Somehow it happened that you found yourself closed within the four walls. Unable to go out, take a walk or find your friends. It is a scenario that nobody would have expected and it came suddenly and out of blue sky. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t use that time to your own advantage. Instead of sitting down bored out of your mind ruminating on all the things you could be doing and all things you don’t have, it’s time to shift perspectives and make the best out of it. When the life gives you lemons… you get the idea…

Itseems so counterintuitive how most of us are constantly whining for not having enough time for ourselves. Isn’t it true that under normal circumstances, we can’t stop pleading for some essential time with ourselves and our closed ones, but now that we are asked to do exactly that we can’t withstand it? We constantly focus on what we don’t have, what we miss, and what annoy us. But strangely enough, what is of the most essence can sit right in front of our face, all the while we are completely oblivious to it.

People are creatures of habits. We are drawn by familiarity and we are attracted to our cozy routines. But this is always the right recipe to lose opportunities that are offered to us and blatantly ignore them. What I would like to see for people is that they don’t give into the inclination to simulate past habits from inside their homes, that they don’t give into the urge to download hangout apps or video games or any other distractions. How about going the opposite way? How about doing things differently this time?

Opening Up To New Possibilities

For the first time in history, a situation came that allowed time to be dedicated to you. And this is a unique gift that is offered in disguise cause it’s not certain if there are many more chances to come, past the current situation. But what does it mean to dedicate time to yourself? Is it watching TV, reading a book or listening to music considered part of it? While all these activities are not harmful per se and we all indulge ourselves with them, they are not exactly to the point. Below is a list of recommendation beyond the usual advice on spending more time on the phone and petting your dog. Although they take effort and time, their benefits far outweigh all the difficulties in applying them.

Getting Retrospective

The first and most essential of all, is spending time in retrospection. Imagine you had a big project working on day and night, pouring sweat and effort in it to make it a success. Imagine that you are fully immersed in its success and it is already an ongoing process for the years to come. How would you use your time had it being known to you there is a small break in it for some period? What actions would you take to ensure its successful advance?

What best opportunity than getting full retrospective mode on the past and contemplating in its most significant events. This ‘project’ is nothing else but your life and the decisions you made in it and you’ll have to dive into it explore it with a refreshed eye. Your task is simple. You are gonna have to write 10 entries in a journal related to your recent past (or even further away if you prefer) on the things that had the biggest emotional impact on you during that period. It doesn’t matter if it is about a person that supported you, a peer that nailed you or a spouse that broke up with you. You are gonna have to let go of any filters and inhibitions and go full express mode on them. If you think this is a tough process, you are right. It is. If you think this will be liberating as well, you are right again.

How Journaling Helps

Journaling is simply one of those activities that everyone drains before he tries it, but absolutely adore after. It does take work and creativity but all the hurdle vanishes right after you start your very first sentence. As you go along with it, you may notice a weight getting off your shoulders as well and your chest opening up a bit more outwards. It’s because of the process of accepting your story, your truth and essence as you feel it and making peace with it in your own terms. Once you re hooked you re gonna be in it forever..

Limit Your Input And Immerse Into Dopamine Fasting

Dopamine fasting? Right in the midst of an apocalypse? Am I seriously asking people to let go of the only thing that gives joy and keeps them going? Well, matters are not always as they may appear. What disguises as a helpful tool may actually hurt us in ways we can barely fathom. And the hunting for dopamine is nothing but a distraction in a world that requires your full concentration. Scrolling at Facebook or other social media is simply a luxury you cannot afford. Same goes for watching Netflix, shows and YouTube videos for more than a very short amount of time. You will have to limit every kind of input to the mere essentials starting from the food you eat all the way to the information that is going in your head and the messages you have to process. Sitting in the toilet is gonna be just you alone with yourself without phones, magazines, podcasts or anything to consume your time with.

Dopamine fasting is not about refreshing your brain physically and rejuvenating your chemical adaptors (at least in this case). It is all in the purpose of finding stillness, finding that inner peace within you that helps you remap to the course you walk and what you are all about. To reconnect with your essence and start listening to that inner voice of yours again. And that means minimizing any kind of notification that is created to get your attention away from what matters to you and be transferred to what matters to someone else.

Start A Blog

There are a few things that can motivate you as powerfully as expressing yourself and what matters to you fully and openly to the public domain for everyone to see. Make no mistake though. This is not about achieving a certain number of views or getting some kind of feedback and good comments. That would get you back where you started on. It’s more about making a rigid statement of how you see things and what matters to you as it comes unforcefully and naturally. Luckily, there are many easy and cheap solutions out there to get you started without having to spend a fortune.

Try In-House Exercises

Any kind of exercise is good. No matter if you go to the gym, run in the park or raising dumbbells in your living room. Every one of them can help you in a different way and exercise particular parts of your body. What many people don’t know though though is that you can have great sessions of workout inside your house, through programs and instructors that can benefit you in ways you can’t even imagine. And all this through the comfort of your own home. Among the great workout programs out there you can find many based on insanity, P90X or even Yoga classes to keep your fitness levels up and activate your body. If you assume any of them is gonna be easy, rest assured they are gonna extract the better part of you.

As the current pandemic is steadily growing and forces us to change our lives for good, remember that is up to you to take control of your life and focus on things you can change instead of what is lacking. This will set a strong basis for when all this is gonna be over.