How many times a day do you check?

How many times do you check your messages? 10 times a day? 50? As part of my work on BrightFeed, I've interviewed a lot of busy professionals. One founder I talked to figured he checked his messages about fifteen times a day. Then he showed me an app on his phone that had been counting the real number: 106 times in the previous 24 hours.

For others of us, it's less frequent, but the urge to check is nearly always there. A few minutes between calls? Check email. A lull in conversation? Look at the messaging app. You're on vacation and have some downtime? Check the phone.

It looks like a bad habit, but there is a completely rational reason for it. Any one check is typically low value, but if the wrong message is missed or not acknowledged quickly enough, that can have real consequences: a missed deal, a missed deadline or a missed connection with someone who matters.

That can lead to a low-grade anxiety that isn't over at the end of the workday. It can go into the evening, spill into weekends or even vacation.

You might be the type of person who rarely misses something, so that's not a problem, but the ongoing cost to ensure that's true is a problem itself. It's a vigilance tax that doesn't stop.

I don't think the issue is willpower or discipline. Not everyone can throw out their calendar or be slow to respond to messages. It's just not an option. Instead, it's that we haven't had a better alternative.

Is there another way? I think so. In 2026 we have the technology. We should have systems that act like information stewards, telling us when something actually needs our attention so we don't need to be vigilant and can let go and enjoy our vacations.