Yes, you can unplug for 24 hours

Catherine Price, author of How to Break Up with Your Phone: The 30-Day Plan to Take Back Your Life, knows the value — and the difficulty — of putting a smartphone out of arm's reach. 

Price recently led a 30-day phone breakup challenge based on her book. It sounds scary at first. "We come up with all these reasons why we couldn't possibly take a break, she says, "but many of these reasons don't stand up to scrutiny." 

Still, if an entire month sounds too daunting, how about an easier lift: the Global Day of Unplugging? In 2026, the 24-hour period of powering down begins at sundown on March 6 and concludes the following evening, offering a bite-size experience of going phone-free. 

Price has published her own guide for the event, which has been around for a decade. The Global Day of Unplugging offers its own guide. The essential starting point is recognizing it's OK to fear losing access to your texts, maps, music, and everything else our devices now provide.

"People get very nervous ahead of time," Price says of a day without a smartphone. But "many people report back that it's easier than they feared." 

If you're ready to ditch that always-attached device for a full 24 hours, or even just a portion of that time, consider the following tips from Price along with Nick Plante, vice president of operations at Appstinence, a Gen Z-led organization that promotes quitting addictive technology. 

Get curious about your phone-related anxiety

Price says people looking to unplug need to first address their anxiety about doing so. She encourages "curiosity" about what drives their concerns. 

In Price's experience, many people fear not being constantly available. They worry about missing a critical phone call or text. Yet, often they're surprised to discover that they missed nothing, or what came in their absence wasn't that important. Emergencies are also rare, Price says.

Once you understand your key concerns about unplugging, you can plan for each contingency. 

Let's start with some basic tips:

Use a notepad

Price recommends keeping a notepad handy once you've unplugged.  "The moment you put your phone down your brain is going to protest by coming up with all of these things you need to check or lookup or buy or do," she says. "It really is kind of fascinating to see how panicked your brain will get." Writing those items down assures your brain you'll come back to them later. 

Do it with someone else …

Price says unplugging is easier with the company of a friend, spouse, or child. They can serve as an "accountability partner." Going tandem also means you'll have help improvising how to navigate life without a phone, as well as someone else to reflect on the experience. 

And make it fun!

Crucially, the hours you spend participating in the Global Day of Unplugging should not be dedicated to housework or other tedious tasks. Instead, Price strongly urges creating a "fun plan." The Global Day of Unplugging's "unplugged ideas" list includes a Free Library scavenger hunt, group crafting, and hosting a block or neighborhood party. 

How to get an emergency call 

If you need to be reachable in an emergency by a spouse, caregiver, or elderly parent, Price suggests telling those people to call you. When putting your phone in "do not disturb" mode, adjust the settings to allow calls from those contacts. Leave your ringer on to hear if you do indeed get a call. 

How to let people know you've unplugged

Price says to communicate in advance about your plans to unplug. Let the people you're informing know how long you'll be away. If necessary, change your email away settings.

How to make plans with friends 

Nick Plante, 25, began using a dumbphone (the Light Phone II) four years ago. He says it's become much easier to make plans now that some of his friends also have a dumbphone. 

Here's how it works for Plante and his friends: they agree on meeting at a specific place and time, with the understanding that they won't be "texting each other out of anxiety" to confirm the details. (As Price points out, unplugging does require sticking with set plans as much as possible.)

Sometimes, Plante just invites friends to a certain park or cafe during a set time period, making it clear he'll be without a phone. He says he enjoys building the capacity for ambiguity, instead of having an RSVP list or the ability to text incremental updates. 

Unplugging becomes easier when you focus on what you gain in the process, instead of what you lose, Plante emphasizes. 

"Unplugging lets you move through the day in a manner that you don't normally get to, and it can be very exciting to bring our attention to what that feels like," he says. 

How to pay for things without a digital wallet

Bring a physical wallet. It's really as simple as that, Price says. 

It's true that some small businesses, like food trucks or farmers market vendors, only take electronic forms of payment, like Venmo and CashApp. But most tap-to-pay systems allow for credit cards too. If you're worried, withdraw cash as a backup. 

If you're going to a museum or movie theater and have a digital ticket, pass or QR code, Price suggests printing it out in advance. 

How to listen to music 

Plante, who lives in New York City, notices more old CD players or iPads on the subway these days. When available, those are great alternatives for music listening. 

Price also recommends tuning into the radio for the Global Day of Unplugging, which may not have your carefully curated playlists, but will do for a short period of time. (For longer durations, Price suggests using an app blocker like Opal, Brick, Freedom, or ScreenZen to restrict everything but select apps, including music services.)

If you've decided to throw a party to celebrate unplugging (and good for you!), Price does note that using your phone to put on a playlist isn't "the worst thing in the world." Just be careful of any down-the-rabbit-hole effect that might follow, such as quickly texting a friend to see if they still plan to attend — then getting lost in your messages.

How to navigate without a maps app

Plante carries a paper map on the New York City subway. He also asks strangers for directions, and says it's not cheating if someone else consults Google on your behalf. 

He notices that people aren't as clueless about how to navigate to their location without a phone as they might seem; instead, they crave the reassurance of checking their maps app multiple times. 

When using public transportation, Plante recommends trusting the time table as much as possible, and relying on signage. 

Price encourages people to trust their memory when driving to a familiar location, or to print out or write down the directions when they're feeling less confident or driving somewhere new. 

She also recommends asking a stranger for directions if you need them. It sounds like obvious advice, but some people have forgotten that the option exists — and might even enjoy the generosity and camaraderie that a kind stranger can bring to an annoying situation. 

Plus, Price says: "If for some reason you do get lost, you'll have a story afterwards" — a rare moment in our smartphone-driven world.