[🚨FIRST STEP] Introduce Yourself and Meet the Community

[Vikki_Bristlin-Lax]

Hello Gems! My name is Vikki and I reside in Rhode Island and, I work from home. I am using Opal to stay on task during work hours in hopes that I will complete my work during work hours.
I hope that will lead to better work-life balance.

I am looking forward to interacting with my fellow Gems!

[kenneth]

Rachel, welcome! We’re rooting for you. Please share your songs when you can!

[kenneth]

Vikki, it’s great to meet you! Hoping the work hours are more focused and productive since you started with Opal. Can’t wait to have your feedback.

[Tomatobloodstone9902]

Hello

First time user.
Username: Tomatobloodstone9902
Testing out new apps and games.

[kenneth]

Welcome! happy to have you here

[Eleana]

Hi everyone! New here

Pro: I have just graduated from a business school and I am currently working as a freelance for 1 year, as for personal reasons I want to be have a very flexible calendar! I’m working for early stage startups on different fields (marketing, growth, product…) or helping SMB to digitize their business. I have worked in a community-driven startup before so I’m happy to be part of a new community now

Work Setup : I work from coworking spaces mostly. I can also meet clients in-person when needed.
I Use Opal to: reduce my screentime, avoid getting distracted or just taking my phone because I have nothing to do so I automatically have a look at my notifications. I have tried a lot of things to reduce it (Apple screen limits, new concentration mode - feature that I find very nice btw, other apps to limit the screen time…)
My Schedules: working 4 days a week, office hours. Now that I am with Opal I’m blocking social media on office hours. Home hours are the most difficult to stay away from phone sollicitations, such as sleep timings.

Dreams: Not being too black & white on screen usage. Understanding how to manage it well for them to be powerful to you.

Opal: I discovered Opal over a conversation. I was sceptical about another app that would help me to manage my screentime. But for the very few days I’ve been using it, I might admit I’m happy to have tested it, it has already helped me a lot!

[kenneth]

Welcome here Eleana and thank you for sharing!

[Doug_Turner]

Hey all, I’m Doug

Pro: I’m a Video Producer for a start-up called CraftDocs. I’m also a documentary film-maker with a focus on environmental storytelling.

Work Setup: I work between a studio in Edinburgh and our HQ in Budapest
I use Opal to: make sure my ADHD doesn’t get the better of me.
My Schedules: Between being a new dad to a 5 month old, I’m online 7am-3pm GMT
Dreams: Good tech that helps people experience this world better
Opal: Stumbled across it while scrolling social-media after having a chat with my partner about how we could focus better on the quiet time we have at home together.

Looks like an amazing team at Opal keep it up!

[kenneth]

welcome here Doug! and thank you for already contributing with two great posts - I’m also a dad of a 2 year old (and soon to be a second one), and it’s a struggle to find balance. Looking forward to exchanging here about what works/doesn’t work.

[Doug_Turner]

Thanks Kenneth, really enjoying what you guys are making. So far it’s that perfect little block when I feel the urge to check something online, let’s me get on with work and get home quickly. Good luck with number 2!

[Elliebellie1983]

Pro: Before Opal, I trained as a professional dancer & taught dance for 16+ years. In the past few years I moved towards a career in social media and entrepreneurship; now I’m a craft distillery owner and freelance content creator.

• Work setup: working from home most of the time until my distillery business is open and producing. Then 30/70 split.
• I use Opal too: avoid distracting apps when I’m trying to work. I have adhd so I’m hoping this will help.
• My Schedules: I’m an entrepreneur close to opening day: right now I just work and sleep ideally I’d like to work office/content mon-sat 10-2, distillery production/front of house mon-sat 3-10 and Sundays off. When I can hire people I can cut my hours
• Dreams: I want to give people a safe welcoming place to hang out and learn how to live a happy healthy life where alcohol is a treat not a necessity. I also want to empower locals to train in a new field and get into entrepreneurship themselves.
• Opal: I saw Opal on an IG ad

[denharsh]

Hi everyone,
This is Harsh from Dubai , a productivity geek. I like to discover productivity apps that help me manage my time effectively, so that I could focus on important aspects of life such as learning, family and new experiences.

• Pro: I started my journey with ShoutMeLoud back in 2008, and for many years it was the biggest blog in my niche . It helped numerous individuals around the globe to become their own boss with the help of blogging. In 2016, I added another project called “CoinSutra” focusing on Blockchain and Fin-tech. Both of them are still going strong. I have a very lean structure and I’m firm believer of “Quality over quantity”.
• Work setup: I work from Home, and often work from cafes. I spend around 6-8 hours/day creating new content, investing, and learning new adventures on the internet.
• I use Opal to: 3 years back I was speaking on a Radio show where I introduced a concept called “Nomo Phobia”, and I understand the impact of high mobile phone usage. Like it or not, phones are addictive (Apps are designed by some of the smartest people on this planet for your attention), and it is not going to slow down. Opal sounds like an app I have been looking forward to. As much as I wish to avoid using my phone based on my will-power, it often does not work. Opal seems like a perfect solution for someone like me, who enjoys tinkering with various app but at the same time understand the damage it can cause to your overall health.
• My Schedules: I’m my own boss, so everyday is weekday and everyday is weekend. I usually work from 10-2 PM, and then from 7-9PM. I use Opal to block all the apps @ my work time and allows only whitelisted apps.
• Dreams: I wish to live a peaceful life, where I add value to the people’s lives with my learnings. I wish to help people with education because education is one thing that could truly help increase awareness, and one educated child could change the lives of 100 families.
• Opal: From Twitter reply.

[Marjolaine]

Hi there!
I’m Marjolaine, joining Opal as Creative Partnerships Manager

More about me:

• Pro: Before Opal, for more than two years I helped build Sleeq, the leading French agency for marketing on TikTok. I have a creative, commercial and analytical mind, and I love the world of communication.
  I am so excited to be joining Opal and I feel like we are going to do great things together!
• Work setup: hybrid from remote and in-office
• I use Opal to: better focus during my work
• My Schedules: Work Monday-Friday 9am-6pm, blocking social media and news.
• Dreams: I want to help people reconnect with life and be passionate about something that brings them joy!
• Opal: I discovered Opal when searching for a new professional adventure!

[mindovermarco]

Hello, it’s Marco! I’m very into productivity apps, and am generally interested in habits, the art of connection, and TV/media.

• Pro: I work as an operations specialist at a biotech startup, based in the Boston, MA area.
• Work setup: 4 days at the office, 1 day wfh
• I use Opal to: reduce screentime, especially during 9-5 working hours and when I should be sleeping!
• My Schedules: Different schedules for early morning, morning, afternoon, and evenings (different strictness to give me some leeway with certain apps).
• Dreams: I want to achieve greater peace internally, and become someone who can bring people together and foster connection externally.
• Opal: I think it was an IG ad early on, also recall the very cute Opal mascot!

[pmartin3025]

Hello to all!
I’m Pedro from Puerto Rico, I just started last night using Opal. Honestly speaking… or writing, to see what all the fuss is about.

[Andrew_Hoffman]

Greetings! I’m Andrew Hoffman,

I’ve been on a journey to transform mine and my family’s devices, from devices that can do everything, into devices that can only do certain things.

I got inspired to do this after remembering some futuristic fantasy settings of connected utopias, where technology empowered those future civilizations to do great things.

When remembering these depictions of futuristic civilizations, they never showed these devices being abused for entertainment purposes. You never saw the well adjusted individuals in these fantasies abusing their worn technologies for entertainment. They weren’t doom scrolling social media. They weren’t watching porn. They weren’t chain watching YouTube videos. They weren’t playing videogames. They weren’t swiping dating profiles. They weren’t chatting discord conversations. They weren’t Being Correct ™ in a reddit thread.

Futuristic depictions of worn personal technology always showed the best of us. Those smart devices were tools that helped them remove friction from the tasks, and they weren’t always in use, or in hand, or being stared at. And that’s what I want for me and my family.

I think part of those fantasy depictions are naive in that they don’t take into account the human element, or that they are unrealistic when it comes to human willpower. If there were an app that could magically inject drugs into your system, these fantasy depictions of wearable technology wouldn’t depict those future humans as having drug addicts abusing their smart devices to get high. However, if there were an app in the appstores that could magically inject any drug into your system, that would be an unmitigated disaster on a global scale.

I want to come closer to the futuristic smart device fantasies, where our smart devices empower me and my family, instead of sapping away our potential.
But to do that, I have to embrace the human element. I have to do away with the naive idea that willpower and determination is sufficient for overcoming anxiety induced compulsive escapism.

And as for how Opal fits into this for me, what a smartphone should and shouldn’t be.
I’m not totally sure if Opal is capable of enabling what I hope it can, but that’s why I signed up to this community, to ask questions and make suggestions.

[ScarletAviator]

• Pro: I am a TAC engineer for a well known cybersecurity vendor. I started in a warehouse building cell tower racks, then moved on to telecom for a couple of years before obtaining a couple of industry carts and then moving into the cybersecurity realm.
• Work setup: 100% Remote with two monitors and my laptop.
• I use Opal to: Limit my social media distractions and doom scrolling while working or studying. I also plan on utilizing it limit my time on my phone while spending time with the people I love.
• My Schedules: Work Monday-Friday 10 AM to 7 PM to block social media.
• Dreams: I am currently training/studying to become an airline pilot and need a way to remove my phone as a distraction.
• Opal: I received multiple ads on Instagram for Opal and finally caved when I admitted to myself that the built in iPhone app timers were not enough.

[Adam_Park]

Hello - I’m Adam

Pro: I’m an associate at defy.vc, where I am just starting after graduating from college.

Work Setup: I go into the office 3x a week where I have a standard set-up. Right now I’m at my apartment which I just moved into today - sitting on a stool the previous tenant left behind with my computer on top of a stack of books.

I use Opal to: Stay on track, ensure that I can’t just quickly override my own screen time limits - avoiding distraction and bad habits really.

My Schedules: I have it set up currently from 8:30pm to 5pm every day.

Dreams: I want to be able to learn a lot and have control over my interests, and in general live a self-defined life. I want to be able to spend a lot of time playing frisbee and spending time with friends and family.

Opal: I think I saw an instagram advertisement.

[Steven_B]

Hi all,

My name is Steve:

• Pro: I’m a test engineer for a technology consulting company.
• Work setup: I’m fully remote.
• I use Opal to: avoid districtations, mainly from social media.
• My Schedules: work M-F 9-5
• Dreams: I want to start my entrepreneurial journey.
• Opal: Funny enough, I found Opal in an instagram ad.

[Josh_Anatta]

Hi all,

My name is Josh.

Pro: I am a systems engineer by trade for a technology consulting firm out of the United States. I run a team of other technical professionals where we provide full stack solutions across a wide array of industries.

Work Setup: I have been working fully remote since 2015 from my home in New England/Boston area. I consider myself a remote work veteran having been an early adopter of this work lifestyle which I feel has returned a lot of autonomy to many knowledge workers.

I use Opal to: Destroy my social media addiction full stop. I had a problem with it. A massive one actually. Screentime of over 10 hours a day. I signed up for the app in 2023 and watched as my Screentime began to diminish over the weeks. This led me to realize that social media needed me more than I needed social media. I have fully deleted my Facebook that I had since 2007 as of July of 2023. I credit Opal to helping me accomplish this and will be deleting more social accounts till I am at 0. I believe that Social Media is a threat to our civilization in terms of the sunk costs it has created + the rapid spread of misinformation. EVERYONE SHOULD BE USING OPAL haha.

My Schedules: I run multiple block schedules across my day targeting social media apps and other time sucking applications. I deploy a Deep Focus session from 6am to 9am(wake up time/morning routine), multiple work focus sessions from 9:30am to 5:00pm, and another Deep Focus session that starts from 9pm into the next day ending at 6am.

Dreams: I am in the process of completing the 7 Summits which is the completion of climbing each of the highest mountain peaks on each continent. Still have 3 to go! Professionally, I am weighing options of starting my own consulting company with a couple friends in my field.

Opal : Unironically I found Opal via Instagram. I gave it a shot for a day and signed up for the entire year. It has changed my life.