Content Creator Alena Yuan Tracks Her Screen Time For 1 Week

In Chronically Online, Elite Daily asks people to get real about their phone habits by tracking their screen time over seven days. This week, content creator and recent college grad Alena Yuan shares the apps she used the most while attending VidCon 2025 and during her busy week after.

The biggest celebration for all things content creation happens each year at VidCon in Anaheim, California. The three-day convention in SoCal gives fans a chance to meet some of the biggest influencers across YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, and more. For featured creators, like Alena Yuan (@alenayuann), it can also be a great motivator to keep going.

The 21-year-old influencer tells Elite Daily, “If VidCon taught me one thing, it’s that I need to hurry up and post my first YouTube video.” Getting fans to like, share, and subscribe shouldn’t be too hard for Yuan, though. The recent University of California, Los Angeles grad admits she “only started posting on Instagram a few months ago,” and has already amassed over 353,000 followers. On TikTok, she’s got even more fans — over 565,000, in fact — with more than 10 million views on her most viral video, the “Broke Girl Glow Up Guide.”

As a self-described “yapper,” Yuan likes to keep it real with her outfit inspos and makeup tips. So, below, she couldn’t wait to take Elite Daily along and dish on her phone habits during an extra busy week of VidCon, work, and packing up post-graduation.

Occupation: Content creator

Age: 21

Location: Los Angeles, California

Weekly Average (June 19-25): 8 hours, 14 minutes

Day 1: Meta’s Night Out At Disneyland

After I made lunch (aka avocado toast because that’s the only thing I can cook), I drove down to Disneyland from LA for a Meta Night Out creator event. I was blasting Hannah Montana, Aespa, old BTS songs, and Stephanie Soo’s podcast, Rotten Mango, to distract myself from getting road rage. It wasn’t a good idea, though, because I’m low-key directionally challenged and kept missing my exit.

At Disneyland, I had so much freaking fun hanging out with other creators, the Meta team, and eating some bomb Disneyland popcorn. (Yes, I ate an entire bucket by myself.) I also got a pair of Ray-Ban Meta glasses, and I was geeking! I’m so excited to test new types of content featuring my glasses. (Imagine playing Roblox with these on.)

Most Used Apps: Spotify, Instagram, Google Maps

Screen Time: 6 hours, 21 Minutes

Day 2: Film Day And Dinner With Friends

I woke up early to grab bagels with my friends and film some extra videos because I knew the next few days would be chaotic at VidCon. Also, why are the bagels in LA $20? I now understand why my mom would always say there’s food at home.

After breakfast, I shot a brand deal for Coach along with a few other videos, and my room looked like a war zone when I was done. Typically, I spend a few hours scrolling on Pinterest or Xiaohongshu for some ideas before filming to create a little vision board/script for my videos.

I worked up an appetite after editing all day on CapCut, so my friends and I went down to Koreatown to eat some bomb food. Then we went to a cute little photo booth nearby and I ended my day off playing Episode.

Most Used Apps: TikTok, CapCut, Episode, Pinterest

Screen Time: 12 hours, 15 minutes

Day 3: VidCon

In the morning, I headed down to Anaheim to grab pho and matcha with my friend — and again, the drive was so bad. LA traffic, I actually have beef with you. But after a yummy meal, I went to VidCon, and oh my literal gatos, this was a dream come true. Some kids grew up watching cable, but girl, me? I grew up on YouTube.

Being at VidCon gave me the biggest impostor syndrome because I was surrounded by so many inspiring creatives. I’m grateful, though, that I got to meet so many supporters and friends. I also had to go around collecting free stuff. When I got home, I played a little Minecraft with my roommates before calling it a night.

Most Used Apps: Spotify, Instagram, Google Maps

Screen Time: 3 hours, 20 minutes

Day 4: Rot Day With Arts And Crafts

After a hectic weekend, I just needed some real rot time. I edited a quick video in the morning, posted it, and spent the rest of the day snacking on Chester’s Hot Fries — the best chips ever — while watching Love Island.

After becoming a content creator, I’ve noticed that it’s harder to draw the line between scrolling and “research,” so I try to turn off my brain when I’m “rotting” and only look for content inspo when I’m working. But I truly love making videos so much that I think even when I tell myself I’m relaxing, I’m still subconsciously looking for new ideas.

At night, my roomies and I made magnets out of polymer clay to put on our fridge — #girlhood. I also have to end my night with a game, so we played PUBG. I’m actually so bad at PUBG. Like, I do not contribute at all. But it’s fine, I’m just the personality teammate. *Me coping*

Most Used Apps: Hulu, Instagram, TikTok, PUBG

Screen Time: 10 hours, 13 minutes

Day 5: Touching Grass With A Hollywood Hike

I needed to go outside and touch grass after rotting a little too hard the day before. After I edited a video and posted it, my friend and I went to Griffith Park in LA for a little hike. Pro tip: Never eat five-day-old leftovers. Don’t ask, I’ll get to it in a second.

When I’m with my friends, I rarely check my phone because we just yap so much. My friend and I hiked around 2 miles to the top of the Griffith, where you could see the Hollywood sign. But right after taking a picture, my stomach started churning and I had to run to the nearest bathroom. To keep things short, I might be the first person to have this unique experience at Griffith Park, and I spent like an hour on Reddit trying to figure out how to cure myself. But after that, we went to get pho and froyo. (I just love eating.) It was the perfect post-hike treat.

Most Used Apps: CapCut, Reddit, Yelp

Screen Time: 3 hours, 41 minutes

Day 6: Graduation Photos And A Call With My Manager

I took graduation photos with my best friends, and it made me so emo. I can’t believe I’m at the end of my undergrad college experience. A lot of people were surprised to know that I’m in college since I don’t really mention it, but I’m so grateful for UCLA and all the silly little friends I’ve made along the way.

After shooting, I had a call with my manager to discuss some potential brand deals from places like JCPenney and H&M, and talk about my current projects and calendar. I still can’t believe that social media has so many amazing opportunities like this. Someone pinch me. And duh, I ended my night playing Episode.

Most Used Apps: Episode, Google Meet, Trello

Screen Time: 8 hours, 40 minutes

Day 7: Packing Up To Go Home

Honestly, I spent the entire day packing up my trinkets and clothes because I’m going home to the Bay Area for the summer. I just relaxed and packed while FaceTiming my friends and yapping for hours.

I also started sobbing with my roommates because we’re moving out — even though we’re going to see each other in, like, two months. At night, my friends and I went to a Burmese restaurant near us. When I got home, I did a face mask from Medicube while watching One Piece. But before bed, I did some work so I could have videos ready for the rest of the week.

Most Used Apps: FaceTime, Crunchyroll, CapCut

Screen Time: 13 hours, 10 Minutes

Final Thoughts: I Need To Cut The Doomscrolling

This experience truly opened my eyes and made me realize I’m actually chronically online. I spend so much time on my phone that you could say I’m dating it. Even at VidCon, instead of just asking someone for directional help, I pulled out my phone to use Google Maps.

I’ve probably missed so many opportunities to make new friends because of my phone. However, as much as I’d like to be someone who has a really low screen time, I’m reliant on it for my school, career, and how I stay informed about the world. I also have FOMO and don’t want to miss out on new trends.

But I can definitely doomscroll less and figure out a better balance. So, maybe instead of writing out video scripts on my phone, I can write it out on paper. It’ll stimulate my brain more, too. And I should probably stop playing so much Episode.

This as-told-to has been condensed and edited for clarity.