While this might not be the best time to write your best-selling novel or rebuild your entire kitchen after watching six hours of HGTV…we have to admit that there is quite a bit of downtime to get some things done that you typically don’t have the time for. The key here is to just make sure that you’re doing smaller things that benefit you and make you smile vs. feeling stressed out. Constantly forcing yourself to be creative or productive during this time is a TON of pressure to put on yourself at a time where you are simply winning just by staying safe and keeping your family healthy!

However, some of us don’t know how to NOT be productive or creative with all of this extra time and it just comes naturally to us to want to do something.

Here are four, just four, productive things to do during quarantine that won’t stress you out

1. Buy a plant

I was definitely a plant lover pre-COVID19 and now that I’m cooped up in the house with them, it has made me appreciate them even more. I take the extra time that I have and show them some extra love. Before I would give them a quick spray and now I turn on some music, make sure each leaf gets just enough moisture and I just take my time with them. Indoor plants are known to boost your mood and even your productivity. They also reduce stress and clean the indoor air by absorbing toxins, perfect timing for a pandemic virus! I recently bought a small aloe plant for $2 at Lowes so that I can take some of its aloe and mix it with alcohol, creating my own hand sanitizer. See! Look at me being productive just by buying an aloe plant, ha!

2. Take a class

Like take one that you actually like or have interest in. Not a class for work or to be graded in school. Right now, Harvard University (yes, I said HARVARD!) is offering 64 online classes for free (yes, I also said FREE) on anything from game development to the pyramids of Giza. If you haven’t noticed everyone is an expert now on everything (very annoying btw) and now you can too, but with actual research. Click here for more info about the courses. Another fun thing that I’m doing while learning and not stressing myself out is the app, Duolingo. I took Spanish all through high school and really enjoyed it. As an adult I apply it way more than I thought I would. I’ve guided Uber drivers that only spoke Spanish to my destination and I’ve used it in a hospital setting when I worked as a surgical tech (another story for another day). Duolingo has over 30 languages for you to explore and they make it fun! Check it out in your App Store.

3. Try a new recipe

Most of you know that I like to cook and bake andddd most of you know that this is pretty much required on a daily basis during quarantine. I’m cooking way more than ever before, forcing me to try new recipes so that we don’t get tired of eating the same things over and over again. I recently tried (forgot to add to the blog, sorry guys but you can find it on my Instagram, @itsjoitomyworld) a snack that my daughter and I enjoy making and eating, ‘S’more pretzel bites’. I found the original recipe on Pinterest and decided to just go for it.

Here are some other recipes that I’ve done recently for you to check out:

Easy Shrimp & Grits

Damn Good Mozzarella Chicken & Shrimp Pasta

4. Organize the photos in your phone

I’m not the most organized person but when you have a lot of moving parts everyday, it is definitely helpful to be organized when I can be. Creating albums for my photos in my phone has been extremely helpful when it comes to posting content on my blog and social sites and referring back to old memories and events.

5. Order takeout

While this might not feel productive to you, it is to small business and our economy. Without getting into politics or off-topic, our country is going to be hurting from this pandemic for quite some time. This is a reach but this is technically productive for you too, as it gives your mind and body a break making you more productive in other areas. A great campaign that I’ve been seeing across my social platforms is #TakeoutTuesday. One day a week, on Tuesdays, we order takeout to give myself a break and support local restaurants. I would suggest following @thegreatamericantakeout on IG! You can share your takeout pics and tag them for chances to win a restaurant gift card. It’s a super cool concept.