The Intimacy Crisis - How to Prioritize Your Family Over Your Phone featuring Joey Odom

I'll never forget celebrating Easter and glancing around a room full of my favorite people and realizing none of us were connecting. Every one of us had our face in our phone! It was a real wake-up call, and it's what propelled me to chat with Joey Odom from Aro about how we can reclaim our family time from the clutches of digital devices. Together, we peel back the layers of our screen-addicted society, sharing personal stories, and discussing the psychological impact that our phone fixation has on our relationships—especially with our spouse and kids.

Have you ever found yourself checking your phone for no reason, even when you know there are no new notifications? That's the kind of false dependence and habitual behavior we unpack in this episode. We highlight the surprising ways our devices have become intertwined with our daily routines and explore the concept of Aro—a lifestyle focused on awareness and presence. Joey and I delve into how Aro's platform, including a physical home decor piece for charging your devices paired with an app, is helping families to visually track and reward their off-screen time together, even gamifying the experience too.

Finally, we discuss how to foster deeper connections with our families and the powerful role parents play in setting the example for phone use.  Joey reminds us the phone isn't the issue. The real issue is an intimacy crisis - all of us are craving connection and intimacy! In order to change the core relationship you have with your phone, he offers 4 practical tips.
1. Start with "I" - before asking your spouse and kids to get on board, work to change your own habits first.
2. Commit to a phone-free hour each day where you are out of proximity completely.
3. Designate sacred time and sacred space in your home where devices are not allowed.
4. Say these 6 important words before engaging with others  "Let me put my phone down" and then follow through to eliminate competition for attention.

Check out the Aro community and join a generation of families who are prioritizing real life moments over screen time.