Do this one simple thing with your phone and get more done in the morning than most people do all day

I do one simple thing with my phone that feels like a secret weapon. It makes my mornings incredibly productive.

Each night, around 10 p.m., I put my phone in “Do Not Disturb” mode, and I lay it face down on a table in my living room. I don’t touch the phone again until the next morning, after I’ve worked for a couple of hours.

If you want a similar result, you don’t have to put your phone face down on a table in your living room. You just have to do this one thing: Don’t allow your phone in your bedroom.

I used to keep my phone on my nightstand. I used it for an alarm. It ruined my mornings.

One morning I was scrolling through Facebook and couldn’t stop. I had already checked my email, muttering cuss words to myself as I unsubscribed from newsletters I never signed up for.

And then it hit me: I could be doing something else right now. I could start my day productively. I could start it without requests from other people, and news stories that make me feel bad.

I thought, maybe I could take control of my mornings, instead of letting my mornings take control me.

I eventually settled on one simple rule: My phone is not allowed in my bedroom.

I tried making the simple rule of not scrolling through social media or checking email before getting out of bed. That didn’t work.

I tried making the simple rule of not looking at my phone while turning off my alarm. That didn’t work.

I even tried making the simple rule of not using my phone as an alarm at all. I’d let it charge next to an alarm clock. That didn’t work.

Then I remembered something: I’m a designer. What does a designer do when they want to prevent a behavior? They make it hard to do.

This is why your computer asks for a confirmation when you delete a file. This is why you have to break the glass to get to the fire extinguisher. This is why that annoying popover is hard to close.

It’s called a forcing function: When something is designed to prevent a behavior. It’s also known as a behavior-shaping constraint. The Japanese call it poka-yoke.

If your phone isn’t in your bedroom, it’s that much harder for you to grab it. If it’s harder for you to grab your phone first thing in the morning, it’s harder to check email, read news, or do any number of things that can waste the precious first hour of your day.

If you’re like most people, your first hour is your most vulnerable. Your willpower is low, you can get distracted more easily, and each distraction can lead to another. A distracted first hour can spiral into an entire distracted day.

If it’s that much harder to waste your first hour, it’s that much easier to use it wisely.

Some people think they “can’t” keep their phone out of their bedroom. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. Here are a few of those ways:

The first step to being productive is to prevent yourself from being unproductive. There’s little that can sabotage your productivity worse than wasting the first hour of your day.

Do one simple thing: Keep your phone out of your bedroom. It will make it harder to make bad choices, and easier to make good choices. This one good choice will lead to others.

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