One after another, countries are going under lockdown mode. We need to arrest the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. Whether you long it or not, you cannot do much about it. Believe me, the lockdown is a blessing in disguise. You can do a lot of unfinished things that you might not have thought of earlier. So, stop whining and griping. Come, let us think about how to spend your time effectively during the lockdown days. Weeks into lockdown, you can try these things:
Family Time
This is the quality time that you can spend with your children, spouse, and parents. Because of your busy life, they might have been missing your intimacy for a long time. Spend time playing with your children. Allay their fear and worries if any. Be their friend. Speak to your spouse. The best thing to show love to your parents and emphasize that you care for them is to speak with them for some time.
Read
One of the best things that you can do during a lockdown is to invest in yourself. Reading good books is one best thing that you can do to invest in yourself. You don’t have to step outside to buy a physical copy. Soft copies of your favorite books are available on Google Playbooks or Amazon. Both of them provide a lot of books for free as well. (There may be other sites as well giving out free e-books during the shutdown. Google it out.) You can read the e-books on your phone, tablet, or laptop. Install the Playbook or Kindle app from Playstore. Who knows if reading becomes a regular habit hereafter!
Meanwhile, children have FREE access to listen to storybooks at Audible. This is valid until the school reopens after the shutdown. Use this period to their advantage. Instill the habit of book reading in them as well.
Research
You have ample time to sit back, think, and research on the topic of your interest that you missed doing so all this time. As an investor, I would be digging deep to find good companies to invest in. I’ll read their annual reports to have a better understanding of their businesses. Everyone’s subject of interest differs. Choose yours.
Write
Another best thing that you can do to improve yourself is to write down your thoughts. It helps you to construct simple sentences that others find easy to read and understand. You start writing sentences from others’ perspectives. You will start to think about how to present things clearly. As a result, writing improves your language and clarity of thoughts. It is easy to start a blog these days for FREE on Blogger as well as WordPress. Two birds in one shot; you start writing as well as learn how to blog.
Learn
So you have tried and learned how to blog as I said above. Not only that, but you can also learn a host of new things and skills or even earn a certificate to add to your feather. Coursera is a good place, to begin with. Search for free courses on their site. Skillshare and Udemy are other places to look for.
Update
During this lockdown, you can update yourself in your field of expertise. These include the latest tools, technology, techniques, trends, and information. You don’t have to go anywhere. Google is your god. Only you need the Will to keep you sharp and updated.
Rejuvenate
The very best thing that you can do to your family as well as yourself is to keep yourself healthy. In your busy lifestyle all these days, you might not have had adequate sleep all these days. Have some good nights’ sleep of eight hours from ten to six. Get a good massage done by any of your family members. Try to build up immunity. Have some good food daily that includes fruits and vegetables rich in vitamin C and iron. These measures should ensure that you come out rejuvenated at the end of the lockdown period.
Clear Backlogs
Are you telecommuting during the lockdown? You can then access your backlog works lying on the server. This is the right time to clear off all those backlogs at ease, without any stress. Use it. Relax!
Finish Unfinished Tasks
Back at home, often we postpone some tasks to tomorrow. Tomorrow never dies. This is the ideal time to finish such unfinished tasks at home. It could be a patchwork, maintenance work, mowing, or cleaning. Look out which one you have postponed all this time.
Pursue Hobbies
This lockdown is the time to think about hobbies. It kills two birds with one stone in a hobby like a backyard vegetable garden. You have a hobby that pays. Think of what interests you, your passion, and start immediately. Voila! It is also a stress reliever.
Socialize Virtually
You have ample time now. Your conversations do not have to be short and formal. This is the ideal time to search and get in touch with those long-forgotten ones. Friends, relatives, schoolmates, collegemates or past neighbors. Whom you have lost in touch for months or years together. You can either phone them or talk over a video call on WhatsApp, Google Duo, Facebook Messenger, or Skype. For a larger crowd, you can hold a meeting together on Skype or Hangouts. (Techies have pointed out a lot of security lapses with Zoom. So, I wouldn’t suggest that for the time being.)
Furthermore, you could write a long e-mail or snail mail taking up enough time to think. You have umpteen options to renew the long-forgotten relationships. All you need is the Will.
Watch Leftout Movies
I mark some interesting long movies to watch later at leisure. But, I forget them in due course. So might be you. This is the time to watch such movies. The movies that were successful or those which may have won many accolades. Netflix, Hotstar, Amazon Prime, or even YouTube – you have a host of choices to look for.
Bottom line
Unless there are no new infections, the governments will be in no hurry to lift the lockdown. Thus, we are completely unaware of how long the lockdown is going to be, whether weeks long or even months! I have been working from home for a long time and retired early at 42. So it won’t be any difference confining to home in the present lockdown.
And for you, it all depends on how useful you turn the present lockdown to your advantage. You do not have to get bored. You do not have to tie yourself in front of the TV or phone if you were to try all the aforesaid ideas.
Isn’t it a boon? How are you going to be productive? How are you going to spend your time effectively? Do you have anything to add?
All your guidance and statements true.
Very nice tips .
Keep going.
All the Best and my wishes.