Adulting means counting the waking hours of the day. Many of those hours, we are sacrificing our time or multitasking. It’s become our way of life! Thereof, that first trip of the day matters. Your morning commute is comprised of vital minutes that could help you have a thorough, more effective day.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, “about 8.1 percent of U.S. workers have commutes of 60 minutes or longer, 4.3 percent work from home, and nearly 600,000 full-time workers had “megacommutes” of at least 90 minutes and 50 miles. The average one-way daily commute for workers across the country is 25.5 minutes, and one in four commuters leave their county to work.” That is a lot of time in transition for a dedicated workforce. With this routine being the norm for many, the risks of zoned out drivers increases. Some will even tell you they don’t even know how they got to and from their destination. We’ve all been so conditioned to a commuting routine, that we simply can’t even keep up with the happenings along the way. We lose the present moment. However, there are ways to make your commute safe, yet intentional.
Talk to Siri or Bixby.
- Ask whatever questions come to mind instead of typing them out.
- Have them pull up a new note and tell them your todo list for the day. This way it is done by the time you get to work and you have a fresh mind when you sit down and get in the mode.
- Schedule Reminders or Appointments
- Send text messages/ Read text messages
- For more usage options for Siri, click here.
- For more usage options for Bixby, click here.
Listen to a podcast or an audiobook.
- Audible is a subscription service that offers books that are being read to you. It may even help you catch up on your book goals or attend that book club meeting on time with no shame of having not caught up.
- On day’s that you may be lacking motivation or needing to get caught up on a specific project, search for a podcast that talks about that specific topic. You will be surprised to learn the many tools and techniques that other’s utilize to work through similar issues.
Explore a new genre of music.
- It’s fun to discover new sounds as many artists are exploring outside of their genres. Go with them and try something different.
- According to Harvard Health Publishing, “Researchers speculated that listening to music helps organize the firing of nerve cells in the right half of the cerebral cortex, the part of the brain responsible for higher functions.” For more benefits of listening to music, click here.
Practice breathing.
- Traffic and commuting can be stressful blocks of time if you allow them to. Learning to relax and be mindful of your drive will help you to have a safe experience. You’ll also find that road rage or other high emotions will begin to lighten up if you just take a moment to exercise those lungs!
- Prayer is always a good option to be present and a good opportunity to talk to God!
- There’s also an app called Headspace.com that has all kinds of tools and tips to help you as you commute.
Catch up with your loved ones.
- There’s never enough time in the day to call your grandmother, but here is your chance. She’ll likely only want to talk for a few minutes anyway so why not utilize this time to check on her!
- Use this time to call your friends and truly ask them how they are doing!
- Call your cousins and discuss how you can arrange more facetime in the future.
- Call that new friend that you just met and foster a relationship.
Just when you thought, your day’s would own your hours, you’ve just learned how to make up for a few extra minutes during your commute! First and foremost, be safe! Lastly, take advantage of your time.
