Factory Reset: 49 days to restore your human default
Your personal guide to our annual Communal Digital Fast
For those of you who prefer to read off paper rather than the screen, we have converted the post into an easily printable pdf file.
There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind
C.S. Lewis
On March 1st 2023 the first “Lenten fast with a tech twist” on School of the Unconformed went out to 73 subscribers. Today’s invitation to our annual Digital Communal Fast reaches over 16,ooo readers, which is to say, you are not alone in confronting the challenges of navigating daily life in the Machine age.
This week AEI’s Centre for technology hosted an event1 discussing the “role of government in limiting harms of technology on families”. Laws and policies for phone-free schools are being enacted around the world.
Yet no institution or government can save us from the gravitational pull of devices that we all experience. Our daily lives have become so enmeshed with our technologies that they have become part of the fabric of who we are. We cannot see the impact of technology on reshaping our human default by simply taking a few minutes to analyse our use; we need a more extended “factory reset”.
Whether you are a person who is struggling to evade attention traps or someone who is already intentional about tech usage, all of us benefit from a “factory reset” which allows for examination, review, and renewed commitment to daily life anchored in the real world.
The Lenten period is a particularly suitable time for a digital fast as a large, world-wide community is committing to a period of constraint and reflection. We do so not to detract from the spiritual aspect of fasting2, but indeed believe that fasting from “the virtual” will help encourage people to feast on “the real”. Committing to a digital fast is a challenging step to take, especially if you do so alone. When we commit together with others, it helps to strengthen resolve and makes success more likely.
While joining in an online community is not the same as doing so in person, it nevertheless offers encouragement and for many readers has resulted in lasting real-life changes. All readers, regardless of religious or non-religious background are invited to join in!
The goal of this digital fast is NOT to move you to a dumbphone, flip phone, or even to go back to a landline. The goal is not to get you to reduce your online time, delete apps, or reject digital technology.
These things can be helpful (and sometimes necessary), but we have a bigger picture in mind:
The goal is to recover cognitive liberty and restore your human default.
Two years ago, readers joined a one-month long digital fast in response to From Feeding Moloch to Digital Minimalism and subsequently shared their experiences. Last year, we invited our reader community to a period of Fasting from the Virtual and Feasting on the Real after which participants related their experiences of rediscovering more human rhythms.
This year, we will lead a 49-day “Factory Reset” to recover our human default. Over the course of seven weeks, from March 3rd to April 20th, we will focus on the three “3Rs of Unmachining”:
Recognizing areas where device use has a problematic impact on our lives.
Removing / Replacing / Reorganizing devices in our environment.
Returning to practices that restore our mind, attention, and relationships.
Below you will find a detailed “Communal Digital Fast Game Plan”, with a free downloadable self-assessment, step-by-step guide, and a pdf of analog practices to feast on during the next seven weeks. Peco and I will publish a selection of posts over the course of the seven weeks, which will offer practical guidance for the Remove and Return phases.
Note: People sometimes may have a preconception that fasting means abstaining from “everything”. This does not necessarily have to be the case. For example, in past years some readers have followed a “modified” version of the fast. Please feel free to create a version of the “game plan” that will work for your personal situation. This may include setting boundaries around your tech use after work hours, during down-time, or on weekends.
LIVE MEETINGS
For the first time during this year’s Communal Digital Fast, we will host three live meetings for our paying subscribers over the course of the seven weeks. The meetings will combine presentation and discussion, offering an opportunity to bring to life the focal points of our writings.
The first meeting will be hosted by Peco and Peter Limberg from The Stoa at 12 PM EST on March 15th. Paying subscibers to either School of the Unconformed or Pilgrims in the Machine will have access to the live meetings and will receive an RSVP link within the next week.
“Lent isn’t just about letting go—it’s about taking back what’s real. Join The School of the Unconformed and The Stoa this Lent for a deep dive into The 3Rs of Unmachining—Recognize, Remove, Return—and confront The Pull, the force that keeps us trapped in compulsive digital distraction.”
The focal point of the second meeting, held at the end of week 5, will be BOOKS. The third meeting, held at the end of the digital fast, will be an opportunity to debrief and focus on carrying the newly developed habits into the rest of the year. Details to follow.
But we act in hope that repeated exposure to the Good, the beautiful, and better will eventually win over hearts and wills and triumph over ease, convenience and in some cases addiction. Hadden Turner
Communal Digital Fast Game Plan
1. RECOGNIZE
The first phase of the digital fast is to step back, examine, and recognize possible concerns in our internet, smartphone, or other device use. Peco suggests employing the whole-person approach:
This approach asks big-picture questions like, How many hours of my day is spent acquiring experiences primarily through a screen? How much of my personal space is saturated with devices? How much do devices dominate or intrude on the most important areas of my life?
From this perspective, it doesn’t matter that our device use is “good” or “productive” if we’re drowning in a twinkling pool of binary code that leaves us separated from the real substance of life—the real people and things that exist outside the digital fishbowl.
We need to pull the fishbowl off our heads for long enough to remember who we are.
To help you in your practical effort to apply the whole-person approach—not just to be a wiser consumer, but more fundamentally to get out of the digital fishbowl, Peco created a self-assessment tool which you can download here:
As you go through the list of concerns around digital technology, you can ask yourself whether it applies to you (we’ve even added a space for personal reflection). Going through the form together with family or people close to you can also give you a sense of where you and others might differ or share overlap in your areas of concern, as well as in your solutions.
Also: To assess your level of nomophobia - anxiety caused by not having your mobile with you at all times - you can take a test here or here. It is helpful to gain insight in your level of dependency.
2. REMOVE / Replace / Reorganize
Most often attempts at curtailing digital device use focus on the self: How to refrain from checking behavior, how to focus our attention better, or how to reshape our minds to be present in the moment. Yet in order to produce lasting effects we need to turn things inside out, away from the self, and toward reshaping our surrounding environment.
In order to change the architecture of our mind, we need to consider the physical architecture that continually surrounds us:
Arranging our main living environment without the draw of screens directs our attention towards each other, our present environment, or ideas and projects we are pursuing. When screens are visibly present, they suggest an instant solution, continually reminding us of how easy it would be to fall into waves of entertainment.
See Beyond Managing Screen Time: How to Make a Home for Humans for practical starting points.
Reducing or abstaining from digital-drip practices may initially lead to discomfort, restlessness, and may cause anxiety. However, these symptoms pass and pave the way for restoring your human default.
During the Remove / Replace / Reorganize phase consider these suggestions:
Consider leaving your device at home whenever possible, especially if you are out for a walk.
When taking your device along, do not keep it on your body. Place it in a bag out of easy reach.
At home, put your laptop away on a shelf, or in a closet; keep it out of sight.
Use a watch and agenda to keep track of time and appointments.
Create new visual and practical cues around your home that you can turn to when restless.
If you want to limit your daily use of your smartphone or specific websites, there are apps that will block your access for specified amounts of time each day. Please note that I have never tried these apps myself (as I don’t have a mobile phone), so check reviews to see if any of these might be a good fit for you: SelfControl; Freedom; LeechBlock; KeepMeOut; Cold Turkey; Anti-Social; Focal Filter; Focus Me; AppBlock.
For specific methods to reduce your device use, check out the Air Method on Stay Grounded by Justin Hanagan. Also see the 5D method on After Babel.
If you don’t feel comfortable going “tech-naked”, use “naked tech”—that is, use a simple device with only phone and text capabilities, which removes temptation and keeps your mind liberated. Jose Briones from Moving Offline recommends Sunbeam F1, Light Phone 2, Punkt MP02, or some Kosher phones like Mindful or FIG. (Note: these are not affiliate links; we just love the idea).3
Specify your usage rules
Before you start the fast, write out when and how you will allow yourself to use your phone, computer, or other device. Being too vague or too strict can set you up for failure. Think about which uses are not optional for the duration of the fast. Be specific, for example:
I will check my e-mail at_______and at _________.
I will use my phone to arrange a meeting via text.
I will use my laptop when writing an article.
Etc.
Inform family and friends about your digital fast and when you will be checking your messages.
Compose an auto-reply for your e-mail indicating the expected time frame for your responses.
Committing to a fast together with a spouse, your family, a friend, a small group, or church community, will allow you to support each other, and make it more likely that you will succeed in sustaining your new habits.
We are happy to offer a 25% discount for groups of two or more:
3. RETURN
“None of the modern machines, none of the modern paraphernalia. . . have any power except over the people who choose to use them.”
– Daily News, July 21, 1906 - G.K. Chesterton
We usually don’t feast while we fast, but in this case it is what we actually strive for. Reducing use or removing digital devices leaves a vacuum that will naturally long to be filled. So while you create a plan to fast from “the virtual”, we encourage you to simultaneously create a plan for “the real” that you will feast on.
Engage in analog social connections, solitude, walking, physical work, other high-quality, technology-free activities.
Solitude - Cal Newport, author of Digital Minimalism, emphasizes that time alone with your thoughts and experiences helps to “clarify hard problems, to regulate emotions, build moral courage, and to strengthen relationships.”
Walking - Go for a walk daily. Even ten minutes is helpful, but the longer the better. Consider leaving your phone at home. For inspiration on restoring the mind at 3 miles an hour, revisit The Walking Rebellion.
Nurture analog relationships - Sherry Turkle, author of Reclaiming Conversation notes, “…face-to-face communication is the most human - and humanizing- thing we do.” For practical ideas check out our post on The Convivial Quest.4
Sow seeds of anachronism - With the help of our readers we created a Seed Catalogue which is packed with wonderful ideas to feast on reality. I first wrote all suggestions out by hand, which looked like this:
You can read the original post Simple Acts of Sanity here, get inspired by the Visual Guide of Random Acts of Anachronism, or download a printable note-taking pdf version here:
MAKE IT HAPPEN
Create a list of RETURN activities that you commit to during the digital fast, or use the following list of suggestions we offered last year:
1. Create one beautiful thing
2. Read one book
3. Go for one two-hour walk
4. Visit one family member you have not seen in a while
5. Meet with one friend for a face-to-face conversation
6. Reach out to one neighbor
7. Cook one new meal
8. Engage in one new physical activity
9. Do one thing to make your home more beautiful
10. Leave your phone at home for one outing
If at first you do what is necessary, and then do what is possible,
soon you find you are achieving the impossible.
St. Francis of Assisi
Maintaining digital discipline or abstinence is challenging when surrounded by an ocean of people who think your efforts are crazy or futile. Conversely, it is helpful and strengthening when you connect with like-minded people, who are also working towards “cognitive liberty” and recovering a human default.
If you would like to join others in taking this leap, reply with a brief note in the comment section below.
Feel free to share reflections or ask any questions too!
If you “like” this post it helps to spread the word :) Share with your family, friends, or community if you would like to invite them to join!
Groups of 2 or more people receive a 25% discount which will give you access to live meetings and the entire archive.
If you found this post helpful (or hopeful), please consider supporting our work by becoming a paid subscriber. Paying subscribers will receive an RSVP for our first live meeting within the next week.
During the Communal Digital Fast we are happy to offer a special discount!
If the ideas Peco and I write about resonate with you, why not consider joining us for a most extraordinary extended conversation?
Together with Dixie Dillon Lane, we will be leading an 11-day Camino Pilgrimage in Spain from June 14 th to 24th, and would love for you to join us as we walk, converse, share meals, visit historic sites, build relationships, all while hiking through a naturally and spiritually inspiring landscape.
For details see this post, download the brochure below, or register directly here.
Questions about the Camino? We’d be happy to chat with you! Simply send a direct message in the chat and we can arrange a call or one-on-one zoom meeting:)
I particularly appreciated the first panel discussion featuring Brad Littlejohn, Clare Morell, and Leah Libresco Sargeant. You can watch a recording of the event here.
Although we do not have a Sunbeam phone, we particularly like this company (founded by Mennonites) because when others were adding ever more features, they designed a phone for those of us who want a practical phone without all the distractions. And here, you can actually select which features you want your phone to have (the most basic model only has two). Also, as Swiss nationals, we appreciate that Punkt is a Swiss company, powered by an “independent Operating System from Switzerland”.
Also see Ben Christenson’s interview with Leah Libresco Sargeant How to Host in 2025.
I am opting for a new life off grid in a 14 ft yurt. For the most part, any land that allows a yurt is probably off grid anyway. Potable water is my priority over electricity. I will have some small solar unit to charge up a few lights and laptop batteries. But I think my new life will be quite essential. I will probably have to go to a town to get my email. No cellphone last 3 years.,do have a message line I can check by email. My screaming tinnitus and my serious heart palps are prompting this, after 30 years in a city. You can't adequately explain the concept of a killgrid to someone holding a cellphone. Good luck to all of us. Thanks for making me feel much less alone.
I am so excited to join with you on this fast! I was already undertaking a digital fast with friends for 40 days starting March 1st. Perhaps I’ll extend mine. Really looking forward to it as a time of reflection and restoration in the rich and meaningful experiences of “real life.”