7 Ways to Beat Boredom While Staying Safe at Home

If there’s one thing we can all relate to as a result of the coronavirus stay at home order, it’s boredom. Even as stay-at-home orders around the country begin to relax slightly, we can still expect to spend a lot of time in our homes in the coming weeks.

But life while sheltering in place doesn't have to mean twiddling your thumbs or wandering around the house with nothing to do. Whether you want to try and remain productive, beat boredom, or just need some new ideas to stay busy while in staying safe at home, here are 7 great ideas you can do today.

1. Start a journal

Most of us have never faced a global pandemic before, which is understandably stressful. One way to beat boredom and stress is by starting a journal. Journaling has actually been shown to help reduce stress and boost your overall emotional well-being.

All it takes to start a journal is a pen and notebook or a computer. If you’re not sure what to write about, here are a few journal prompts to get you started:

• What are you grateful for, and why? You can even begin a daily gratitude journal, writing an event or thing you are grateful for each day.
• What is your happiest memory?
• What is something you’re proud of?
• Describe in detail what you want your life to be like in the next 10 years.

There are no rules with journaling — just start writing!

 

2. Find a new show to watch

Streaming service traffic has reached an all-time high since people started staying at home due to COVID-19. (Is anyone really surprised by this?) One great boredom buster is to find a new show or movie to watch online. This is a fun way to spend time together as a family while staying entertained. And if you’re feeling guilty about binge-watching, don’t worry — research has found that occasional escapes like binge-watching a favorite show can provide a much-needed psychological escape from reality.

If you need some ideas but aren’t sure what you’re in the mood for, check out this list of 100 movies to watch.

3. Read a book

Want something that will help you improve stress, keep boredom at bay, entertain you, and build your vocabulary at the same time? Read a book! Your brain will thank you; plenty of research exists that highlights the benefits of reading for people of all ages.

You can also read age-appropriate chapter books together as a family, taking turns reading chapters. This is a great option for parents who are home-schooling kids during the quarantine as well.

If you find it hard to sit down and read a book, it’s also something you can do while multitasking. For example, you can read while riding an exercise bike or listen to an audiobook while doing chores around the house.

Here are a few ideas of books to read for adults while you're staying safe at home, as well as some books you can read to your kids.

 

4. Meditate

The practice of meditation to improve greater peace and mindfulness has been around for centuries. Meditation is a simple practice that has a number of benefits, including reducing stress and improving focused. It’s also a great way to reduce boredom by allowing you to recharge and refresh your mind.

Not sure where to start? Here is simple way to practice guided meditation that only takes 5 minutes:

• Find a quiet place to sit down.
• Relax your body, including any areas of tension or tightness.
• Focus on your breathing. Pay attention to how you breathe and how it feels. For example, you might notice that it feels cool as you inhale, and warmer as you exhale.
• Refocus if your mind starts to wander. It’s natural for your mind to wander. If it does, just redirect your attention back to your breathing.
• Practice this for 5 minutes. End your meditation with a final focus on your body as a whole.

You can meditate whenever you’re bored, or also at the beginning or end of every day. It’s a great habit to get into, and one you’ll likely want to continue after life gets back to normal.

5. Clean 

You’ve probably heard the saying, “A cluttered home is a cluttered mind.” And with the whole family at home now, chances are good the house is getting a little messier than normal. Since you’re home anyway, why not take this opportunity to do a little spring cleaning?

A clean house not only means less stress and more room to play or relax, but it also helps keep germs at bay. (Another bonus to cleaning the house when you’re feeling bored? Your kids will never tell you “I’m bored!” again!)

Since cleaning the house from top to bottom can be a little daunting, a spring cleaning checklist can help you get started. Here are a few other general spring cleaning tips to help you through your tasks:

• Focus on one room at a time.
• Assign different tasks to each member of the family.
• Play your favorite music while you clean.
• Make it fun by turning it into a game; for example, you can set a timer and play Beat the Clock. Whoever finishes their chore first gets to choose a movie to watch or game to play as a family later.
• Save major cleanups for right before trash-collecting day, so you don’t have trash bags piling up in your house or garage.

 

6. Start cooking

If you’ve always wanted to learn to cook or try new dishes but never had the time, there’s no better time than while sheltering in place to hone your cooking or baking skills.

Look up tips and trick to improve your baking. For example, did you know that using a light-colored pan while baking can help you avoid burning the bottoms of cakes and cookies? Or that weighing dry ingredients is more accurate than measuring them with spoons or cups? You can spend hours just researching different tips to make your baking better than ever.

It’s also the perfect time to branch out and try new recipes. Or, if you’re feeling really creative, try these simple recipes that can be made at home with ingredients you probably already have on hand.

7. Sign up for Tiktok

What is TikTok? It’s the social media platform that’s been taking over your Instagram and Facebook feeds with viral challenges like nurses dancing or lip-syncing. And it’s not just for kids—more than 26% of Tiktok users in the US are between 25 and 44 years old.

It’s also become one of the funnest ways to stay entertained (and entertain others!) while social distancing. Just like other social media apps, it’s free to sign up for and post to TikTok, so brush up on your dancing skills and start filming.

If starring in your own video isn't your thing, you don't need to be behind the camera to enjoy TikTok. With more than 800 million active users, there's no shortage of videos to watch.

Check out these hilarious Tiktok quarantine videos to get you started. Or check out our official Vivint Tiktok account.

Let your smart home keep you connected while staying safe at home

Your smart home can also help you keep boredom at bay while you’re social distancing, so make sure you rely on it. Take a look at a few ways it can help you stay connected and entertained:

• Play audiobooks on your smart speaker, like Amazon Echo or Google Home, while you clean the house or work out.
• Want to visit with family and friends? Have a doorbell video visit! You can maintain a safe social distance and still speak to each other through the two-way talk feature.
• Program new skills on your smart speaker that can keep you entertained, like Tell Me a Joke.

 

While quarantine and fun aren't two words you're likely to associate with each other, these tips will help keep boredom at bay while you're staying at home.

Or are you interested in installing a smart home? We can help with that. Call our Smart Home Pros today at 800.646.1469 for a free quote.