Under these unprecedented circumstances, it can be difficult to keep yourself occupied. It’s particularly bleak for students after almost a third of graduate jobs have been cancelled, numerous entry level jobs have disappeared and placements have been deferred. For students, it often feels like you’ve worked so hard over the three years for nothing when there is no job at the end of it all.
Don’t worry, you’re not the only one feeling like this. It’s hard to keep yourself motivated when you feel like you’re not working towards anything. The whole thing is a little overwhelming to say the least. One thing you can do is keep yourself busy, this is something that has helped me during lockdown. Read on for Students: 5 Ways to Keep Your Minds Busy!
1. Read & Listen to Audible
Read books or listen to audio versions of books that you haven’t had time to read or go through. Buy new ones that you’re interested in or read classics that will give you knowledge for those sophisticated conversations about George Orwell. Reading and listening can help us develop our knowledge and provide insight into different aspects of life.
2. Learn a Language
Revisit the language you learnt in school or find a language you’ve always wanted to learn. Download apps, watch YouTube clips or take online language courses. Learning a language is a working progress. You can keep yourself busy for as long as you like and you might even be fluent in Russian by the end of it!
3. Take Online Courses
Find courses that will help you learn a new skill or develop your existing ones. There are some free online courses as well as ones you can pay for. A lot of the courses with a fee are discounted during lockdown! Anything that you can add to your CV will be beneficial, so don’t worry, for no constructive effort is ever wasted!
4. Students, Use this Time to Find Your Creative Zen!
Take up something creative like drawing, painting, gardening or start a blog. It could be something as simple as writing a journal or something bigger like embroidering onto a jacket. Anything that keeps you busy while also being enjoyable!
5. Physical Exercise
This one is huge! I can’t stress enough how a little bit of exercise can help so much difference mentally. Even if it’s a walk around the block, a run every other day or creating a little circuit in the garden. You will be so much more productive in all your activities if you do some exercise daily. Find something you enjoy. Order some badminton rackets and play in the garden or do Zumba using YouTube. (Check out our interview with Zumba and Salsa champion dancer from Barcelona, Spain, Lucia Medina.)
