How to make better use of my free time? 7 steps to follow

In the world there are people of all kinds, we all know it... people who do not have free time (or if they do, they do not value it too much), people who get bored in their free time (or with too much time), people who take advantage of their free days to make a thousand plans ...

If you are one of those who have the feeling that they are not taking advantage of their free time and would like to change it, surely these key ideas that try to answer the question of: “How to make better use of my free time?". You can take them as guidelines to follow step by step.

• Related article: "Time management: 13 tips to take advantage of the hours of the day"

How to make better use of my free time: 7 tips and key ideas

They say that time is a scarce commodity... and that is, we spend a huge part of our lives working, or doing things out of obligation, attending to responsibilities... But what about our free time? Do we really take advantage of it, when we have it? Or, more importantly, do we have the feeling that we enjoy it?

Each person invests their time in what they most want, although it is true that laziness often makes us stop do things that we might like to do, and it even leaves us with that annoying feeling of not enjoying our time leisure.

It is also true, on the other hand, that we live in a hectic and fast-paced society, and that they have “sold” us that we must always be active, doing a thousand things, occupying our time... that will make us feel good ...

Nothing is further from reality. Rest, sleep, "do nothing" (in Italian, the famous dolce far niente), also means taking advantage of time. So get rid of prejudices, prefabricated ideas as standard and start enjoying what you really want to do... yes, If you still want a series of ideas to make the most of (in the sense of enjoying) your free time, keep reading!

1. Make a list of plans

The first tip is this: make a list of plans, activities or ideas that you have in mind that you want to do.

Surely on many occasions you have thought: "I will never have time to do this, or that ...". And later the time comes and you do not remember what you had longed for so much. So put your planning skills into practice and write down all those things that you want to do (or have ever wanted to do). Maybe at one point you don't want them, but you never know when that longing may come back.

The important thing is that you develop a list of ideas (brainstorming type), which you gradually filter by real interests, and that you can finally have it to start putting your plans into practice.

2. Get organized

It seems a bit contradictory, doesn't it? Set a schedule on "how to make the best use of my free time"? Well it is not too much; Do you really plan your work time? And even your vacation?

In the end, vacations are part of free time. So, we encourage you to give it a try. Make a schedule with the hours you have free during the day (or during the week, it all depends on each one); In this way, you will be able to see more clearly how much real free time you have and how you can distribute it with each activity that interests you, with the aim of making the most of it.

Organization is the key!

3. Get rid of laziness

Is a reality; Even having free time sometimes makes us lazy. Although, on second thought, perhaps it is more the fact of thinking about things to "occupy" that time that causes us laziness.

If you are looking for the answer to the question of how to make the best use of your free time, one of the most important steps you must take is to get rid of this laziness. To do this, you can start making small plans or activities that motivate you; it may be a few minutes a day at the beginning.

The reality is that many times, by activating ourselves, we are also activating our energy and our desire to do more things, which leads to improving our mood and increasing our motivation to take advantage of that free time that have. However, We must not forget that each one takes advantage of free time in their own way, and how you want; In other words, there are people who prefer to take advantage of it by resting, sleeping, tidying up the house ...

Everything is legal and there is nothing correct in this sense; The important thing, yes, is to feel that we do what we really want in that free time that we have, and never feel that we are wasting it or “throwing it away” (remember: resting is also a way of occupying our time free).

• You may be interested: "50 things to do on the weekend"

4. Propose realistic plans

There are people to whom you ask: "How do I make the best use of my free time?" And they quickly start to make a great list of things or plans in which you could invest your free time. Various ideas, of all kinds, crazy, simple... But a lot of things. And then we ask ourselves: would he have time to do all that? Do I really want to saturate myself with all these things (or others)? So, another important tip is the following: set realistic plans for yourself (in terms of the type of plan, its frequency, etc.).

That is, and so that we understand each other; Better to propose, at the beginning, to go to the gym once a week (and stick with it) (and because we really want to) than not to propose to go every day, and not go at all. Or to propose to go to the mountains on the weekend, taking advantage of the fact that we have a bridge, not to think about the great vacations to Punta Cana when you have time... Be practical and realistic and define well what you want make.

5. Look for new hobbies, challenges or interests

Look for new goals, activities, hobbies, interests… Don't be afraid to explore!

In addition, it is very likely that as a result of looking for new things that you may like, in previously unexplored fields find some new motivation (and it is likely also, that in turn, this will lead you to other things, and to others ...). So, research, analyze, compare... and you will land on the next tip.

6. Dare to try new things

You have looked for new things and it turns out that... you have found something that you like! Whether you already had activities that interested you, or not, broadening horizons is always a good option (revitalizes the mind).

So, it is time to dare with those new activities. Try them, get motivated with them. Y If in the end it turns out that they were not really your interests, absolutely nothing happens; You will have learned what you do not like, which also has its "what". Besides that, there is no better way to take advantage of those minutes or hours a day that we have for ourselves, than enjoying the first few times, don't you think?

7. Travels

Finally, the last piece of advice that answers the question "how to make the best use of my free time" is simply: travel, explore the world, visit unknown places ...

There is a popular phrase that says: "the world is a book and those who do not travel only read one page." So what better way could there be to take advantage of your free time? There are people who are very homely, who do not like to travel very much... each person is a world in this sense.

However, it is also true that there are many times of travel: calmer and more relaxing, adventurous, combined, lonely, with the family, near, far, backpackers, luxury ...

When we travel we discover new cultures, new languages ​​and new ways of living and understanding life. Soaking in it all is likely to make you feel richer when you come back (mentally and spiritual), and that you feel that you are making the most of your time (especially your free time!)

Bibliographic references:

• Gil, P.G. (2010). Educate in leisure and free time. Word Editions, S.A.
• Rodríguez, J.M.M. and Migueláñez, S.O. (2010). Adolescence, free time and education. A study with ESO students. Education XX1, 13 (2): 139-162.