29 Productive Things to do in your Free Time

Productive Things to do in Uncertain Times

How can we be productive when all we want to do is watch Netflix? It’s a tough and very timely question.

Things are pretty uncertain right. The world is changing. We don’t know what to do or even what comes next.

We’re told to stay home, to distance ourselves. Jobs have been lost, businesses are closed. We don’t know what will come tomorrow.

In these times of uncertainty, it’s important to tackle the things we can control. Right now, that is the way we fill our time today.

By using our time productively and distracting ourselves with things that will benefit us in the long term we reduce our stress and take our mind off of all the things wrong with the world right now.

Being productive is the key. When people ask what we did during the lock down, we want to have something we’re proud of to talk about. The things on the list will help you be the person you want to be and start living the life you most want to live.

Productive Things To Do

Focus on your Finances

1| Save Money while your Shop Online

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Is online shopping productive? It can be, I think it all depends on what you’re buying. But saving money while you’re doing it can’t hurt.
Let’s be honest with each other, we are all doing a lot of online shopping right now. Rakuten even works for sites like Amazon.
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2| Come up with a Monthly Budget

Now is the perfect time to spend a couple hours with your bills and bank statements. I get it, budgeting isn’t anybody’s idea of a good time but it is necessary, especially with all this economic uncertainty.
A budget doesn’t have to be complicated spreadsheets and formulas. At it crux, a budget is a plan for your money. What are you going to do when the money hits your bank account?
Start by listing your expenses, what bills do you have to pay ever month? What expenses can you cut? This is also a great time to make sure you’re not paying for anything you don’t need/ use. And a wonderful opportunity to ask yourself if you really need both Netflix and Hulu. Maybe you do, especially with all the extra time we’re all spending in front of the television.
But, what about the free trial you forgot about and have been paying for every month for the last 3 years? This is a great time to cancel those things.

3| Negotiate your Bills

Did you know bills could be negotiated? That sometimes prices can be reduced if you just call and ask nicely?
Take a look online and see what rates the competitors are offering. Call your current company and ask if they’ll match the rate. Even if they say no, you know there is a cheaper option out there that you could potentially switch to.

4| Make your Money Work for you

Banks are known for charging exorbitant fees and offering minuscule interest rates on your savings accounts.
Now is a great time to take a look at accounts with higher interest rates and lower fees.
I’m Canadian so this might not be relevant to make of you. But, I use Tangerine to meet my everyday banking and investment needs. If you open a Tangerine account with my Orange Key 47451265S1 you can get a $50 bonus! That’s pretty neat.

5| Do your own Taxes

I know the tax deadline has been extended and it’s a bit confusing and intimidating. But this is a great opportunity to figure it all out. Just think of all the money you’ll save being able to do your own taxes for years to come.

6| Turn your Hobby into a Business

Share your experience and expertise. It’s always an amazing feeling when you can make money doing something you love.
Start a blog about a topic your passionate about, see if there is a demand for freelancers with your unique skills. These days, it’s pretty easy to make a few dollars here and there.

Better Yourself

7| Delete or Untag every Embarrassing Photo of you

Social media is a blessing and a curse. Remember those pictures that you loved back in university? The ones of you playing beer pong? Chances are those aren’t doing your professional self any favors today. Employers don’t usually like seeing their current or potential employees doing those things. Clean up your social media presence. It might even be a great opportunity to reminess and catch up with people you haven’t talked to in years.

8| Follow Relevant Blogs

Take an afternoon and find some blogs that spark joy in your life. Blogs that relevant to your career, your professional and personal interests. Fill your time with things you find interesting, things that add value to your life.

9| Google Yourself

It’s important to know what information is out there and attached to your name. Google yourself and clean up any information you can.
Digital first impressions are an important as physical ones. Don’t neglect the importance of making efforts to keep your infroamtion clean, accurate and up to date.

10| Start Freelancing

Freelancing is a great side hustle. It’s a wonderful way to supplement your income doing things you enjoy. The best part is that you choose which jobs you take and how much you charge for them. This freedom is invaluable. Leverage your skills and interests to make money doing things you enjoy.

11| Learn a New Social Media Platform

Create a profile on a site like Twitter or Instagram and curate a presence. Learn the ins and outs of a new platform. Enjoy yourself and make a few new friends while you’re at it.
If you’re looking for something more fun and exciting, try Tik Tok it’s a great way to lose a couple hours and a wonderful way to lead followers to other sites like Instagram.

12| Catch up with old Friends and Acquaintances

This is a really great time to send a quick message to all the people who used to be a big part of your life but you have lost touch with. Social interaction is pretty important since we’re all stuck at home for the foreseeable future a new (old) friend can only make that easier.

13| Take a Free Course

There are so many free online courses on pretty much any topic available. Take some time to learn a new skill or improve a skills you already have. Now is a really great opportunity to make the most of your free time.

Be Productive

14| Clean you Home

There are few things that make me want to hop out of bed and take on the day like knowing my home is clean and organized. Clutter in my space clutters my mind. This is especially important now that I’m doing most of my work from home. It’s hard to be as productive as my boss expects me to be when I’m thinking about the dishes that need to be washed or the laundry that needs to be washed.
This is probably the one thing on the list that will pay off exponentially in the productivity department.

15| Try Meal Prepping

Since we’re only supposed to be going out for absolute essentials, it’s uber important to be organized and know exactly what you plan to eat for the next several days. Meal prepping make this super easy and takes all the stress out of having to cook and clean each day. This way you do it once and forget about it for the next week.

16| Do the Laundry

I hate doing laundry. It’s one of those chores that I constantly push to the bottom of my to do list. With that said, I love having drawers full of clean clothes and fresh towels and bedding. I’ve been doing my laundry between phone calls. As much as this whole working from home thing is an adjustment, it’s actually provided quite a boost to my homemaking abilities.

17| Go for a Walk

Get some fresh air, clear your head and enjoy the change of scenery. Walks are great for your mental and physical well being. You’ll be so much more productive when you get back inside.

18| Reconnect with Relatives

Call your grandma, the aunt that you haven’t talked to in years. Take the opportunity to catch up with people you’ve lost touch with. They’ll appreciate the gesture.

19| Do your Nails

Give your self a manicure. This is good for both men and women. Soft hands, clean nails, which more could you ask for. By taking care of yourself even in this situation where people might not see all the work you’ve done you’ll feel better about yourself. Start a routine of taking care of yourself and carry on doing it once things are back to normal.

20| Organize your Emails

Does anyone else have a decade worth of junk mail clogging up their inbox? It can’t just be me. Take come time to clear out the digital clutter delete the junk, organize everything else into folders. Your future self will thank you.

21| Boost your Memory

There are so many memory boosting games available on your phone. Do a puzzle or play a board game. These might not feel like productive things to do right now but they will pay off in the long term.

22| Listen to TedTalks

It’s so easy to lose yourself in the endless stream of videos. Take a break from funny cats and watch something that could have a positive impact on your life and well being.

23| Bake Cookies

There are few things that make me as happy as a fresh from the oven chocolate chip cookie. When I’m in the midst of my normal hectic life, I don’t always have time to savor the little luxuries I enjoy, like baking.

24| Try a New Hairstyle

The good news is that if it doesn’t work, no one is going to see it. If it does you can add it to your daily routine once this is all over. Right nwo is a great time to try new things. New colors, new styles…

25| Write in a Journal

Journaling is such a wonderful habit to get into. Learn to focus on the good, to let the bad out. It’s a safe place to grapple with difficult decisions and express all the emotions we probably wouldn’t ever be comfortable saying out loud.

26|Organize your Closet

I love seeing pictures of organized closets on Pinterest. I hope to one day have a Pinterest worthy closet. What better time than now to work on that. While I can’t say I have ever found myself motivated or productive enough to replicate those designs, a girl can dream, right?

27| Clean your Fridge

Meal prepping, eating healthy is so much easier if we can actually find things in our fridge. Take a few minutes, wipe the shelves down and organize everything.

28| Do a Home Workout

There are so many amazing free workouts available on YouTube. It’s so important to focus on our physical health right now.

29| Start a Brag Book

I know, you’re wondering what the heck a brag book is. Well, let me tell you. It’s a book where you write down all the things you’re proud of. Your skills, your accomplishments the things you can do better than anyone else.
It’s a bit awkward at first because we’re not used to speaking positively about ourselves. But once it’s done this is a wonderful tool to pull out during those times when your mental health might not be at 100% and you’re feeling a bit down on yourself.

Let’s Talk

How has this lock down impacted your productivity? Do you have any tips that help you stay productive?

Want More?

I have a list of Free Self Care ideas Self care can go a long way in helping you continue to be productive and boosting your self esteem!

Perhaps you want to see my favorite biographies ever written or my most anticipated new releases of 2020?

Save Money

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Some Tips from an Avid Reader

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Something Neat I Think You Should Know About

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