On Being Productive During the Lockdown

So now that we are all spending time entirely at home, we all experience a significant shake on our routine. No more travels, no gyms, no concerts, decreased if not no work stress, no social gatherings and more time with family.

During the first few days, I started my day mostly playing the piano or the guitar. It made me realize again that music is one of my passions. The rest of the week was just freewheeling, browsing my phone immediately after waking up. I go to the front yard for a little bit of sunrise, then just being reactive at work than proactive.

I don’t feel like meditating anymore, i listen to fewer podcasts, and more browsing online.

In the second week, I was a bit dissatisfied already with my day-to-day. I was itching to write but I couldn\’t find the right moment. I was worried about the economy and anxious about what\’s going to happen in my business. Should I look for another income stream or start planting fruits and vegetables at the backyard in preparation for the worst case.

As I write this, I remember Viktor E. Frankl, author of Man\’s Search for Meaning as he tells the story of how he survived the Holocaust by finding personal meaning in the experience, which gave him the will to live through it. Here are some quotes from the book:

\”Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms, to choose one\’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one\’s own way.\” – This motivated me to choose my way and start being productive during this lockdown period.

\”Those who have a \’why\’ to live, can bear with almost any \’how\’\”. This motivated me to realize why I do what I do.

\”An abnormal reaction to an abnormal situation is normal behavior.\” – They say that innovation mostly happens during a crisis and an abnormal reaction to this issue should be the right behavior.

So I decided to continue to do things that I do, promote my advocacy, help aspiring entrepreneurs and small businesses, sell, and execute but this time, in a virtual fashion. It\’s not your thoughts, worries, and anxieties, it is all about your actions.

So here\’s to share my day-in-life and on being productive during this lockdown period:

• Plan Your Day (Still). Being at home is no different from my normal lifestyle outside. I choose to plan my day the night before. I still use Google Calendar and use time-blocking techniques for focus and productivity.

• Balance. I still categorize my activities based on certain aspects to achieve balance. Morning meditation, home workout, healthy diet, 8-hour workday, read a book, write blogs, a little bit of entertainment, mindful interaction & quality time with loved ones and personal improvement.

• Home Workout. There\’s no excuse not to exercise anymore with a lot of free home workout videos on YouTube or even exercise apps. My favorites are alternating HIIT and bodyweight workouts.

• Healthy Diet. A lot of memes come out about gaining weight after the lockdown. I was almost a victim of it the first few days but I chose to continue to do at 16-hour fasting from 6 pm to 10 am, eat a lot of vegetables, fruits, protein, and a little bit of fat. I get fats from my fish oil early in the morning, while eggs and Whey for protein. Since I am in the province, we set up our meals outside the house within the backyard to experience trees and nature while also feeding stray cats and dogs while we eat. We chat a little bit about COVID-19 news with our mom and aunt, to catch up.

• Digital Marketing. My hypothesis on this crisis is a lot of small businesses will be more open to digital transformation and I am focusing my content on it from website development, e-commerce, and business process automation. There\’s good traction so far, and I have several remote consultations already in the past days and more confirmed schedules on upcoming days.

• Personal Improvement. I came across some ideas on having new income streams, such as stock investing, affiliate marketing, blogs/vlogs and more. I am currently experimenting on those income streams and I will share with you my progress on my next post.

• Relationships and Art. Aside from writing, as I mentioned, I am really into music. I spend time with Lian and Isabela through music by learning to play some new songs and recording those songs with them. I also schedule a quick video chat with Fiona and Charles since they are in Manila while I am locked down here in Batangas.

• Entertainment. We squeeze in a little bit of Netflix show at night.

• Reading. I realized I have a lot of unfinished books in my Kindle and this is the perfect time to read them at night before sleep.

So that\’s about it. Being productive is a choice regardless of where you are and what the situation is. 

I am hoping to keep this momentum and to keep being optimistic about what the future will hold after this pandemic.  

So let me know your comments or ideas to improve our health both physically and mentally to keep our happiness and sanity in check.