You example of people going into bars and not becoming alcoholics isn't applicable because they aren't addicts... There's usually an underlying cause of addicti

You example of people going into bars and not becoming alcoholics isn't applicable because they aren't addicts... There's usually an underlying cause of addiction. But it doesn't have to be boredom like in OP's case. The steps you talk about taking towards abstinence are usually to reinforce different habits (which is done in addition to addressing the underlying cause). I do see the point you're making. I think addiction to your phone is a little unique. The behavior is so reinforced that it becomes second nature. Whereas, for example, picking up drugs is a much more deliberate/infrequent effort relative to pulling your phone out of your pocket. Which is probably why the conditioning of other habits is so important in that case. You have to deliberately rewire those deeply ingrained neural pathways.