I never really anticipate waiting. So it always catches me off guard, when I’m at the doctor’s office, that I have nothing to do for 20 minutes. So I often pull out my phone to play a game or check social media… I basically waste 20 minutes of my life doing something useless.
Are you like me? It’s something that happens to all of us.
We’re waiting for a spouse to get ready to go to church. Waiting for the dentist. Stuck in line at the DMV. Waiting for the shuttle driver at the car service center.
So what’s a better option than looking at your phone? Here are a few ideas. The key is to prepare for these waiting moments.
Read a book.
Grab a copy of that book you’ve been feeling like you should read but haven’t. You could go with that latest bestseller tween vampire novel, but you’ll probably have no problem reading that on your own. Instead, choose a leadership book or some other sort of “should read” book that you wouldn’t otherwise. Keep it in your backpack, purse, or car, and pull it out every time you have to wait. You might only read a page or two at a time, but that’s a lot more than you would have.
Learn a skill that will eventually make money.
Practice writing or design a graphic on your iPhone. You can write a fun, short story in a few minutes. And you can work on cool designs with just your phone. You’ll learn a new skill and it might actually turn into something lucrative.
Meet someone.
Most of the times you’re waiting, you aren’t alone. There are other people miserably waiting too. Strike up a conversation. You already have an ice breaker: “This is taking forever, amiright? Hi, I’m _______.” It’s like they’re begging for you to rescue them from their boredom playing Candy Crush.
Make the most of your time. It’s more valuable than you think. And even though you might not be able to escape waiting, you can still do something beneficial with that otherwise wasted time.
