The Day I Decorated My Phone and Accidentally Redesigned My Life

How tiny, beautiful things quietly reminded me who I was becoming.

There are days when life feels repetitive.

I catch myself thinking;

Ugh. Same routine. Same day. How do I make today feel alive again?

Everything around me suddenly feels ordinary.

Then I looked at my phone.

The wallpaper was bland. The lockscreen looked uninspired.

And I thought—

Why do I keep waiting to feel inspired when I can create little reminders for myself?

So I opened my phone settings.

I changed the colors.

Moved icons around.

Added little moons, coffee mugs, books, notebooks—and a quiet mantra:

Write small. Publish often.
Care deeply. Rest deliberately.

I thought I was decorating a screen.

But somewhere in the process…

I realized I was trying to remember myself.

During long, sometimes exhausting duty hours, I have a few ways to make ordinary days feel lighter.

Sometimes I play live music.

Sometimes hip-hop.

Sometimes loud enough to feel the rhythm in my bones.

And yes, I dance.

Even though I joke that both of my feet are left ones.

We even have a saying for that.

But honestly?

I don’t care.

I just want to enjoy life in between routines.

Funny enough, my colleagues end up dancing, too.

We laugh.

And suddenly the day feels different.

Remembering that made me think:

Maybe colors and quotes work the same way.

Maybe changing my wallpaper wasn’t shallow at all.

Maybe it was simply another way of adding spice to an ordinary day.

Slowly, my phone started wearing a different kind of outfit.

Softer.

Warmer.

More intentional.

And surprisingly…

I felt different, too.

I started opening my phone and seeing reminders instead of noise.

Not to hustle.

Not to become productive overnight.

Just small invitations:

Create.

Rest.

Begin again.

And I wondered,

where had this part of me gone?

Maybe nowhere.

Maybe she was simply waiting for a little beauty to wake her up.

Tomorrow and the days after will probably still look ordinary.

Duty.

Tasks.

Responsibilities.

Life.

But maybe now…

I’ll notice beauty a little faster.

And maybe that’s enough.

If your lockscreen reflected the life you want to build, what would it look like?

Josh After Hours Note 🌙
Tiny tweaks. Big becoming.
 — Josh

This essay was first published on Medium and has been thoughtfully republished here as part of the official Josh After Hours collection.
Originally published on Medium.