An extra hour is all well and good, but what should we do with it?
Every October, we resign ourselves to the fact that winter is on the way, especially when the clocks go back. The end of daylight savings for the year. We hide ourselves away with our hot chocolates, fluffy socks, and box sets and hibernate until the spring.
Often we forget that with the clocks going back, we have a whole extra hour for one day. A full hour to do whatever we like! So what are you going to do with that time?
Decisions, decisions…
Well, you could have an extra hour in bed, or have a long, lazy breakfast (we recommend a full English breakfast), or you could simply waste the time mindlessly scrolling through social media.
But imagine how satisfied you’ll feel if you get up at the same time as usual and do something productive with your extra hour. Even better, imagine what you would do if you had that extra hour every day and it transformed your life?
Learn a language, discover a whole new world
Learning a language opens the door to a new career, friendships, and even the chance to live and work in another country. Imagine learning German and then moving to the cultural melting pot of Berlin, or spending an hour each day practising business English and gaining that all important promotion you deserve.
Learning is good for you
The health benefits of getting up early, exercise and healthy eating have been proven. Well, guess what? Learning a language is also good for your well-being! Multi-linguists are higher earners, tend to be more open-minded and better at solving problems and adapting to change. Learning a language also forces to you to concentrate, focus and live in the moment. It’s a deeply mindful experience in a world of constant distractions. What’s an hour a day when you could significantly improve your confidence and well-being? Not to mention opening doors to new careers and travel opportunities.
The extra hour
So, let’s cut to the chase! We all know we waste the odd hour here there doing silly things, or spiralling into Facebook oblivion. You could technically save an hour everyday if you cut out some of these time wasters:
- Spend less time on social media channels. How did you end up on your uncle’s, sister’s, best friend’s wedding pictures anyway?
- Pull yourself away from streaming videos. Come on, there are only so many cute animals you can watch.
- Get up an hour earlier and use the time to read over your lesson notes whilst tucking into your breakfast.
- Make more of your lunch break. Instead of sitting at your desk eating your sandwiches, take a Lingoda class or practise some of the new vocabulary you have learnt.
- Record some of the phrases you learn from your classes and listen to them on your commute into work.
- Teach your friends. It’s proven that by teaching others what you’ve learned, you’re more likely to retain your new language. So sit your best friend down, or call them at the end of the day, and tell them all about what you know!
