“No-Tech” Tuesday night was a hit at Google, adviser says

For Martin, whose job it is to help Google’s top leaders achieve peak productivity, she began practicing JOMO through a weekly tradition she started with her husband.

Every Tuesday, they would put their devices away at night and instead do other activities and hobbies, such as board games and spending time outdoors.

“Those Tuesdays ended up being some of our favorite nights,” she said.

Martin said those unplugged hours are crucial to recharging your brain, which ultimately leads to greater productivity in the long run. And that mental “quiet time” became shorter and shorter.

According to DataReportal’s 2024 Digital Global Overview Report, an annual publication on worldwide digital trends, US internet users spend an average of 7 hours and 3 minutes daily on any device. Increased screen time has also been linked to potential eye damage and poorer mental health.

Martin’s personal success with the challenge inspired her to bring the tradition to the Google offices. However, asking tech bros to stay away from their tech—even just for a night—required a strategic introduction.

“I had to Swiss it up and decided to focus on a manageable goal like turning off the phone for a few hours,” she said.

Tuesday was another calculated choice. Martin said she deliberately named her challenge with quick alliteration and clear direction.

“Choose one night a week is much less powerful than No Technology Tuesday” she said. “It’s attractive; it gives direction, rhythm and structure.”

Ultimately, Martin implemented the challenge in January because starting a new initiative can “feel more natural” at the beginning of the year, rather than in a random month. She said people are “willing to make a bigger change because it’s the start of something new.”

And the Googlers were very willing. Over the past five years, Martin said more than 2,500 people have taken the challenge annually.

“Almost all the feedback I hear is that it’s hard at first — but it’s worth it in the end,” she said.

Participants reported sleeping much better at night, finding themselves more energetic the next day, and having time for creative hobbies, as well as “richer human connections that wouldn’t have happened when technology was present.”

Others said they were surprised by the number of times they checked their phones and how much their families loved them and even joined their unplugged evenings, Martin wrote.

“Unexpectedly, my kids love it. I realized that the main reason they’re on their devices at night is because I’m on mine,” one participant said, according to Martin. “I sat and did a puzzle with my 13-year-old son and had a meaningful conversation, which can be rare these days.”

She wrote that another participant said they were able to solve a work problem because of the challenge. After their tech-free Tuesday alarm went off, they zeroed in on the problem instead of continuing to spend hours on end like they normally would.

“I woke up Wednesday morning and thought about the best solution,” they said, according to Google counsel. “I’m convinced it was because I let my brain rest.”

At the end of the challenge, Martin said 97.2 percent of participants said they felt Tech Free Tuesday affected their work performance and/or stress levels in some way, and 92 percent said they planned to continue the challenge.

“Some participants have been doing the challenge for five years and have kept up with it every Tuesday night since we first held it,” Martin said.

If a full evening digital detox seems like too much of a commitment, Martin suggests taking smaller steps, like doing one thing before you check your phone in the morning, or finding short windows of phone-free time like during a walk or while eating lunch.

“Digital detox — even just that evening each week — creates the mental space we need to thrive in our work and our lives,” she said.