16 Productive Things to do in Work From Home

With the eruption of the Coronavirus rippling with full force across the world, safety becomes the top priority, and the prospect of a temporary phase of quarantine is now looming or has probably already been undertaken in your neighborhoods. People across the world are attempting to grasp the tricks to cope with quarantines in an endeavor to curb the further spread of the COVID19. With staying cooped in our homes becoming an urgent requirement, everyone is searching for ways to keep themselves busy. 

 

Bored from staying at home? Feeling restless over not being productive? Longing to make the most of this momentary hiatus? 

 

Well, we’ve got some refreshing solutions for you! There’s a whole treasure of activities you can pursue to make this layoff period more productive and rewarding. From discovering a plethora of intriguing online courses to trying out an assortment of multifarious dishes, there’s no end to the things you can do to make the most of this time off! 

 

This blog offers you just a section of the inexhaustible options that lie before you. 

 

Enhance your skills and knowledge

 

1. Practice Digital Marketing

 

Digital Marketing is like an all-purpose weapon that proves its worth in almost every noteworthy field. Learning this skill can never go to waste. From offering a wide variety of career opportunities, generating leads from the digital sales funnel, assisting in maintaining a lead over competitors, to aiding one in launching their own creative business project, be it through YouTube, blog creations, or with affiliate marketing, there’s no end to the perks this skill offers. 

 

Now when time and energy is at your expense this skill can be garnered through a variety of ways :

 

• By enrolling in professional digital marketing courses such as Simplilearn’s digital marketing specialist program or Coursera’s Digital Marketing Specialization which offers fruitful online courses and certifications. 

• It can also be learned by following influencers or industry experts, Moz’s announcement of Google’s January 2020 core updates.

• By keeping track of digital marketing blogs and videos such as Kissmetrics, Neil Patel or Search Engine Journal.

 

 

2. Learning a new programming language

 

For those developers who are familiar with at least one programming language or those professionals who are not into programming but wish to dive straight into it for better career prospects, it’s the best time to learn Python. 

 

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Learn Coding Online

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Python scores over all other languages for learning due to its wide applicability and ease of learning. Python can be used in web applications (backend), network servers, data analysis, Internet of Things and Machine Learning to name a few. It’s a fairly high-level language, easy to learn and easy to comprehend. The Internet is full of free resources for learning this amazing language. You have to pick a tutorial book or pdf and install Python from Python.Org.

 

Speaking of Python, you can also check out our blog on “Implementing Variance and Normalization under Principal Component Analysis with Python code”

 

 

3. Discover the magical world of Artificial Intelligence

 

A significant trend in the above-mentioned digital marketing skill is Artificial Intelligence. Artificial Intelligence plays a massive role in revolutionizing numerous prominent industries for instance, in the healthcare industry by allowing the doctors to scan and diagnose a patient via distant locations thus reducing the requirement of being present in person or in the mobile industry where the mobile encompasses an all-purpose device be it by becoming a digital wallet or even a personal assistant for example “Siri”, Apple Inc’s virtual assistant which response to all the queries of the users based on their habits and preferences and also provides valuable suggestions. 

 

“Artificial intelligence is the biggest commercial opportunity for companies, industries, and countries and will increase global GDP by up to 14% by 2030”.  - As per a recent report by PwC

 

With an ocean of online courses in today’s digitally-driven era encompassing everything from basics to advanced applications, there’s no limit to the knowledge you can gain while sitting at home. 

 

A few of the free easily accessible courses presently are Google AI which is a recently started resource by Google for enhancing the general public’s knowledge of AI. It includes crash courses on Machine Learning with TensorFlow or Stanford University’s Machine Learning, which is offered via Coursera and covers a spectrum of real-world machine learning applications such as speech recognition and enhanced web search and also advanced technical topics like linear regression. 

 

 

4. Explore Data Science Courses

 

Data pretty much serves as the fuel that propels industries. Big Data has massively revolutionized firms and given them an advantage in competition. Be it in fields like entertainment, banking, healthcare, technology, consumer, or manufacturing, each field relies on data to carry it forward, aiding in its promotion or research.  

 

These companies require specialized people adept at handling, interpreting, and comprehending trends in data. Employers have realized that employees holding these abilities have growing prominence, irrespective of their background or position in a firm.

 

Now this quarantine offers you the perfect opportunity to explore the sea of free online courses and tutorials offering this skill and apply it to your advantage. 

 

One such course includes Coursera’s Data Science Specialization which teaches statistical programming in R, cluster analysis, natural language processing, and real-life applications of machine learning. 

 

Another course is KDNuggets’s Data Mining Course which offers modules on machine learning, statistical concepts like decision trees, regression, and also includes an intro to real-life applications of the technology. 

 

 

5. Sink into the universe of the Internet of Things

 

As we constantly head towards a world governed and connected by the Internet, the employment of the Internet of Things (IoT) escalates in various sectors of the world. Be it the healthcare, security sector, big data, it's all part of the shared ecosystem designed by the internet. IoT enables firms to facilitate real-world resolutions as they cut back on the required resources as well as faster response times for the firms through smart meters. 

 

With the world heading towards 5G, the demand for people being knowledgeable of this technology increases, and this time off becomes the perfect prospect for you to learn more about it.

 

Various beginner and advanced online courses are facilitated by Coursera for the same such as Industrial IoT on Google Cloud Platform which offers knowledge of the whole industrial IoT network architecture from sensors and devices to analysis, focusing on cloud. Yet another course is Programming with cloud IoT platforms which facilitates an introduction of IoT Cloud platforms from Samsung, Microsoft, Amazon, IBM, and Google and helps determine how they can be used in developing IoT applications. 

 

 

6. Traverse into the realm of Business Analytics

 

Wish to start a business? Want to learn all about the business world and feeling this lockdown is making you lose valuable time to do the same?

 

This suggestion is especially for all the established and inspiring entrepreneurs out there. For surviving in the enterprise sector, extensive and thorough knowledge regarding the world of business analytics is required. Business Analytics is an excellent tool for supplying conducive business insights on the basis of real-world statistics and data, as a result, inspiring data-driven decision making.

 

upGrad’s Business Analytics Starter Pack is one such worthwhile abode to kickstart this journey. 

 

 

7. Master the tricks of MS Office

 

We are all familiar with the role played by MS Office in our day-to-day office-based activities. Every platform expects its employees to have knowledge of this platform for some purpose or the other. 

 

You can take advantage of this lockdown period to gain knowledge of the tricks and techniques of MS Office by taking up the free certification MS Office course packages while sitting in your homes. Free online lockdown MS Office courses are available online in various languages that cover MS Excel, PowerPoint, Outlooks, and various more alongside advanced MS Office functionalities. 

 

 

Some fun things to do while focusing on your personal peace and development

 

Yes Shakespeare may have written “King Lear” while stuck in quarantine, Thomas Nashe may have created the Self-Portrait with the Spanish Flu and Newton may have conceived calculus, yet alongside productivity, another aspect that is of extreme prominence is focusing on our own internal peace and development. 

 

 

8. Get Fit

 

The time you couldn't seem to find coping with college assignments or jobs is completely at your disposal now. Follow tutorials and guides on Google or YouTube and get that energy rolling. A fitness routine is crucial to keep your body active. From yoga sessions to mat pilates, weight training using home objects, where there’s a will, there’s always a way!

 

 

9. Learn some new languages

 

Traveling is fun and even more, fun is being able to grasp the languages of the different places we visit! This hiatus offers you the perfect opportunity to learn some new languages and enjoy practicing them!  There are so many ways to discover new languages such as Duolingo, a free app that lets you try out more than 30 language courses, or through online classes or even employing traditional methods like flashcards or post-it notes on the mirror. Bleib gesegnet! 

 

 

10. Meditate

 

We’ve been facing some rough times and these are bound to be accompanied by some mental distress, apprehension, and tensions. At such a time meditating becomes almost imperative and one of the healthiest tasks that can be undertaken. 

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Practice Meditation

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You can either devise your own spiritual retreats at home, a regime that enriches and soothes you by referring to meditation videos and apps which aid you in discovering your inner peace. Making it an everyday regime will help you in being able to unwind and relax amid all the adversities and complications of the pandemic.

 

 

11. Binge watching

 

Probably one of the best and easiest things to do during this layoff. Those pending shows and movies added to your Netflix and Prime lists aren’t going to finish off by themselves. Also, take out this time to try out some of those top-rated IMDB films, some may be overrated but all will definitely give you a lot to talk about once this state of affairs nears its end!

 

 

12. Podcasts that inspire

 

Podcast listening is actually a pretty fruitful habit to include in one's lifestyle. The audio stories and interviews we listen to in these podcasts are effective in helping us conquer any blocks we face in our creativity, in educating us, inspiring and teaching us when it comes to making the most of our time, and ensuring that we stay updated regarding all the latest world.  Two distinguished sites you would all be familiar with are Spotify and Soundcloud. Both are excellent sites to discover podcasts. 

 

 

13. Tour your way through exquisite cities

 

No, we don't mean physically touring these cities of course!!  We've now got intriguing platforms like Google Street View, allowing you to step aboard your own virtual magic carpet and tour through a few of the most exotic places and locations across the globe. 

 

 

14.  Keep a blog/ Journal

 

It's always a good and productive option to maintain track of our thoughts, what we learn and do, be it on our phones, or of course in a diary. This allows us to reminisce that time and process our memories and thoughts. This can even be set up as a personal blog where we record our daily experiences, turning them into daily posts for others to explore and observe. This would become an excellent and fulfilling+ way for spending our time. 

 

 

15.  Let's solve a puzzle! 

 

Problem-solving is always an excellent way of getting our minds running. For instance, solving puzzles becomes an excellent way to improve our memories, enhance our problem-solving skills and boost that IQ. This can be done by solving fun things like jigsaws, sudoku puzzles, and crosswords we've got lying around in our homes and never got to work on.

 

 

16. How about getting some new hobbies?

 

It's time to tuck that phone away for some time folks and find something even more fun to do!! The world is at your disposal and there are hundreds of things you can take up! Google and learn how to make some fun dishes, who knows you might actually be a chef in the making! Try out your hand at painting, read those pending books, explore the magical world of origami, you could even write a book because what other perfect time would the Charles Dickens buried within you get to flourish and come out?