How To Be Productive – 9 Ways To Be Productive While Waiting
Want to know how to be productive while waiting? Here are 9 ways to be productive rather than wasting time while waiting.
Let’s chat about how to be productive while waiting.
Waiting personally isn’t one of my favorite things to do.
In fact, it used to annoy me so much when I was forced to wait for something to start or someone to arrive.
But alas, waiting is a part of life and it turns out, we spend a lot of time waiting.
We wait for people to meet us at a restaurant.
We wait at the dentist’s office.
We wait for meetings to start.
We wait in line at the store.
We wait in traffic.
There’s a lot of waiting going on over the course of a year.
The turning point for me was when I decided to use this time to my advantage. Imagine what you could accomplish with that time if you used it well.
Seriously? Imagine making that time WORK FOR YOU, rather than sitting there fuming and getting angrier by the second.
You could learn a ton of things.
You could also accomplish a lot and enjoy more free time at the end of your day.
It’s time to make this waiting time to good use with these strategies:
HOW TO BE PRODUCTIVE WHILE WAITING
TIP # 1 – Make phone calls.
If you have a phone call to make, why not get caught up on your phone calls while you’re just waiting?
There never seems to be enough time to make all the necessary phone calls during the day so consider this the perfect time to return those calls.
Business or pleasure, it’s your choice.
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- When did you last call your best friend or mom? Do it now, while you have the free time.
HOW TO BE PRODUCTIVE WHILE WAITING
TIP # 2 – Answer emails.
This is easier to do in public than making phone calls (unless of course you are waiting in the car).
I personally like to clear my emails on a daily basis but I hate using my productive hours to get this done so I squeeze it in when the time would otherwise be wasted anyway.
Get caught up on your emails instead of just sitting in the doctor’s office.
Make the time there count.
HOW TO BE PRODUCTIVE WHILE WAITING
TIP # 3 – Make plans.
Whether you need to make plans for the weekend or a grocery list, you can do some constructive planning while you wait.
Honestly, it’s the perfect time to think and brainstorm especially if your environment is relatively quiet.
Heaps of successful businesses have been planned and built outside work hours so why not use this time to your advantage.
Imagine what you could do if you never wasted any of the time you spend waiting (answer: a lot!)
HOW TO BE PRODUCTIVE WHILE WAITING
TIP # 4 – Meditate.
Meditation is one of those activities that we know would be useful to do but we can never find the right time to do so.
That’s why your waiting time is a perfect time to give it a go.
Sitting in the examination room while you wait for the doctor or an appointment is a great time to meditate.
Even if you get in only 10 minutes that is 10 more minutes than you would have otherwise done.
With practice, you can meditate while you stand in line at the store, too!
HOW TO BE PRODUCTIVE WHILE WAITING
TIP # 5 – Read.
This is my favorite thing to do whilst waiting because it makes waiting feel so enjoyable.
Make sure to carry a book with you or do what I do which is this: download the iBooks or Kindle app on your phone and read your books way.
Because I read every night before I go to bed, I LOVE getting extra time to check in on a great book or story.
You can literally read anything you like – non-fiction to fiction, classics to the popular stuff. The choice is yours.
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- The time will pass whether you’re doing something constructive or not, so you may as well learn something while you wait.
HOW TO BE PRODUCTIVE WHILE WAITING
TIP # 6 – Listen to something useful.
What’s “useful” is up to you.
It can be anything from your favorite music to a podcast or Ted Talk or a lecture on YouTube – these are all great ways to use your waiting time.
It’s like reading, only less work and more fun, and you can close your eyes.
HOW TO BE PRODUCTIVE WHILE WAITING
TIP # 7 – Relax.
We all complain about not having enough time to do NOTHING and just relax and then we are presented with exactly this during our waiting time.
Sigh, how ironic right?
Why not just close your eyes if possible and enjoy a few minutes of peace.
You can daydream, focus on your breathing, or enjoy the scenery.
Taking a few minutes to unwind can be a big relief.
HOW TO BE PRODUCTIVE WHILE WAITING
TIP # 8 – Make a friend.
This is what people used to do all the time in the days before.
We would use this time to socialize and make conversation.
You might make a friend or at the very least have an interesting conversation and practice your social skills, too.
People engage in much less face-to-face communication today so do you can do your part to revive the art of conversation.
HOW TO BE PRODUCTIVE WHILE WAITING
TIP # 9 – Visualize being successful.
Visualization is a really underestimated activity to do.
Think of this as intentional daydreaming.
Imagine yourself accomplishing your goals and focus on how good it feels.
Focus on your future self – the very best version of yourself – and think about what she would be doing, saying, thinking right now.
Doing this several times a day for just a few minutes add up!
You’ll notice results soon if you’re consistent.
Now I know it’s hard to calculate exactly how much time you spend waiting around in a year but think about it now and take an educated guess.
Isn’t it a shame to let that time go to waste?
What could you accomplish with that time instead if you were proactive and intentional with it?
Don’t assume that your waiting time needs to be wasted time.
It really doesn’t need to be.
Instead, you can make the most of your day by utilizing every minute you can to the best of your ability. Be productive while waiting instead.
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Before You Go…
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I’m Frances Vidakovic – a mindset & action coach for quietly ambitious women who want to stop overthinking and finally take aligned action. I help women achieve their goals and follow through on what matters, without sacrificing their sanity or soul.