey with teens and young adults between the ages of 16 and 20 about their experiences with social media. The result was very surprising: the majority of respondents said they spend up to eight hours a day on social media, which was an extremely high amount of screen time. Although they are aware of the negative effects of their behavior and would like to break the habit, they could not resist the temptation and end up repeating their destructive social networks usage. The creation of social networking sites is one of humani ty’s greatest achievements (VnExpress, 2021). Therefore, using social media platforms with a clear purpose and an appropriate amount of time is something that everyone, especially young people, should do. I think it is not difficult to adopt a healthier and more active lifestyle; however, it requires a lot of effort to get ahead of yourself. Social media addiction can lead to many negative repercussions regarding health, mental, and relationship. Think about it: what would a coffee date with a friend be like if you both sat there staring at your phones the whole time instead of talking to each other? Social networks and the internet will continue to grow over time, but it is up to you to decide whether you have to control yourself and deal with the harmful consequences of social media use. “ Use social media for your increase, not your decrease.” - Germany Kent - Huong T and Khai Q (16 September 2022) ‘Trẻ em “nghiện” mạng xã hội: Những hệ lụy khôn lường (Children’s addiction to social media: Immeasurable consequences)’, VTVnews, accessed 25 December 2022, . These questions, in my opinion, are complicated to answer in this day and age. Because in general, not only young people but also the elderly might have an addiction to social media. This behavior will bring about detrimental effects to various aspects of our lives. Photo by Phuong Anh Photo by Phuong Anh 5

MINIMALISM APPLICATION FOR SCREEN TIME DETOX In recent years, people have shown a growing interest in adopting a more minimalist way of life. But what does minimalism have to do with reducing the amount of time people spend in front of electronic screens? Let’s find out in this article! Linh Chi Photo by Phuong Anh References: Hrafnkelsdottir MS, Brychta JR, Rognvaldsdottir V, Gestsdottir S, Chen YK, Johannsson E, Guðmundsdottir LS and Arngrimsson AS (2018) 'Less screen time and more frequent vigorous physical activity is associated with lower risk of reporting negative mental health symptoms among Icelandic adolescents', PLoS ONE website, 13(4) : e0196286-e0196286, doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0196286, accessed 27 December 2022. Lin F, Zhou Y, Du Y, Qin L, Zhao Z, Xu J, Lei H and Frasch GM (2012) 'Abnormal White Matter Integrity in Adolescents with Internet Addiction Disorder: A Tract-Based Spatial Statistics Study', PLoS ONE website, 7(1) : e30253, doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0030253, accessed 26 December 2022, . Victoria D (27 February 2014) 'Gray Matters: Too Much Screen Time Damages the Brain', Psychology Today, accessed 25 December 2022, . Vinmec (n.d) Thùy trán là gì và nó ảnh hưởng đến bạn như thế nào? ( What is the frontal lobe and how does it affect you?), Vinmec, accessed 26 December 2022, . Wright C (15 September 2010) 'Minimalism Explained', Exile Lifestyle, accessed 27 December 2022, . 6

Why should we care about our screen time? S tudies have shown the correlation between excessive screen time and the detrimental effects on our brain structure and function. In detail, the frontal lobe of the brain is the most vulnerable to damage. This area is responsible for “getting stuff done”, including planning, prioritizing, organizing, and impulse control (Victoria 2014), as well as cognitive tasks, empathy, behaviors and motivations that seek joy and happiness (Vinmec n.d). Therefore, long periods of electronic device usage might result in impairments in academic performance, interpersonal relationships, work interest, behavioral issues, and emotional distress, according to Lin et al. (2012). Regarding the potential consequences, it is essential for us to manage our daily screen time. There are numerous methods that you can easily find with a simple click on Google. However, the one that I’m going to talk about, based on my personal experiences, is applying minimalism to the habit of using digital devices. Less is more A bad habit cannot be immediately and permanently broken in a single attempt. It takes time, effort, determination, or even multiple failures to successfully manage your screen time and reduce it to an appropriate amount per day. It might be irritating at first to be away from your frequently visited apps. But once you get into the hang of limiting your screen time and focusing more on your surroundings, you won’t feel the need to be active on the Internet every single day. This may help you avoid wasting time or being distracted and break your negative usage patterns. Building a more balanced habit of less screen time results is linked to an improvement in mood, anxiety, self-esteem, and life satisfaction (Hrafnkelsdottir et al. 2018). This might as well lower the risk of damaging our brain structure and function as mentioned above. The important tip for achieving long-term effectiveness is to discipline yourself and be responsible with your screen time usage! Wright (2010) defined minimalism as a “reassessment of your priorities so that you can strip away the excess stuff – the possessions and ideas and relationships and activities – that don’t bring value to your life”. The idea is very simple: Less is more. An effective way to reduce screen time and overcome screen addiction is to uninstall the unnecessary apps that cause distraction and only keep the crucial ones on our electronic devices. I used to be socially addicted and could waste hours mindlessly surfing the Internet on my phone. Aware of my own circumstance, I decided to remove the applications that occupied the majority of my time, including games and different social media such as Facebook, Youtube, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter. In this way, I could easily avoid checking my phone frequently and cut down on my screen time. And it really works! Photo by Phuong Anh Illustration by Linh Chi Photo by Phuong Anh 7

O A M iracle Spel l For your life Are you feeling lost in connection with your friends when you hang out? You do not know what to say to them so you use your phone? Come and I will show you Photo by Phuong Anh 8 Phương Anh

9 References: Jeffrey P. H (2009) A Board Game Education, Rowman & Littlefield Education, United States of America. Brown, G., Manago, A. M., & Trimble, J. E. (2016) ‘Tempted to Text: College Students Mobile Phone Use During a Face-to-Face Interaction With a Close Friend.’ Emerging Adulthood, 4(6), 440–443. https://doi. org/10.1177/2167696816630086 Louisa W (2021), Disconnected: How phones affect our relationship, AMP DW, accessed 26 December 2022. https://amp.dw.com/en/disconnected-how-phones-affect-our-relationships/a-57433757 Oxford Learning (2020), Board games promote learning and fun, Oxford Learning accessed 26 December 2022. https://www.oxfordlearning.c board-games-p mote-learning-and-fun/?fbclid=IwAR2OettEiYNO4pvd_qvgCDFtvMW06bgyuEuxBf3ryl0jbTMiA_TLztpIXeU Robert C (n.d) 9 reasons why everyone is always looking at their phone, How to live a meaningful life, accessed 25 December 2022. https://howtoliveameaningfullife.com/9-reasons-why-everyone-is-always-looking-at-theirphone/ At least once in our lives, we have seen a group of friends sitting with their friends in a coffee shop, restaurant, or shopping mall scrolling through social media instead of having a face-to-face conversation. According to the “College Students’ Mobile Phone Use During a Face-to-Face Interaction With a Close Friend” report (2016), the more time we spend on our phones, the lower the quality of our interactions with others becomes. From my perspective, I will avoid using my phone in front of new people because I value making conversation with them and want to get to know each other better. I find a lot of new interest in the topics they bring up to me. However, after a few months, I find myself checking or looking through my phone unconsciously when I hang out with my friends since I do not see anything new in them. The situation prolonged until I came across a miracle spell to break the silence between my friends and I. To cast this magic spell, all you need is simply a conversation board game. Board Game has existed since 2200 BC for some basic ones ical thinking, leadership, problem-solving, and concentration (Oxford Learning 2020). However, I just don’t feel any sort of emotional attachment with this kind of game. It does not help me understand myself or my friend better. As a result, our interaction and distance do not change much. This is where the conversation board game is established. The board game comes with many open-ended questions for my friends and I to learn more about each other through different topics. In Viet Nam, many brands such as “So Much Closer”, “See-saw”, and “Chuyen Tro” have established this type of board game, as well as some international brands with “We’re Not Really Strangers” or “Intelligent Change”. Friends use the questions to chat with each other. Photo by Phuong Anh Reflecting on yourself in a diary using questiosn from the conversation board game . Photo by Linh Chi In some games, they might even include the challenge card to make it funnier. When players answer the question, they need to make it clear, reflective, and inwardly focused. One interesting fact about this game is that the answers will vary every time you play it with your friend. It will limit our chances of being distracted by social media, and we will not worry about running out of things to discuss. Playing this game together helps friends gain mutual understanding and have a deeper connection. In addition, this game is also a fun way to improve both conversation and introspection by asking those questions to yourself or writing them down in a diary. With conversation board games, we can imagine a social setting in which people are able to spend time together without the use of social media. Moreover, it enhances our relationships with friends and with ourselves. Without the distraction of social media, we can enjoy our time together, whether we are in public or sit at home alone. Photo by Phuong Anh

GETTING YOUR TASKS DONE 10 Ha Vi Don't worry, we've got your back! To all beloved readers, we're about to share some strategies which would definitely help you accomplish your task without losing concentration. Do you lack motivation or find it difficult to get started on a task? Photo by Phuong Anh

Don’t just use your phone exclusively for leisure activities, such as playing games, scrolling through social media or watching movies. Instead, leverage it to apply the Pomodoro method, which was invented by a university student named Francesco Cirillo in the late 1980s, for better work efficiency (Laura Scroggs n.d). The color of your phone’s screen is also a factor that cuts into your productivity. The reason behind this is the fact that our brains have a natural tendency to be drawn to bright and shiny objects (David 2019). In order to lessen the frequency of distraction and anxiety, you should try switching your phone to grayscale mode, which will remove all of the colors from the screen remove all of the colors from the screen Jay Olson, a postdoctoral scholar in psychology at McGill University states that we have become accustomed to clicking on notifications on our phone; however, when the displays are black and white, they are less noticeable to us. 11 Another suggestion for you is to turn off notifications or put your phone into airplane mode while you are working or studying During the day, our phones may receive numerous notifications from a wide variety of apps, each of which may play a different sound Those noises might make you distracted and keep you from completing the tasks that you set out to do. So let’s avoid interruptions from our phones as we get our work done! The first step in using the Pomodoro technique is to create a to-do list: write down all of the things that need to be done. Then set the timer on your phone for 25 minutes or more and start working until be done. Then set the timer on your phone for 25 minutes or more the timer rings. At the end of the session, you will take a 5-minute break before getting back to work for the remaining time. As someone who has experimented with the Pomodoro technique while working on university assignments, I can testify to its effectiveness in facilitating focus, time management, and the enhancement of productivity. Photo by Phuong Anh Photo by Phuong Anh Photo by Phuong Anh David N (1 December 2019) ‘Try Grayscale Mode to Curb Your Phone Addiction’, WIRED, accessed 27 December 2022 . Haupt A (2022) Why Disconnecting From Your Phone Is So Good for You—and How to Do It, TIME, accessed 3 January 2023. < https://todoist.com/productivity-methods/pomodoro-technique >. Scroggs L (n.d) “The Pomodoro Technique — Why It Works & How To Do It”, Todoist, accessed 3 January 2023, < https://todoist.com/productivity-methods/pomodoro-technique >.

Photo by Phuong Anh