A month ago, I decided that I wanted to remove watching videos from my life. I wasn’t content with spending the majority of my free time on YouTube, movies, or news videos. Back in 2022, I spent half the year working to remove all forms of scrolling from my life, yet my screen time is still higher than I would like. Time spent scrolling was gradually replaced with long-form video content, even though I had carefully curated my devices to show only ‘useful’ content. The next logical next step for me was to remove the video content all together.

I want to preface by saying that I don’t think that YouTube videos or movies are innately detrimental in any way. It is the way in which I used them that was wasteful. My brain justified these videos because they scratched a dopamine addition, but when I take a deeper look at what I was watching, it’s easy to realize that they offer me no benefit. Much with scrolling, I struggled to remember what I watched in any depth or form a deep understanding that I could recall on later. I also found myself watching YouTube while eating, using the washroom, and any other monotonous task that I wanted to ‘fast forward’ through. This meant that any time my brain should be resting and recharging, it was instead being bombarded by content. I still get this urge after an exhausting day, or when I am tired or hungover—to zone out and watch a video or movie. I am sure others feel this too. It is our brain trying to take the easy route, as it often wishes to.

My main issue with this type of habit, is that it provides no personal growth. I was sinking multiple hours a day into an activity that doesn’t make me smarter, feel healthier, or improve a skill. In this way, it is not any different than scrolling. But there are other adverse side-effects. Firstly, it gives my brain no time to consolidate or relax. Research supports that short breaks are immensely beneficial for learning and recall, and watching content between tasks is the opposite of a break for our brain. It also reinforces poor habits; the action of reaching for the next hit dopamine whenever my body tells me it needs it. I found that I often used video content as an escape from hard tasks, stressful days, or anxious thoughts. Instead of facing these issues, I would put them on the backburner and indulge in a video to take my mind off it. This wasted time and generally worsened my attitude towards the issue. And finally, the brain fog and fatigue I experienced after a YouTube session or movie binge were the obvious signs of the negative impacts of this habit.

On October 13th, I gave myself the rule: no video content of any kind. However, I wanted to go about this goal differently. Throughout my iterations of removing distracting content, I have learnt that free will is not to be overlooked. When you fully eliminate a negative stimulus—say, by using an Instagram blocker or switching to a flip phone—you may eliminate the distraction, but you do so without developing the mental discipline to stay away from it by choice. As a result, other distractions often take its place. In the past, I would block Instagram, but then find myself flipping through YouTube videos, or even Strava. For this challenge, I decided to leave all the distractions right at my fingertips—no blockers or time limits—and focus on building discipline.

When breaking bad habits, I find that extremely rigid rules often don’t result in success. When the chosen boundaries are too tough and there is no ‘wiggle room’, slip-ups are quite common, and the goal is often tossed out altogether. To address this, I still allow myself to watch the occasional content with friends and family—this includes a movie with my girlfriend, or an Instagram reel that a friend shows me. The rules also bend when it comes to studying, like watching a video to help understand a topic or a recorded lecture. Since these instances serve to achieve a task rather than fulfilling a desire or habit, I don’t classify this as breaking the rule. 

It would be incomplete to ignore the cycles of difficulty that this challenge went through—some days were tough, while others flew by without a thought. In fact, by the last week, avoiding video content felt natural and less like a constant reminder. This challenge also felt simpler the more I time I spent with friends and working on a goal—this was travelling Europe and writing blog posts, respectively. To overcome temptations on hard days, what worked for me was assessing the day’s ‘difficulty level’ first thing in the morning. On low willpower days—like after drinking or long runs—I’d begin the day with extra vigilance, which made it easier to stay disciplined until bedtime. This became my usual practice for most mornings, especially if I expected a boring or homebound day.

It’s worth noting that I was not perfect throughout this challenge, and I broke my rule a few times. One day, I suddenly regained consciousness and found myself watching an embedded YouTube video on the Wall Street Journal. Another time, I continued to browse through Netflix after watching a movie with girlfriend, before snapping out of it. I try to see these mistakes as a necessary part of growth. This way, slip-ups don’t lead to larger relapses, abandonment of the goal, or guilt—they happen, I learn from them, and keep going.

Now onto the results from this experiment. Let me begin by emphasizing that removing video content for this month has made me feel extremely gratified. Placebo or not, I have been noticeably happier, more focused, and more deliberate in how I spend my time. I outline all the changes below.

  1. More free time. It’s a surprise to no one that when you remove video content from your life you have a lot of free time, but there was more to it than that. Let me explain with math. When I started this challenge, my free time followed an exponential curve as tasks that were usually procrastinated got achieved, leaving even more free time to complete even more tasks. Then, as this feedback loop fizzled out and I settled into this lifestyle, my free time curve shifted to follow a logarithmic path. It was still increasing, but exponentially slowing as I headed towards a high bound of possible free time.
  2. Deliberate thinking. Being alone with your thoughts can be scary. This month compelled me to face any and all thoughts that I might usually avoid. When stress or anxiety surfaced, I had to deal with it head on—literally—since I couldn’t escape into YouTube. Over the month, this led to intentional thinking, where I would deliberately spend some of my free time to reflect on specific issues, come to terms with solutions, and move forward.
  3. An emphasis on reading. I love to read, and this challenge gave me the perfect excuse to devour some books. Over the course of the month, I was able to finish four books, including David Copperfield, a notoriously long and slow read. In the final two weeks, something clicked, and I found myself genuinely excited to sit down with a book—a feeling that hasn’t consistently accompanied reading since my childhood. Books began to feel like a relaxing escape once again, not a chore. If you want to boost your page count, I would highly suggest this challenge.
  4. Finding comfort in boredom. I had to relearn how to enjoy doing nothing. Meals, the washroom, bus rides, and study breaks were now attended by nothing but my thoughts and the occasional book. This was a surprisingly rewarding part of this challenge. Letting my brain relax felt healthy and refreshing.
  5. More energy, less brain fog. Beyond the obvious benefit of avoiding the aftereffects of a binge, I noticed an improvement in mental clarity and energy. I felt fewer urges to stay in bed, had more interest and energy for connecting with others, and felt more capable overall.
  6. Improved focus. Staying focused on work became significantly easier, especially in the second half of the month once avoiding video content became second nature. I realized that the dopamine boost from reading or taking a walk generally pales next to the rush of video-driven procrastination. Therefore, without the pull of videos, procrastination was less desirable, and my focus and productivity both improved. I still procrastinate and I still waste time, but now it is less frequent, and with activities that I believe are valuable—like reading a book, playing guitar, or going for a walk.

In summary, this past month was incredibly worthwhile. I would absolutely recommend this to others who have similar concerns with video content. I intend to continue this challenge indefinitely. A final disclaimer: this level of video consumption reduction may not be necessary or beneficial for others. For me though, when it comes to discipline, it’s all or nothing. I hope in the future I can strike a balance with video content, allowing myself to enjoy an occasional video or movie for myself—I’m especially missing Outdoor Boys.