Drugs, alcohol, gambling…. ?
What about phone addiction? It’s definitely a thing and not just among teenagers. It’s even got a name – nomophobia – fear of being without a mobile phone.
At Mint, we’re dealing with an increasing number of cases where excessive phone usage is becoming a real problem – affecting productivity, concentration and even attendance with some businesses having to revert back to enforcing no phones out on desks.
Phone addiction is when you’re spending more time on your device than with actual real people – and when you are with real people (eg work) you are constantly thinking about your phone and itching to get back on it… making excuses to get it out or sneaking to the toilet to have a quick scroll…when your heart starts to pound with FOMO if you’re not getting through all your phone updates because you have to be somewhere/do something else.
It’s 2024 and workplaces need to consider their phone usage policies now and strike the balance between being a hard taskmaster on this and the reality of modern day mobile phone reliance.
And if a situation arises, remember to consider if it’s phone addiction or a straightforward case of work avoidance going on.
For further support on this growing issue in the workplace, please get in touch.
