Let’s be honest here, I never thought in my lifetime we would be in this situation. Forced to stay home to keep ourselves and the entire world safe and healthy. You would think with all of this free time that we would become the most productive we’ve ever been, but it sometimes feels like the exact opposite.
I’ve seen so many memes floating around saying “I guess I lied to myself all those years when I said I would do X,Y,Z when I had the time”. I’ve seen more negative comments and responses out of fear this past month than ever before. And everyone is hyper aware of the escalated levels of anxiety and depression due to self isolation.
It’s about time we take a much needed POSITIVE spin on our situation and take this extra time to invest in ourselves and those we care the most about! Here are 8 ways we can take the time to make the best out of our situations.
1. Self Care
Now more than ever we need to make sure we are taking time to relax, unwind, and treat ourselves a little. Whatever self care looks like to you – taking a bubble bath, painting your nails, a nice hot shower, exfoliating, a face mask, or just a glass of wine – take at least a few hours once a week to pamper yourself!
The best part, most of these activities have residual effect. Painting your nails one night lasts for a week or two, so every time you see your nails it will bring you a little bit of joy!
2. Get Active
Life can get super stressful, and one of the best ways to combat that is by being active. Even with gyms being closed there are tons of ways to stay active! Go for a run or walk outside, use the stairs in your house as a stairstepper, take the dogs for a walk. YouTube has a ton of free workout classes from yoga to HITT, pilates to zumba.
You don’t have to have any equipment (but I mean if you do that makes it way easier!) to get a good sweat in at home! I’ll link some of the smaller home workout items that we have though so you have options!
3. Spend Quality Time With Loved Ones
If I had to pick the most important, this would be it. Family and friends are what make life sweeter. It’s definitely taking a toll on me that we aren’t able to be social, but modern technology makes it so easy to connect with people from afar! If you are quarantined with someone, take a little time each day to make them feel special and have a good conversation – let them know you are there for them no matter what.
Another fun idea is to pick a new friend or family member each day to call. It could be just to checkup on them, ask if they need anything or how their day is going. You could stop by an elderly neighbor’s house and see if they need anything from the store. Take a little time out of your free time to dedicate to someone else. Trust me, it will feel amazing.
4. Read More
Reading is a lost art. I used to LOVE reading when I was younger, and honestly high school ruined it for me. Anyone else out there relate? I feel like I’ve been taking up a lot of my time with a screen – tv, movies, Netflix, and my iPhone reminds me every Sunday that my screen time is eternally increasing.
Taking an hour a day to read will not only give your eyes a rest, but that book could do so much more! It could teach you something new, give life changing advice, take you to a faraway place (or just outside of the house).
5. Grow Your Faith
Religion is something that has helped to keep me positive when life gets tough. Leaning in on the only One who has control, especially right now, is a level of comfort that I can’t even explain.
If you are religious, now is the best time to take a few moments a day to strengthen your bond with the Lord. Read your Bible, do a devotional, watch an online sermon, connect with a small group through Zoom or FaceTime. If you feel completely out of control and desperately need help, lean in on the Lord. He is always there to help.
6. Learn A New Language
Ok, you aren’t going to learn a new language in a month, but the biggest part is starting! There are a ton of apps I recommend to help you with your language skills, regardless of your level!
DuoLingo is my favorite. I used this all through college, while I studied abroad in Spain, and after! It goes lesson by lesson from words, phrases, conjugations, and includes reading, writing, and speaking!
Other good apps are Bussu and Babbel.
7. Start A New Hobby
Ever wanted to learn how to cook but never had the time? Always wanted to sew or take up painting? Maybe create some artwork for the house. Literally you have no better time than now!
The Food Network has never looked so appealing! We are going to try HelloFresh so that the food and recipes are delivered straight to our door and we can keep the recipes to use for another day.
Again, YouTube is going to be your best friend for tutorials. Whatever you want to take up, YouTube will have a few hundred (thousand??) people who have done it before and can show you the ropes!
8. Organize & Tidy
A clean house is a happy house! Mess and cutter have been proven to increase anxiety, so if you take the time to tidy up your house not only are you taking up a little time and being active, you will LOVE looking at a clean home.
Take a look at your closet, bathroom storage, kitchen, I bet at least one of those areas could use a good purge and facelift! Reorganizing and purging will make you feel so good once it’s complete, plus you’ll know where everything is at and your home will smell fresh and clean!
9. Make Your Dreams Become A Reality
What’s that one thing you’ve always wanted to do? To become? To make? Now is the time to make those dreams a reality. Invest time in yourself by investing time into your dreams. Chase after them and kickstart your motivation to having your wildest dreams come true.
What all are you doing to invest in yourself right now?
XOXO,
Taylor Emery