How to survive these days & smile at least a bit during the curfew

• Be kind to your close ones. Even if whole days spent together may be challenging, at least once per day do some act of kindness like giving extra attention, listening, help, having fun together, etc.

• If there is something you take for granted, appreciate it today, just as if it was new in your life. Keep doing this every day.

• Be positive & share positivity

• Stay away from the news - gather essential data from primary sources of information & verify them, keep in touch with the instructions and updates from local authorities. Avoid news before going to sleep (at least for a few hours)
• Limit social media (unless that's your job :)). Use it only in times given in advance for as little per day as possible (20min can be plenty). Use social media only to connect with family, friends, colleagues. Once in touch with others be positive, if there is an issue to deal with look for a constructive solution
• Consume less. Less energy, food, media, entertainment... you name it. Simply slow down the race for more and be present with what you have.
• If working from home is new and challenging for you, keep track of the working hours for your record. Stay productive & limit the distractions. If you can't have a separate room, have a reserved desk for your work, where you're not doing anything else. Even if you don't have an extra desk, then just set it into the configuration that will signal work time for you. When the job is done for the day, reorganize it back to the personal time mode. It’s possible to work almost anywhere :).

• Read every day, if you are very busy, at least for 10min. Novels, learning - anything (but news)
• Work daily on a personal project, again at least 10-20min will do the job (it can be anything you wanted to do for a long time from practicing on a musical instrument, selecting photos from vacation, learning new recipes, an improvement on the house, etc.)

• Keep all the safety precautions, if you don't understand some of them, learn more to keep yourself & your closed ones safe

• If contact with others is inevitable, be smart about it and minimize it - i.e., if you need to restock, keep an overview of your supplies, then restock all at once during a short and effective visit to a store. Even if shopping online, be mindful of everyone in the supply chain and logistics and try to pile everything into as little amount of orders as possible. With hairdresser and barbershops closed, it’s time to experiment :)

• BONUS: Be grateful for your day and the people in it. If you had a bad day, think of what positive twist it can bring. If this point of view is new for you, give it a try, you'll be surprised how well it works.

What are your tips for staying positive and productive during the times of the pandemic?