The coronavirus is not only testing our health, but also our patience. Guaranteeing the safety distance set by the authorities forces us to queue for everything. Traffic jams are no longer on the road, but at the doors of establishments. And what can we do to take advantage of these time parentheses? These tips will help you distract yourself and discover fun things while you wait. Do not despair!
1. Plan your day
Good planning is key to being efficient and… what better time to “design” your day than standing in line? Make a list of all the things you want to do (it is very important that you do not have more than 10 tasks), order them in order of priority and specify the subtasks that each category implies. If you organize yourself well, it will be much easier to get to everything. You may even be able to finish some of your quests for the day in your waiting moments.
2. Browse the newspapers
At this time it is essential to avoid overinformation, but this does not mean that we should go beyond reading the newspapers. We have to be aware of what is happening! Take advantage of the downtime to browse the newspapers or listen to your favorite radio programs and you will be up to date with what is happening today.
3. Make the shopping list
Preparing the shopping list is essential in times of coronavirus, as it helps you invest less time in the supermarket and buy what you really need (without falling into compulsive shopping). The time you wait for your turn can be used to make a coherent shopping list, carefully evaluating what you need and what you don't need to survive during the week.
4. Organize your menus
With the new normal we are a bit overwhelmed: telecommuting, children, home … And preparing food for every day! Many times it takes longer to think about what to eat than to cook it. Improvising is not the solution. If you want to save time and money (and eat healthier), you can invest the time you spend in a queue organizing your weekly menus or consulting CLARA's proposals, which will give you very good ideas for eating tasty and healthy.
5. Activate your glutes
If you are standing while waiting your turn, you can dedicate yourself to toning your glutes. Your figure will thank you. Exhale, contract your gluteal muscles, stay in that position for 5-10 seconds and inhale. Repeat the exercise several times. There will come a time when you mechanize the movement and whenever you have to wait, do it automatically. It will be great for you to work that area.
6. Exercise your pelvic floor
If you have to wait, you can try Kegel exercises to strengthen your pelvic floor. How? Focus on the pelvic floor muscles, contract them for a count of 10. Relax the muscle completely for a count of 10. Do 19 reps. Ideally, do these exercises three times a day (morning, noon, and night). You can do them whether you wait standing or sitting.
7. Unload your cufflinks
If you have to spend a lot of time on your feet, your calves can end up overloading. Raise your heels alternately or at the same time. Repeat the movements for several minutes. Your legs will unload and regain their lightness and flexibility.
8. Practice mindfulness
You may need silence and privacy to do a mindfulness session, but you can surely focus to control your breathing and stay relaxed. It will help you connect with the present moment, stay calm and feel more comfortable with yourself . Here are 5 guided mindfulness practices that last just 5 minutes.
9. Answer your emails
Surely you have a thousand unanswered messages in your email inbox. This is a good time to answer them and clean up your folders! Keeping your email in order will likely help you focus and get to the point on important issues when you get to work.
10. Update your whatsapp
During confinement the WhatsApp fumed. Messages, memes, videoconferences … It was impossible to attend to everything! With the arrival of the new normal, the topic is relaxing and you can now answer the messages that have remained pending or delete everything that does not interest you so that your Smartphone does not end up overloaded with so much information .
11. Call your mother
It is always a good time to call Mom. You relax, you cheer up, you get the best advice in the world … And while you wait you can chat with her quietly! By having more time, you can do it calmly. Not like when you're at home and you have so much to do that you end up hanging up without having talked about anything interesting.
12. Regain contact with your friends
In many cases, the coronavirus has brought us closer to childhood friends, schoolmates … We have made videoconferences with people we did not even remember, but … what about your old friends? Do not neglect them. You don't need an apology to call them and tell them you love them. Take advantage of the downtime to tell your best friend that you miss her and that you will soon regain contact from before and enjoy those moments that we need so much.
13. Learn to use Tik-Tok
Don't tell me that you still haven't succumbed to the “Tik-Tok moment… This application has become an infallible tool to test creativity and kill boredom. There are celebrities who, like Edurne, have become true professionals in the field and give us unrepeatable moments every day with this application.
14. Free up your mobile memory
End your digital Diogenes Syndrome once and for all! Stop accumulating junk and unnecessary files on your technological devices. Lack of time is no longer an excuse to erase repeated or poorly focused photos, videos that your colleagues send you and that you will never see again or audios that you do not even have organized. Take advantage of the "queue moment" to throw them in the virtual trash and make space.
15. Organize your photos
How many times have you said that you are going to organize your photos in subfolders to make them searchable? I don't know what you are waiting for. Get down to work and start putting order on your mobile desktop . Ideally, you should synchronize the material with Google Photos or with a cloud that, in addition, will help you keep all of them protected from any breakdown in your terminal.
16. Update your Spotify playlist
Face it, you haven't updated your Spotify playlists for so long that you sometimes hear songs from prehistory. You have such a hodgepodge of songs on your music charts that you no longer know when you are going to skip a suitable track for your morning running session, organize a romantic dinner with your boy, or relax before going to sleep. What are you waiting for to classify your music and create a list with updated music ? Now it will not be due to lack of time …
17. Learn to put on makeup
I can't believe you're a "beauty-geek" and you still don't know how to do a proper eyeliner. There are a lot of short tutorials that tell you, step by step, how to put on makeup. Not only to delineate your eye, but also to do a good contouring, a strobing and a lot of techniques that will help you get the most out of yourself and be perfect on any occasion. It's a matter of putting on.
18. Discover a new recipe
There are countless possibilities to eat a healthy and varied diet. Many times, lack of time makes you end up repeating the same menus week after week. What a bore! In CLARA you can find a lot of delicious and nutritionally adequate proposals so that eating is a healthy pleasure. Check them out whenever you have a moment. You will discover new and simple recipes that will make mealtime much more fun. It is essential that you enjoy the food!
16. Finish that course you have pending
If you haven't had time to finish all the courses you downloaded during confinement, it's time to do it. A good alternative to not leaving them hanging forever is to do them very little by little. And what better time to read to you a program topic than while waiting in line? You will go slowly, but surely …
20. Cultivate reading
You have devoured books during confinement and now, having regained some of your usual routines, you cannot keep up. Or so you say! If you like reading, you can take your eBook with you everywhere. It does not take up space and it is sure to become one of your best allies to overcome boredom in the waiting moments that are going to be repeated so much during the de-escalation. If you don't know where to start, find out which influencers' favorite readings are.
21. Improve your languages
If languages resist you … you have to practice! Don't waste a second while you wait to be attended to and take the opportunity to refresh and expand your vocabulary . There are several applications, such as Duolingo, Babbel or Bussu, perfect for improving your languages investing little free moments. Download them and start practicing!
22. Refine your professional profile
We are not in the best time to find a new job, but … You never know! Whether you are looking for work or if you are open to new job opportunities, you must ensure that your professional profile is attractive and that it represents you . How long has it been since you changed your profile picture? Do not forget that it must be current, serious and true to reality.
23. Buy online
If you are in a queue and you feel that you have a while, take the opportunity to make an online purchase. Digitization is here to stay and now even the smallest business in your neighborhood has created a website with an online store. This is a great advantage that allows you to access interesting products and support small businesses .
24. Optimize your social networks
How long have you not updated Facebook or Instagram? Have you been years without changing your profile picture on these social networks? This is the perfect time to do it! If you want your profiles to have movement, you must publish with a certain frequency and moderate all the conversations . Don't forget to put a current photo!
25. Schedule your next post
Who you think you are? What do people have a lot of free time to post at all hours on their social networks? Ok, there are those who do, but it is not usual. To publish constantly and periodically, there is the possibility of scheduling your publications . Research how to do it and do some good planning to achieve better performance.
26. Try Instagram filters
Your best friend keeps sending you direct with super cute filters, but you never have time to fiddle with Instagram to give them back. You no longer have an excuse! If you have to wait, investigate all the filters, fiddle with them, try them and bombard your friends . Now it's your turn!
27. Discover facial yoga
Did you know that facial yoga can help you rejuvenate, prevent wrinkles, release stress, prevent flaccidity, improve your breathing and activate your circulation ? All are advantages … And it won't take you more than a few minutes! Download a tutorial with facial yoga exercises and put them into practice while you're in a queue. Now, with the mask, nobody will notice or look at you with a strange face …
28. Organize your next vacation
Although the uncertainty does not allow us to plan our summer vacations as in previous years, the truth is that we can already go looking for a destination within Spain to enjoy a few days of rest. Use your mobile to find interesting offers, find out about attractive promotions or find that idyllic destination where you can recharge your batteries with caution.
29. Check your bank accounts
Keeping bank movements up to date is a task that we always leave for last. It is necessary, but so boring … The time has come to update your accounts! Review all the movements, check that there are no errors and make sure that your accounts have enough credit for everything you have to pay during your day to day.
30. Play a game
It is not that you spend all day hooked on your mobile and its little games, but it does not hurt to have fun for a while and find entertainment. After all, keeping our heads busy frees us from the stress and nervousness that tend to take over us when we have to wait . It is a good way to escape the feeling of wasting time!
