Making the most of your spare time: A guide

It’s believed that the average British worker is at work for just over 34 hours a week – and with many also facing other responsibilities such as childcare, care for elderly parents or even just long lists of household to-do tasks, it can often feel like there’s not enough time left in the day for anything else. For that reason, making the most of the spare time you have available is a must. This blog post will share some tips on how to make it happen.

Plan in advance

Everyone knows someone who seems to have their time organised to the most precise degree – and it’s easy to become a little jealous from time to time. Some people seem to book amazing holidays years ahead, while others always find the best money-off coupons for theatre shows, theme parks and more. While it may not always be possible for you to do that, it’s definitely the case that planning is key. If you can book annual leave months in advance, for example, you’ll be able to make the most of the cheap deals available on everything from train tickets to days out.

Make spare time non-negotiable

On a smaller scale, another problem that busy people often face when it comes to carving out spare time is actually sticking to the plan. It’s a common scenario: you promise yourself a night in front of the TV with a takeaway, but when you get home some other demand on your attention – such as a mountain of laundry – competes for your time. It’s important to ensure that you treat your me time as being non-negotiable, and stick to it. Remember: the laundry can always be done tomorrow. And if you need to, ensure that others in the household – such as older children and partners – are pulling their weight, and that everyone has a balance between chores and leisure.

Use the tools available

As mentioned above, the internet is your friend when it comes to planning ahead. But there are other ways in which online tools can be used to your advantage in the never-ending fight to optimise your free time, too. Take gaming halls: going out to a hall requires a whole afternoon or evening of commitment by the time you’ve factored in travel time, but the best online bingo sites allow you to sign up quickly and get playing from your sofa instead. The same goes for other entertainment forms, too, such as swapping the cinema for Netflix. When leisure time is scarce, there’s no point wasting any more minutes than you have to.

Whatever exact activities are the ones sapping your time, our fast-paced world means it’s difficult to carve out some spare time for yourself. That’s why optimising the free time you do have is essential: from ensuring that you don’t get distracted by odd jobs to getting hold of technology which can cut out some of the drains on your precious relaxation hours, there are lots of ways to do it.

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