Now that we are all caught up in the middle of a horrible world-wide crisis and forced to stay home, we find ourselves with time on our hands. The big question is how can we use it to our benefit?
Presently many in the world are under lock down and many more will likely follow. In the weeks to come we will be faced with confusion and uncertainty. That’s a given fact! Many of us will face hardships we could not have imagined. Rather than sit and pine over our misfortune let’s see if we can take advantage of the time we now have and use it to accomplish some of the things we were too busy for before. With the challenges we now face I have a few ideas to share on how best to use our time.
Time to reflect
This is as good a time as any to reflect on what to do with that extra time. The possibilities are endless. Let’s start with a couple. Many of us have found ourselves wasting endless hours hunkered in front of a TV or playing game after game on a computer or gaming device. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying not to do these things. There is some value in engaging in these activities, but don’t let them dominate your time. We all need some distraction during these times, but not to the point that it is all encompassing. There are other more meaningful things we could do with our time. Moderation and variety should be the guiding forces, not boredom and complacency. Instead, try to focus on a way to put that time to good use.
We have things undone
Now may be the perfect time to start writing that book you’ve always wanted to, or planning a new marketing strategy, but somehow never found the time. You have it now! Most of us have online or correspondence courses we never got around to completing. This is a good time to see if there can be some value in resuming them. These could be avenues to to self improvement or learning a new skill. What about that treasured car or motorcycle that has been in the garage for years with a tarp over it? Now would be a good time to rekindle the initial enthusiasm and begin the work that has been put off for so long.
Time for adjustment
The point I want to make is let’s not become crippled by these unfortunate circumstances. Instead, let’s find a way to be creative, work through it, and use common sense and good judgment to get to the end of it. We have now experienced the beginning, and at some point in time we will see the middle. From there working together and maintaining a strong sense of optimism and fellowship we will eventually get through to the end. It’s OK to have feelings of anxiety and trepidation, we all do. Now that we are all standing in each other’s shoes probably the best medicine we have to combat these feelings is to have empathy for each other, and share kindness and understanding. The key is to learn to adjust and adapt. We must strive to take the lemon life has given us and find a way to make lemonade.
