Has your commute disappeared? Don't waste it.
It's a good bet that you're reading this from your home office. If you're like many of us, you didn't have a home office a few weeks ago. Some of you worked from home before this madness, but the majority of us had a daily commute. Commute times have been on the rise–last year the U.S. Census Bureau reported an average daily commute of over 54 minutes. That nets out to over 9 days on the road every year.
Nobody knows how long this arrangement will continue. If we assume you work from home for another month that's approximately 19 hours of extra time. The most precious of resources, time is one of the few things in our life consistent and finite. We spend close to a third of it sleeping. How we use the rest is critical.
Don't waste your old commute. Don't sleep in. Get off Instagram. Turn off the news. None of these things add to your life. With one hour a day you can:
- Write 1000 words. After a month you'll have a novella. After a year, an edited novel.
- Establish a yoga practice. In the short term you'll find a favorite pose. Long term, you'll be standing on your head.
- Go for a walk. Within a month you'll have walked 50 miles. Within a year you'll be on your 27th marathon.
- Learn a musical instrument. It'll take a month to perform your first song. In a year your significant other will enjoy it.
- Write an article. That's what I did. You're reading it.
If you trade the time you've gained for more sleep you will have only accomplished sleeping more. You'll impress nobody, certainly not yourself. This may only last another month. Use it as opportunity to reframe how you approach the time you have in each day. Establish a habit now that you will savor for a lifetime.