Trust me: I know how hard it can be to get up every morning feeling like you’ve been living the same day over and over. The quarantine can make us all feel very unproductive, and even though we should focus on our mental health right now, we can still be organized and healthy during this moment. Today, I’ll give you some tips about how to do that in the easiest way possible. No stress, no pressure; just some good habits that can be added to your routine without putting that much effort into it.
- Have a solid morning routine
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Once you crawl your way out of bed, it’s really important for you to maintain a routine. Whether it’s taking a shower right away, making yourself some breakfast, or stretching your body up, just make sure to follow a script. That way, your body will get used to doing something once you’re up, and it won’t take long until you stop feeling that tired!
It’s also really important for you to get your pajamas off. Personally, I have a hard time doing this, because I’m always so cozy by the mornings, you know? But it really helps you to stay awake and productive, so just give it a try.
- Try out for some light workouts
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Working out is a way of keeping both our minds and bodies healthy. There are hundreds of workout videos online made by specialists, and each one was designed to a different difficulty level. If you’re a starter like me, I highly recommend easy workouts at first and increase their intensities as time goes by. The first days are the hardest ones, but our bodies get used to it really fast.
A great tip on this is to choose a specific moment of the day to workout, and try to stick to that same moment every day. I always try to do it when it’s getting dark, because it’s when I’m the most productive. But if you’re a morning person, you should try to do it before you get your day started. Working out in the mornings is a great method to start your day with energy.
- Make a to-do checklist
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Writing down everything you have to do for the day is the gold key to stay organized. Make sure to place your checklist at a visible spot, so you look at it the whole time, and don’t forget to check the items off. Making a to-do checklist helps us to organize our day and manage our time better. If you see a crowded to-do list, you know you have to start checking the items off fast to make sure it all gets done, and that makes you work faster.
And even though that’s obvious, I still have to say: It’s really important for you not to procrastinate! I know it’s tempting, and I always push my tasks to the limit, but that just leaves me with a lot to do and not enough time to do it. So trust me when I say you don’t want to procrastinate. Of course, you don’t have to get ahead of every single assignment you have for the day, but try to leave the least amount of undone things possible. You’ll thank me later.
- Find your ideal time-management method
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There are a lot of different time-management methods out there, waiting to be tested. The two most famous ones are the Pomodoro Technique and the Getting Things Done (GTD). The first one consists of studying/working for 25 minutes straight, taking a five-minute break, and repeating the process until you get everything done.
The Pomodoro Technique is definitely the most known one, but the second method, the GTD, it’s very popular as well – you might be doing it without even knowing it! The Get Thing Done method consists of writing the things you need to do down to a list and breaking the items into smaller items. That way, a big task turns into a few smaller ones, and you work on them faster. It’s sort of like a to-do list, so it’s really easy to go with.
You can also mix both methods up by making a to-do list GTD style, and working on your tasks for 25 minutes straight, taking a five-minute break, and doing it all again until you get your stuff finished. If you don’t like any of those methods, though, you can always search for new ones. The internet is filled with people trying to help other people improve their time management, so you’ll for sure find one that you adjust to.
- Know when to stop
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It’s crucial for you to take breaks during the day, but you also need to know when to stop for good. I explained a few methods to keep you awake and productive during the day, but closing your computer up, putting away the to-do lists, and finding some time for yourself is as important as the rest. After a long day staring at a computer screen, you deserve to unplug. Turn off your phone, take a shower, put some music on and relax. We tend to keep our brains busy for the whole day, but sometimes all we need is to think about nothing at all. You can watch a movie, read a book perhaps, but make sure to do some you-time. You deserve it.
Trying out for these five tips will probably help you to stay organized and healthy in quarantine. A few changes of habits make a huge difference! There isn’t a perfect formula for productivity though, so the best we can do is to change our routines and try to stick to them as long as it works and makes sense for us.
These tips are really helpful, but you shouldn’t feel bad if they don’t work for you. The truth is, as I said in the beginning, this is the moment for us to focus on our mental health, so it’s okay to feel unproductive, this isn’t a competition and we must respect our time and our bodies. Don’t feel like you need to push yourself to the limit to prove something; you’re doing great, and I’m proud of you!
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The article above was edited by Giullia Cartaxo.
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