Most people will say that having free time on your hands means you don’t have to do anything but sit around and relax which can be a good thing sometimes, but not all the time. By using this practice you’re not really using your time, you’re actually wasting your time and life away and there’s nothing more demoralizing and de-motivating than hanging out in your living room couch with a bag of chips and nothing to do.
Having a schedule or setting yourself tasks to do during downtime can provide many benefits that not many people know about. It stimulates your brain and helps keep you in control as this will in turn creates happiness. Below are a few ideas to consider for anyone who has a lot of free time but does not really know how to make the best of it.
- If you’re into cars like me, try taking it out and clean it once a week. Go to the nearest bookstore and find a car magazine and just read it for an hour or two there. You don’t have to buy anything, just read it and leave it.
- If you like cooking and you really want to know how to make that one dish your friend made at the last pot-luck. Try calling your friend up and schedule a little get-together and get him/her to teach you how to make it. You get more than one benefits from this. You’ll learn something new, and this will keep you busy. It’s definitely going to taste better than chips.
- Start a Sunday project. Or Saturday, whichever day you usually get free time. This project has to be something big and requires your weekly attention. It can be anything from rebuilding your car, working on your blog, writing a new book. The key is to be consistent and there is nothing more motivating and energizing than seeing your project progress
- Gather a bunch of your friends and go to the nearest museum, go to a blogging conference, maybe hit the local comedy club. Play some football with the guys, do whatever you want as long as it makes you interact with other people. Surround yourself with positive people and you’ll be surprise.
My whole point here is to find something that not only make you happy but keeps it that way and keeping the momentum so use your free time and make something out of it. If you don’t, you’re wasting it.
My recent saturday project is to spend time with my two children. I have realized that I have not been spending time with my kids. I need to invest my time with them before its too late.
That’s very important to spend time with them. Kids grow up differently without one or the other parents
My free time always gets wasted. I just get so mentally exhausted that I end up sitting on my butt and staring at the TV for way longer than I should. I have a ton of other things I could be doing but my brain just kinda shuts down. 🙂
I guess it’s okay when you’re exhausted from a long day 😀
I agree totally! As a college student I have found that if I do not control my free time or pre-plan what I am going to do I end up just wasting it. I think freetime/downtime can be good and productive if properly leveraged.
I think college students are the ones who has the most free time actually so it’s best to manage those times
My Sunday project this week is going to be this: Find Someone To Clean My Garage And Car For Me.
If that doesn’t work, it might turn into my own (sigh) project….
I’m with you. While I don’t like to schedule my free time, I do like staying active and well-rounded rather than flipping on the tv. It always feels like tv time is just wasted and doesn’t recharge my mental “batteries” for my job the next week.
Great suggestions. Using your free time effectively is a big one for me, I’d much rather be doing something that is going to benefit me in some way rather than sit on the couch and stare at the TV. Like anything it can take a bit of practice to get motivated, but like exercise it actually gets rather addictive when you get into the swing of it.
I’m always amazed by how easily people underestimate their free time and how it can be put to better use. I tend to rotate a variety of things to do during down-time because having a variety of focuses keeps me entertained, motivated, and moving forward.
I am all for using your free time to do the things you really like doing. What happens of one really likes sitting there doing nothing? Are they wasting their time or they understand living their life differently? Just a hypothetical question; I am like a shark – I have to move and do things.
There are so many things you can do with your free time. Volunteer at a veterans hospital, mentor a kid, tutor or give lessons (and get paid), or even start a craft. It keeps your brain moving and slows down the aging process.
Not wasting time in general is one of my 2012 projects. I don’t want to feel like I missed out or didn’t do X when I get older so I am making an effort to make sure I spend my time doing things I want to do.
I love this whole philosophy of underscheduling however would developing a video game be a good Saturday project?
It’s hard to not get sucked into the vortex of nothingness when free time comes about. I usually use my free time reading and blogging (as well as engaging in blog related activities), but have been contemplating picking up some more hobbies lately.