8 ways not to get bored on the road and spend time usefully

On the way to work or home, it is not necessary to sit on social networks or look sad out the window. You can find less boring and even developing activities. Try using the life hacks suggested below – you will definitely enjoy combining business with pleasure. And it will no longer be possible to say that endless hours, days and weeks are spent on the road – after all, you will spend this time as productively as possible.

1. Tidy up your phone

Smartphone is your virtual space. And in order to make it easy and comfortable to live in, you need to regularly put things in order, just like in an apartment. Why not do it on the road? Set aside a few minutes every day to remove unnecessary files from your phone. Screenshots, outdated notes, memes from friends, duplicate photos – we ruthlessly “throw out” everything that clutters up your gadget.

You will see, after such a stripping, it will even become easier for you to breathe. And to make it faster and easier, you can use assistants – special applications that make it easier to clean the gallery. In the struggle for free gigabytes, all means are good.

2. Plan work and rest

Love making lists? Not? So you haven’t used modern apps. Try replacing your paper diary with planner apps, for example. Planning will become 10 times easier and more fun. In addition, on the road it is more convenient to work with applications than with a notepad and pen.

Write a shopping list for the week, plan a menu, make a checklist of household chores, come up with gifts for friends and family for the next holiday, or you can make a wishlist for your birthday. And the most inspiring option is to plan your upcoming trip: get directions, look at the cost of tickets and hotels, read what souvenirs you can bring home.

3. Learn

Each of us has very important things to do, for which there is always not enough time: to improve English, to read a book that everyone on Instagram is talking about, to listen to audio lectures on an interesting topic. But wait, isn’t there time for that at all? And on the way to work, do you look out the window for two hours?

Charge your gadgets to 100%, take a powerful external battery with you and go ahead: learn foreign words, listen to audio books, watch video lessons, lectures, read e-books. You can distribute activities by day of the week: listen to audio lectures on Monday, learn Spanish on Tuesday, read a book on Wednesday. Or do everything, but little by little – and you won’t have time to get tired, and you will spend your time usefully.

4. Practice

Have you ever thought that on the way to work you can … exercise? We are not talking about yoga or step aerobics, but doing gymnastics for the eyes, a couple of exercises from face fitness or intimate gymnastics is quite real. There is never enough time at home, and when you are stuck in a traffic jam, you can’t imagine a better activity. When you get tired of training your muscles, I advise you to switch to the brain and train your memory: you can, for example, learn poetry and pronounce them to yourself.

5. Get ready for work

This option is for those who take the expression “spend time with benefit” literally. Check your email, send a commercial offer, call a colleague, solve current work issues, arrange a meeting, consider an upcoming project. But don’t get carried away! Work issues are so addictive that you can pass your stop and be late for work.

6. Communicate and loosen up

Have you been wanting to get into a personal growth training for a long time, but there was no time? But every trip in the subway or minibus is such a mini-training. Try to strike up a conversation with a stranger: smile, get to know each other, talk about something abstract. In America, it is not for nothing that short conversations about nothing are so popular. It liberates, expands the circle of acquaintances and simply cheers up.

7. Relax and Reduce Stress

Sometimes, after a hard day at work, you don’t feel like reading, talking with fellow travelers, or planning a weekend. You’re tired, that’s how it is. Then you can just relax and meditate to the sounds of nature or listen to the album of your favorite artist without thinking about anything. Make up several playlists for different situations: music for relaxation, energetic tunes or a hit parade of your favorite tracks that you rocked to at school discos. If the body requires rest, put on headphones and reboot it.

8. Wrap up the day

The working day is over, you are driving home and thinking about how you will spend the evening with your family. Remember how this day went and find 5 reasons to praise yourself. No matter how big of an accomplishment you’ve made today—whether you’ve signed a major contract or finally cleared out your desk—celebrate any progress you make and keep your mental “success diary.” You will see, if you do this practice on a regular basis, you are guaranteed to give yourself a great mood and high self-esteem.