Stop Binge-Watching Television Shows

We owe a lot to Thomas Edison - if it wasn’t for him, we’d be watching television by candlelight.” - Comedian Milton Berle It’s America’s favorite pastime. According to Statistic Brain Research Institute, the average person watches more than five hours of television per day. That’s equivalent to working a part-time job (of course, the downside is that you don’t receive a paycheck). Over the average person’s lifetime, he or she will watch nine years of TV! Our penchant to reach for the remote stems from a variety of reasons. We want to relax after a hard day at the office. We want to leave behind the stress of the workday and escape into an engaging story. We hope to connect with the characters we see on our favorite shows, and perhaps experience a cathartic release as we identify with their challenges. These motivations seem reasonable. After all, as we discussed yesterday (see Day 13), taking breaks is critical to maintaining productivity. The problem is, we’re inclined to binge. Many of us are wired that way. For example, I admit to bingeing on The Wire, Battlestar Galactica and 24. I’ve spent hours staring at the TV, wondering how 24’s Jack Bauer will manage to survive the day. If you have a Netflix account or an Amazon Prime membership, you may be able to relate. You’re not alone. According to a 2013 Harris Interactive study, 61% of surveyed Netflix users admitted to binge-watching their favorite shows on a regular basis. Moreover, 73% of that group expressed positive feelings about doing so. But the habit carries a steep invoice. Findings from a study conducted by researchers at Ohio State University showed that excessive television watching can lead to depression. It can also open the door to back pain and weight gain. Research published in the medical journal Diabetologia indicated a day-long TV-binge session could increase the risk of diabetes by up to 30%. Yet another side effect is even more alarming: decreased life expectancy. According to research published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine in 2011, each hour spent watching TV shaves 22 minutes off our lives. It’s clear binge-watching your favorite shows will affect your ability to get things done. Let’s take a look at how it does so.

How This Bad Habit Hurts Your Productivity 

Watching television rivals social media as the biggest time-waster of our generation. That might seem to be an alarmist claim. But recall from above that the average person will spend nine years of his or her life watching TV. That is a significant amount of productive time lost to passive entertainment. Binge-watching has a negative effect on your mood and motivation. I mentioned earlier that too much time spent in front of the television has been linked to the onset of depression. Even if you don’t feel depressed, you’re likely to feel lethargic and unmotivated after hours spent watching your favorite shows. Worse, the more you binge, the worse you feel until the thought of climbing off your couch fills you with dread. Here’s another reason binge-watching TV impairs your productivity: it’s highly addictive. The magazine Scientific American ran an article in 2002 titled “Television Addiction Is No Mere Metaphor.” The authors compared TV watching to drug dependence, noting that both activities have a tranquilizing effect on the “user.” They also found after reviewing multiple surveys that 10% of U.S. consumers considered themselves TV addicts. There is far more television programming available today compared to 2002. We can thus assume the problem remains just as prevalent. Let’s suppose you know you spend too much time watching TV. Would you be compelled to curb the habit if you knew it was having an adverse effect on your brain? A study published in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine in 2010 linked toddlers’ exposure to television to poor brain development and decreased classroom engagement. While the study focused on how television affects children, it’s reasonable to assume adults suffer similar effects. To that end, we know binge-watching can adversely impact adults’ cognitive health through depression, insomnia and loneliness. So, let’s break the habit…

 Action Steps

 1. Identify your reasons for binge-watching television. You might assume you’re doing it to relax or unwind after a tough day. But there may be an underlying trigger that warrants attention. For example, do you sometimes feel glum or dejected, and use TV as a way to put those feelings on the back burner? Do you often feel burnt out and see television as a tool that allows you to “unplug” from the stress in your life? These are triggers. Spend 30 minutes to identify those that are driving you to your television.

 2. Track how many hours per day you watch TV. It’s possible you’re underestimating the figure. Over a two-week period, record the number of hours you spend watching your favorite shows each day. At the end of two weeks, you’ll have a solid grasp of the amount of time that’s slipping through your fingers.

3. Create a list of fun, rewarding activities you’re unable to enjoy while watching TV. For example, every hour spent in front of your television is an hour you can’t spend playing with your children or going on a date with your spouse. Likewise, you can’t go hiking, have lunch with friends or work on growing your side business. You can’t go to the gym, learn new skills or meet new people. Keep this list nearby whenever you sit down to watch TV. It will motivate you to limit the time you spend sitting on your couch, or it might prompt you to skip television altogether.

4. Select three shows. It’s easy to binge-watch TV because there is so much high-quality programming available. I have friends who regularly watch 10 or more shows each week. That requires a massive investment of time. Review a list of television shows you currently watch. Choose three and abandon the rest. It won’t be easy. But it will pay dividends over the long run. You’ll be floored by how much extra time you have at your disposal.

 6. Limit the number of hours you allow yourself to watch TV each night. If you feel you currently watch too much, choose a number that is less than your current habit. For example, if you normally watch five hours of television per night, commit to watching four hours. After doing so become a habit, move the needle to three hours a night. The key is to start with a reasonable goal (e.g. four hours) and make progress by cutting back in small increments. Don’t quit cold turkey, or cut your daily habit from five hours to one hour. Instead, set reasonable goals that deliver the same end result over a longer period of time.

7. Get rid of your televisions. Admittedly, I’ve never done this. But I once knew a man who did. He felt he was wasting his life watching television and took the most aggressive approach possible to curtail his habit. I mention this as an option, not a recommendation. Some folks do well by quitting cold turkey and discarding their TVs. I’m not one of them. If you’re like me, I recommend following Action Step #6.

8. Reward your productivity with an hour of television. This tactic helps to ensure you get your work done before relaxing in front of your TV. Here, you’re using television as an incentive. It’s a treat. If you complete your to-do list, you get to watch your favorite show. Otherwise, you don’t.

9. Cut your cable. Cable TV is where you’ll find the most creative and engaging shows. From AMC’s Breaking Bad and Showtime’s Shameless to HBO’s The Sopranos and FX’s The Americans, network television (ABC, NBC, etc.) can’t compete - at least when it comes to storytelling. The downside is that the quality programming makes it difficult to break a deep-rooted TV addiction. I recommend opting out of cable TV. Cut the cord. You’ll not only recoup a significant amount of time, but you’ll also save money on your cable bill.