Have you ever had that moment where you realize… you’re technically awake, but you’re not really present?

In this episode, I’m talking about the wake-up call most of us don’t want to answer: we’ve stopped noticing. We’re moving through our days on autopilot, reaching for our phones without thinking, reacting to pings and notifications, and calling it normal. But you can’t change what you don’t notice, and for a lot of us, digital distraction is stealing hours we don’t even remember.

I share one of my own autopilot habits (hello, cycling through six email inboxes for no good reason 😅) and use it as a mirror to ask the bigger question: Where are you drifting without realizing it? Automatic habits are powerful, and denial is sneaky.

We also talk about denial and the sneaky ways we minimize, rationalize, or justify habits that are slowly draining our focus. Most of us aren’t completely unaware. We’re just half-awake. We hear the alarm, but we hit snooze.

Jesus repeatedly told His disciples to “stay awake.” Not just physically, but spiritually and mentally present. What does it look like to live that way today in a world where your phone is constantly trying to pull you back to sleep?

I’m also sharing how Focus Modes can become a practical tool to support your focus , and I’ll tell you more about my workshop Focus Modes Made Simple so you can get learn how to set up Focus Modes on your phone and use them to protect your time and guard your attention.

If you’ve been feeling scattered, overwhelmed, or frustrated that you “can’t log off,” this episode will help you slow down, notice what’s really happening, and begin taking back the wheel one small, intentional choice at a time. I’m giving you one simple practice to start this week. Enjoy the episode!

Resources & Next Steps:

THE BRICK GIVEAWAY!

🔲 Win A Brick: A Digital Wellness Device to Help You Overcome Digital Distraction. You just tap your iPhone to it, and it activates a custom focus mode you’ve already designed. The Brick Giveaway closes for entries midnight Feb. 28, 2026 EST. The Brick Giveaway

📲 Grab Your Free Wallpapers Get your free gallery of truth-filled phone and desktop wallpapers, designed to help you pause, reset, and refocus every time you reach for your device. 👉Digital Wallpaper

Focus Modes Made Simple Workshop 👉Sign up for the Workshop

Let’s Connect! Share your experiences by leaving me a voice message through Speakpipe on my website!

📩 Email: hello@julianneaugust.com

🌐 Website: julianneaugust.com

🎙️To celebrate my one-year podcast anniversary leave a 5 star rating or written review, or send me an email to share more!

Hashtags: #FocusModesMadeSimple #DigitalWellness #OvercomeDigitalDistraction

🎉 The podcast turns ONE this week! And I’m reflecting on everything this first year of podcasting has taught me about focus, momentum, grace, and learning to trust God in the unseen.

This episode is raw, real, and slightly raspy (hello, post-cold voice), but I knew I couldn’t let the one-year anniversary pass without showing up to share what this journey has meant to me. If you’re in a season of starting something new, trying to stay consistent with a project, or wondering if the small steps you're taking are actually making a difference, this episode will speak right to where you are.

Over the past 55 episodes, I’ve learned that clarity often comes after you take action, not always before. I’ve discovered how faithfulness over time builds momentum in ways motivation can’t. I’ve felt the quiet tension of creating something without visible results, and the deep peace that comes from trusting God with the outcomes I can’t measure. I’ve stumbled through perfectionism, embraced messy progress, and even learned that I kind of love the tech side of podcasting. But most of all, I’ve been reminded again and again that this work isn’t just something I do for others, it’s shaping me, too.

I’m also sharing a sneak peek into what’s coming next: a new workshop called Focus Modes Made Simple. This 1 hour workshop is designed to help you stop defaulting to distraction and start using your phone with intention. Focus Modes are one of the most overlooked features on your device, but when customized well, they can protect your time, support your spiritual rhythms, and help you stay fully present.

Resources & Next Steps:

THE BRICK GIVEAWAY!

🔲 Win A Brick: A Digital Wellness Device to Help You Overcome Digital Distraction. You just tap your iPhone to it, and it activates a custom focus mode you’ve already designed. The Brick Giveaway closes for entries midnight Feb. 28, 2026 EST. The Brick Giveaway

📲 Grab Your Free Wallpapers Get your free gallery of truth-filled phone and desktop wallpapers, designed to help you pause, reset, and refocus every time you reach for your device. 👉Digital Wallpaper

Let’s Connect! Share your experiences by leaving me a voice message through Speakpipe on my website! Scroll down on the blog page to find it!

📩 Email: hello@julianneaugust.com

🌐 Website: julianneaugust.com

🎙️To celebrate my one year podcast anniversary leave a 5 star rating or written review, or send me an email to share more!

Hashtags: #FocusModesMadeSimple #DigitalWellness #OvercomeDigitalDistraction

I thought I was going in for a simple eye glass prescription update. What I got was a gentle rebuke… from my optometrist and my eyes.

In this episode, I’m sharing a fresh-from-real-life story about what happens when even the person teaching digital restraint starts slipping into too much screen time and how my blurry vision became a physical symptom of something deeper.

Here’s what I cover:

• The sneaky reason your vision might get blurry (even if your prescription hasn’t changed)
• The eye mask I wasn’t using… and the eye doctor who knew it
• Why your eyes stop blinking properly when you're on screens
• My daily (and doable) habits for reducing digital eye strain
• A reminder that caring for your eyes is about stewardship

If you’ve been brushing off the eye strain or telling yourself you'll deal with it "later," consider this your friendly nudge because when we ignore those nudges, we miss more than clear sight. We miss what God is trying to show us.

Resources & Next Steps:

Check out Episode 5 and download your FREE Guide to Grayscale with step-by-step screenshots to turn your phone into a calm, less-distracting space. 👉Guide to Grayscale

Listen to Episode 20 to find out more about digital eye strain, the 20-20-20 rule and blinking exercises.

📲 Grab Your Free Wallpapers Get your free gallery of truth-filled phone and desktop wallpapers, designed to help you pause, reset, and refocus every time you reach for your device. 👉Digital Wallpaper

Let’s Connect! Leave me a voice message with your thoughts or questions via Speakpipe on my website!

📩 Email: hello@julianneaugust.com 🌐 Website: julianneaugust.com

🎙️Would you leave a written review on Apple Podcasts or a comment on Spotify? It helps this message reach more listeners who need it! Thank you!

Awareness is good. Interrupting patterns is better. But living it? That’s where the real transformation begins.

You’ve made it to Week 4 of the Digital Habit Reset! Can we just take a second to celebrate that?

This week is the final stretch, but it’s also the beginning of a whole new way of living. You’ve started strong. You’ve pushed through the messy middle. And now, you’re ready to live what you’ve learned.

In this episode, I’m walking you through:

• The surprising truth about practice and why it’s more spiritual than you think
• How James 1:22 reminds us that hearing truth is only half the story
• What it looks like to partner with the Holy Spirit in your daily habit practice
• Why your final days in the Reset are more about integration than intensity
• How to take your routines from paper to practice (and let them become your new normal)

This episode will challenge and encourage you as you step into consistency, not perfection, but faithful, Spirit-led repetition that solidifies change.

Week 4 is where your habits grow roots. And I’ll help you stay grounded in truth, grace, and the daily rhythms that protect your peace.

If you’ve been following along, don’t skip this one, it’s the glue that helps everything stick.

And if you haven’t grabbed the guide yet? It’s not too late. Digital Habit Reset Guide 👉 julianneaugust.com/reset

Resources & Next Steps: Take the Screen Time Personality Quiz and get your 3-Day Digital Peace Plan - a free guide to help you reset your screen habits and reclaim your focus. 👉Screen Time Personality Quiz

Let’s Connect! Leave me a voice message with your thoughts or questions via Speakpipe on my website!

📩 Email: hello@julianneaugust.com 📱 Instagram: @julianne.august 📘 Facebook: Julianne August 🌐 Website: https://www.julianneaugust.com

🎙️I'd love if you would follow the podcast and leave a written review, it helps this message reach more listeners who need it!

If you’ve made it to Week 3 of the Digital Habit Reset… that’s a BIG deal.

You’ve brought awareness to your habits. You’ve started to interrupt the loops that were keeping you stuck. And now you’re entering what I call the messy middle, the place where motivation fades, and routines take over.

This week, we’re not just interrupting bad habits we’re building better ones.

In this episode, I’m walking you through:

• Why habits fall apart without routine and reward
• How your brain is wired to run on autopilot (and how to rewire it with intention)
• What Psalm 90:12 teaches us about time, wisdom, and stewardship
• How a morning routine can act as a “keystone habit” that transforms everything
• Why your brain needs micro-rewards to make habit change last

If you're tired of starting strong and falling off after a few days, this episode is for you. I’ll help you shift from relying on fleeting motivation to building rhythms and routines that anchor your day even when life gets messy.

This isn’t just behavior change. It’s stewardship. It’s forming habits that reflect who God created you to be.

And don’t forget your Week 3 bonus resource is waiting for you when you sign up for the Digital Habit Reset: 👉 julianneaugust.com/reset. This week’s gift is the Guide to Grayscale—a practical tool to help your phone become less of a temptation and more of a tool for peace.

Resources & Next Steps: Take the Screen Time Personality Quiz and get your 3-Day Digital Peace Plan - a free guide to help you reset your screen habits and reclaim your focus. 👉Screen Time Personality Quiz

Let’s Connect! Leave me a voice message with your thoughts or questions via Speakpipe on my website!

📩 Email: hello@julianneaugust.com 📱 Instagram: @julianne.august 📘 Facebook: Julianne August 🌐 Website: https://www.julianneaugust.com

🎙️I'd love if you would follow the podcast and leave a written review, it helps this message reach more listeners who need it!

Welcome to Week 2 of the Digital Habit Reset.

Knowing your screen habits is a great start. But it won’t change your life.

Last week, you saw your patterns. You named your triggers. You even faced the hard truths in your screen time report. But now it’s time to do something about it.

This week is where we break the cycle, where we stop letting our phones run our days and start building new, healthier patterns on purpose.

In this episode, I’m walking you through:

• Why you keep scrolling even when you don’t want to
• What Romans 12:2 reveals about real, lasting transformation
• The brain science behind habit change and why your brain resists it
• The habit loop that’s quietly running your life (and how to interrupt it)
• How to shift your environment so you can make better digital choices, effortlessly

Good news. Your brain can change. And so can your habits.

The habits that feel automatic today didn’t get there by accident. They were formed through repetition and that means they can be unlearned the same way. One intentional, God-led step at a time.

In this episode you’ll discover how to create friction between impulse and action, how to rewire your daily cues, and most importantly, how to invite the Holy Spirit into the moment when you’re most tempted to reach for your phone. This is where awareness becomes action.

And remember: the Digital Habit Reset Guide is your daily tool to walk this out.

Grab it now at 👉 julianneaugust.com/reset. If you are on my Digital Habit Reset email list, this week you’ll also receive your Week 2 bonus, a whole bunch of custom truth-filled phone wallpapers to help you stay focused every time you pick up your device.

Resources & Next Steps: Take the Screen Time Personality Quiz and get your 3-Day Digital Peace Plan - a free guide to help you reset your screen habits and reclaim your focus. 👉Screen Time Personality Quiz

Let’s Connect! Leave me a voice message with your thoughts or questions via Speakpipe on my website!

📩 Email: hello@julianneaugust.com 📱 Instagram: @julianne.august 📘 Facebook: Julianne August 🌐 Website: https://www.julianneaugust.com

🎙️I'd love if you would follow the podcast and leave a written review, it helps this message reach more listeners who need it!

You don’t have to stay stuck in the scroll.

Ever feel like your phone has more control over your life than you’d like to admit?

This is the kickoff episode to a powerful 4-part podcast series called The Digital Habit Reset and in today’s episode, we’re starting with Week 1: Awaken Your Awareness.

I created this Reset because I know what it feels like to love Jesus and want to live focused and free but still find yourself stuck in mindless scroll loops. That’s why we’re not just talking about change, we’re doing it, with a simple, step-by-step path to transformation -- starting today.

In this episode, I’ll guide you through:

• What the "fresh start effect" is (and why Mondays are magic)
• The verse that anchors Week 1and why honest self-examination is where real freedom begins
• Why awareness is always the first step to lasting habit change
• The neuroscience behind your screen habits and how to gently interrupt them
• How to become a detective of your own digital patterns (without shame)

Ready to reset? Get your FREE 30-Day Digital Habit Reset Guide that pairs with this 4-week podcast series and helps you build awareness, break unhealthy digital patterns, create better routines, and practice what you’re learning in real life.

Inside the Digital Habit Reset Guide, you’ll find a simple and sustainable structure for each of the 30 days: a brief reflection to renew your mind, a daily Scripture moment, a thought-provoking question, and one small, doable habit to practice. Every piece is designed to help you slow down, reflect honestly, and take intentional steps toward lasting habit change. Whether you're just becoming aware of your screen habits or already making shifts, the guide meets you right where you are and walks with you toward greater clarity, focus, and freedom.

👉 Go to julianneaugust.com/reset and download your free 30-Day Digital Habit Reset Guide today!

Don’t wait for the perfect moment. Let today be your fresh start.

Resources & Next Steps: Take the Screen Time Personality Quiz and get your 3-Day Digital Peace Plan - a free guide to help you reset your screen habits and reclaim your focus. 👉Screen Time Personality Quiz

Let’s Connect! Leave me a voice message with your thoughts or questions via Speakpipe on my website!

📩 Email: hello@julianneaugust.com 📱 Instagram: @julianne.august 📘 Facebook: Julianne August 🌐 Website: https://www.julianneaugust.com

🎙️I'd love if you would follow the podcast and leave a written review, it helps this message reach more listeners who need it!

This episode is your fresh start! I'm sharing about the beginning of a brand new podcast series and your personal Digital Habit Reset.

As we close out the year and step into 2026, I'm inviting you to pause, reflect, and reset. This isn’t about chasing quick wins or setting surface-level goals, it’s about getting honest about what’s been shaping your days, what’s been pulling on your attention, and what kind of habits will support the life you actually want to live. Before we dive into routines or resolutions, we need to name what needs to shift and prepare our hearts for a fresh start.

In this episode, I’m sharing how digital distraction shapes your daily life, and why resetting your digital habits is the most powerful step you can take before diving into any new goals or routines.

⚡️This is the kickoff to something I’ve created just for you: The Digital Habit Reset — A 30-day faith-based reset for renewing your mind, reshaping your habits, and recentering your heart.

Whether you feel tethered to your phone, burned out from constant scrolling, or just tired of being pulled in every direction… this is for you.

🎧 Listen in and get ready for:

• A hopeful, grace-filled way to end your year
• A sneak peek into our 4-week January podcast series
• The truth about why January really matters (hint: your brain is wired for fresh starts!)
• Why your attention is the foundation for lasting habit change
• The #1 reason digital habits must be your starting point

Inside the 30-Day Reset Guide, you’ll find mind-renewing reflections, Scripture, and one small, doable practice a day. The guide is a daily companion to help you prepare your heart and habits for a new year of transformation.

👉 Be sure to get the Digital Habit Reset Guide — download it now and start the journey today! https://www.julianneaugust.com/reset

Here are the five questions to reflect on and ask yourself before you begin:

1. What did my screen time cost me this year?
2. Where did digital distraction steal moments I wanted to be present?
3. How often did I turn to my phone (or my screen of choice) when I actually needed rest, prayer, or connection?
4. What did I miss because I was scrolling? (On my phone, laptop, tablet, or Netflix)
5. What habits carried me closer to God… and which ones carried me away?

Resources & Next Steps: Take the Screen Time Personality Quiz and get your 3-Day Digital Peace Plan - a free guide to help you reset your screen habits and reclaim your focus. 👉Screen Time Personality Quiz

Let’s Connect! Leave me a voice message with your thoughts or questions via Speakpipe on my website!

📩 Email: hello@julianneaugust.com 📱 Instagram: @julianne.august 📘 Facebook: Julianne August 🌐 Website: https://www.julianneaugust.com

🎙️I'd love if you would follow the podcast and leave a written review, it helps this message reach more listeners who need it!