The Trend That Might Actually Define 2026: Choosing to Disconnect
- Feb 10
- 2 min read
By Lauren Spice
Morgan Insurance Brokers
If you’d told me a year ago that the “next big cultural shift” would be people choosing to step back from technology instead of racing toward more of it, I would’ve laughed. I work in insurance, an industry that practically worships efficiency, and yet here I am, writing this after getting rid of my smartphone and realising how much calmer my brain feels.
I’m not saying everyone’s about to toss their phones in the bin, but there’s something happening quietly in the background. People are tired. Not just “busy tired”, properly exhausted by the feeling that we’re supposed to be available, visible, responsive, and performing from the moment we wake up to the moment we go to bed.
Working at Morgan Insurance Brokers, I deal with pressure constantly, deadlines, regulations, client expectations, all the usual stuff. But the real stress isn’t always the work itself. It’s the noise around it. Messages 24/7, social media, the pressure to keep up with whatever conversation is blowing up that day. Even when I wasn’t working, I felt like my brain was still racing. In the bath, on the toilet, in the middle of the night.
Stepping away from my smartphone made me realise that half the stress I carried wasn’t mine, it was the world’s, dumped on me through a screen.
And I’m not alone. Loads of people are starting to question whether being plugged in all the time actually makes life better.
Choosing to ditch my smartphone didn’t suddenly turn me into a tech skeptic. I still rely on plenty of digital tools for work. What’s changing is the expectation that we’re supposed to be available every second of every day.
By 2026, I think we’ll see not just new technologies, but new attitudes. Apps that don’t scream for your attention every five minutes, workplaces that encourage a work life balance with work programs that stay on the work computer and don’t need to be on your personal phone, and a general push toward using tech with intention rather than habit.
I hit a point where I felt squeezed from all sides, work, social life, everyone wanting something instantly. The phone wasn’t helping anymore. It felt like carrying around a little panic machine.
Once I gave it up, everything slowed down enough for me to actually hear myself think. I stopped doomscrolling. I stopped comparing my life to strangers. I was able to focus at work without my thoughts getting overwhelmed by hundreds of notifications.
My bet for 2026 is the biggest trend won’t be some wild new technology. It’ll be people choosing a healthier pace. Being selective about what gets their attention. Setting boundaries without apologising for them.
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