Wait ten minutes. Then decide.
When the urge to open an app hits, do not fight it and do not obey it. Start the timer, breathe with the circle, and see whether you still want it when it ends.
Press start the moment you feel the pull.
Still want it?
Fair enough. That was a clear choice.
A pause is good. A pause with a limit is better.
This page is from the team behind Time Debt: Screen Time for iPhone, an app blocker built on Apple's Screen Time system. According to its App Store listing, when you run out of time you do not just ignore the limit:
- Borrow 5, 10 or 15 minutes from tomorrow's allowance, or a custom amount within your cap
- See today, tomorrow's normal allowance and tomorrow's adjusted allowance side by side before you confirm. Nothing happens until you do
- Borrowed minutes are repaid automatically, once. No interest and nothing compounds
- Remove every Time Debt shield until tomorrow at any time, at no cost
- No account and no ads. Your rules and history stay on your iPhone and work offline
Time Debt is a voluntary commitment tool for digital wellbeing, not medical or psychological treatment. The timer on this page stores only a count of urges waited out, in this browser.
Why waiting works
An urge usually peaks and fades within minutes, whether or not you act on it. Delaying does not require willpower to defeat the urge. It only asks you to wait while it runs its course, then choose with a clearer head.
Many people find that after ten minutes they either forgot what they wanted, or the pull has dropped enough that "not really" is an honest answer. And if the answer is still "yes", that is fine. You decided on purpose.
Making it stick
Move the phone. Put it face down, or in another room, while the timer runs.
Do something with your hands. Tidy one thing, stretch, or make a drink.
Do not turn it into a test. Waiting five minutes and then going ahead still beats going straight in.
Questions
Does the ten-minute rule work?
Delaying an impulse gives the first strong pull time to fade. Many people find they no longer want the thing, or want it less. It is a simple technique, not a cure, and it works best when you pair it with moving away from the phone.
What should I do while the timer runs?
Breathe with the circle, drink some water, stand up or look at something far away. Avoid picking up the phone for something else.
Is my data stored?
Only a count of how many urges you waited out today and in total, kept in this browser on this device. Nothing is sent anywhere.
More from this site
- one sec alternativeone sec adds a pause before you open distracting apps. If you want a daily screen time budget you can borrow from but must repay, compare it with Time Debt.
- Year progress barA live year progress bar: see exactly what percent of the year is gone, how many days and weekends are left, and how many of those hours your phone will take.
- Your Life in Weeks: See Every Week You Have Lived on One PageEnter your birth date and see your whole life as a grid of weeks: the ones you have lived filled in, the rest still open. Download it as a poster. Free, nothing stored.
- Screen time in years calculatorEnter your age and daily screen time to see it as days per year and years of waking life, drawn as one square per year.
- Screen time receipt makerType in your top apps and daily minutes and get your screen time as a shop receipt you can save as an image and share. Free, nothing stored.
- Screen-Time Number Detective27 worked scenarios about durations, percentages, overlapping sessions and careful interpretation of screen-use records.