In the UK, we’re now entering the fourth week of enforced lockdown (though weeks and days seem to have ceased to have any real meaning). Depending on the sort of person you are, you might have found this a difficult, or a liberating, period. Given that it could last for months rather than mere weeks, it’s more important than ever to have a long-term project to provide a little bit of structure to your time in isolation. You can even incentivize by saying that you’ll treat yourself to a new backpack from Radley when you emerge successful!

Let’s take a look at a few worthy uses of your time!

Get Creative

Building an artistic skill requires practice and dedication. But more than that, it requires deliberate practice. That’s according to K. Anders Ericsson, the psychologist whose research gave birth to the famous ’10,000 hours’ rule. He’s quite clear that mastering something isn’t about quantity of time you put into it, but the quality of that time. So, if you’re trying to improve at something, whether it’s playing the bassoon or drawing still life pictures, you can improve much faster by taking your time, troubleshooting problems and paying attention.

Get Gardening

If you’re lucky enough to have a garden, then there will never be a more opportune time to get out there and whip things into order. With more beaming sunshine on the way, it’s a time to mow the lawn, dig up some flowerbeds, scrub the patio, and generally make things look impressive. Looking after a garden might seem like a huge task, but it’s actually several hundred smaller ones – make a plan for the weeks ahead, and see if you can devote a morning (or an afternoon) to each one in sequence.

Get Cleaning

If you’re surrounded by clutter for weeks on end, then the toll on your mental health is likely to be considerable. Get on top of things with a series of organized, medium-sized cleans, and then get into the habit of spending a portion of your day keeping everything tidy and organized.

Exercise

Outdoor exercise is a great excuse to leave the house and enjoy the sun. You’re not here to socialize or to relax, however. Have a target, and a structured plan for how you’re going to meet it. If you’re looking for inspiration, then the enormously popular ‘Couch to 5k’ system is sure to provide it – but if you’re already an advanced fitness fanatic, then you might have a more particular and specialized goal in mind.

Team Quizzes

Just because you can’t go to the pub doesn’t mean that you can’t participate in a pub quiz. Platforms like Zoom have gone mainstream extremely quickly, and you can use them to stay in contact with your friends as well as have a little bit of fun.

What projects would you like to do during Corona lockdown? 

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