We’re truly living in an unprecedented time with the world on lockdown following the outbreak of COVID-19. It’s daunting staying at home almost 24/7 as we all play our part in trying to contain this pandemic through social distancing efforts. To help keep life interesting and/or productive, here is a list of 10 different things that can help get you through this self-isolation period:

1. Learn a new skill: Now how often is it that we get to have this much down time available to ourselves on a regular basis? For those of us who are fortunate enough to be working from home, this is a prized opportunity to spend time learning a new skill. Maybe there’s been something you’ve always had an interest in learning:

   • Coding/programming

   • Photoshop & Video editing

   • Creative or technical writing

   • Learning a new language

   • Learning to play an instrument

   The list is endless and now is a great time to expand upon your interests!

2. Work out at home: We all want to be healthy and in shape but often rely on a gym or fitness studio to provide the essential equipment and environment to do so. The gym or workout studio shouldn’t be the only place we can all get some exercise in at. Using your own body to do pushups, bodyweight squats, and situps is great exercise to keep your body moving. You can even get creative by using makeshift weights at home with different objects or investing in some cheap resistance bands like these to work on muscle pliability.

3. Cooking & Baking: With more time spent at home now, it’s a great time to start learning how to cook/bake or expanding your cooking tastes to new and foreign realms. With all travel plans on hold for at least a couple of months, exploring the world through different cuisines and dishes can prove just as fun. Spice things up in the kitchen by challenging yourself and your friends/loved ones to take part in your very own, home-inspired competition of “Chopped” or “Iron Chef America”!

4. Play board games: I mean, if we’re all bored right now, shouldn’t we play some board games? Now I hit my quota for dumb jokes/puns for the week. But in seriousness, gathering around playing board games is a timeless classic that spans across generations. You can even play a variety of board games with friends online now too. Just don’t get too frustrated and kill your playing partners when they start drying up your bank whenever you land on Boardwalk!

5. Spend time with loved ones: We are always buzzing all over the world working or exploring that we often don’t get time outside of the longer holiday breaks to spend time with family and loved ones. For those of us who are lucky to be with loved ones, cherish the extra time you’ll get to see them. To those who are unable to be with loved ones, maybe now is a good time to connect a bit more through phone calls/video calls with them on a more regular basis. If anything at all, I hope this time will allow us to forge deeper connections and stronger relationships with those closest to us that we may take for granted.

6. Hold video calls with your friends: Being social creatures, humans having to isolate within such a quick notice has us confused and anxious. No more Friday night or weekend outings with the buddies to the movies or happy hours. Fortunately, we have technologically seen leaps over the last decade that allow us to stay connected more than ever even when we cannot physically see each other. Friendships shouldn’t have to feel different now; go ahead and schedule that Taco Tuesday night or happy hour via video chat, or you can spontaneously hit up your friends to just chill on a video call.

7. Read: If you’re like me, winding down and escaping from the world often looks like being bundled up with a good old book. There’s so much knowledge and information out there in the world that is waiting to be soaked up if you allow it. Think about a couple of books/topics you’d like to read during this time and see if you can center a routine around getting to them.

8. Watch TV shows/movies: Now I suspect most people don’t need me to suggest hopping onto Netflix. With the transition from network cable and old VHS cassette tapes to streaming services, it’s easier than ever nowadays to get access to a wide range of content. Gather a couple of people together and schedule a Friday movie night or set up some weekly video chat sessions with friends to binge that TV show you all have been meaning to start or catch up on.

9. Self-care: The world always keeps us running from place to place, leaving us little room on a regular basis to genuinely care for ourselves. Sleeping more, eating healthier, looking after our skin, etc. can and should be seen as a priority now. We can create healthy habits to take care of ourselves now so that that they will more easily translate to our lives once the hustle and bustle return.

10. Relax: This time hopefully will allow all of us to breathe and unwind a bit. We are taught to always be doing something and then take a mini break for a couple of days or a few weeks out of the year to reset. With the vicissitudes of life and when you start feeling exhausted from this list of suggestions above, just take this time to relax and appreciate your and the world’s stillness for a bit. Meditation can help calm all of us down from these hectic times and give us the reset all of us need and deserve.

I hope you’re able to find even just one cool idea from the above list of suggestions to incorporate into your quarantined life. Take this time to be grateful for all the things that you would otherwise not turn your head for. For those of us who are more fortunate than others, lend a helping hand to those less fortunate and essential workers by limiting your grocery and essentials purchases and by helping buy those very items, where you can, for senior citizens and those who are worried about paying rent while still trying to keep food on the table for their kids. We’ll all get through this together with the help of the selfless medical personnel all around the world working day and night to save countless lives, and my hope is that we will all form tighter bonds with those around us and a deeper appreciation for the little things.