When the first lockdown happened I found myself beating myself up because I wasn’t being “productive” all of the time. I felt like I should have been working on a big new project or training for a marathon, but I quickly started to realise that 1. you don’t have to be productive ALL of the time, and 2. looking after yourself and taking care of your own needs is super productive. It is really easy to believe that if you’re not doing schoolwork or working out at every free moment then you’re not being productive enough. I’m still learning to not beat myself up on the days when I can’t bring myself to do college work or exercise or do any task that society might deem productive, but here are some things I like to do that make me feel good when I’m not up for those “productive” tasks!
Tidy my room
Having a tidy (or at least somewhat tidier) room really helps me clear my mind and I feel like I have accomplished something! If tidying your room is too much, making your bed is another good one I like to do!
Do some self-care
Getting caught up with the amount of work I need to do can be very stressful and sometimes I forget about the importance of self-care. Self-care is one of the most productive things you can do, because if you’re not taking care of yourself then all those other tasks become much harder. A good self-care evening always makes me feel so much better and refreshed.
Writing
Sometimes the thing standing between me and getting my tasks done is myself and all the many thoughts floating around in my head. There’s nothing better than a pen and paper (or computer and keyboard) to get those feelings out and start to make sense of them all. Whether you write for yourself or to share with other people, I always find it a great way to feel like I’ve accomplished something and to make sense of what I’m thinking.
Do some cooking or some baking
Making a nice meal or baking something I like is something I love to do, especially when I’m feeling bad about not doing other things I need to be doing. Spending some extra time on a good meal or baking something is a great way to give some more time to yourself (and you end up with something nice at the end).
Read a book, watch a t.v show etc.
Doing something I enjoy and taking some time to actually let myself do something that makes me happy is so so important.
Productivity doesn’t always have to be ticking off everything on your to-do list (which in my case is usually an unreasonable amount of tasks for one day anyway) and sometimes just spending time doing things you like and making sure you look after yourself is maybe the most productive thing you can do. It mightn’t feel like it (I have this battle with myself quite a lot) but doing these things are just as important or even more important than your schoolwork or your college work.
If you would like to support us and the work that we do, you can donate below ❤
