10 things to do during quarantine instead of making bread

No shade to bread-making — I’m just not sure why it’s become a social distancing activity. If you’re looking for ideas on other things to do, read on.

#1 Review and automate personal finances + explore long term investment opportunities

Years ago, I picked up Ramit Sethi’s personal finance book which is an easily digestible, step by step guide to managing your finances, paying off debt, and investing for the long term. This book is the lazy person’s guide to set it and forget it personal finance management.

I also signed up for Betterment which is a robo advisor that helps you set up a variety of accounts, including high interest savings accounts, index funds, IRAs (if you’re not familiar, definitely pick up Ramit’s book which covers these and more). I did a lot of research before ultimately deciding on Betterment — It’s the most easy to use and understand platform IMO and has low management fees and great rates.

This is as good a time as ever to take a look at your finances and make some money moves.

Resources

• Book + Website: I Will Teach You to be Rich by Ramit Sethi
• Robo-advisors for low-cost financial advice and seamless sign up + money management: Betterment

#2 Learn more about investing in the stock market

If you’ve been following the news you know the stock market is down, which is scary. But if you’ve been interested in stock investing, this is a good time to learn about the market and invest in companies that are likely to bounce back post covid.

When I first wanted to invest, I spent a lot of time reading about investing, but ultimately felt the best way to learn was by doing. I set aside a small amount of money that I was comfortable losing and signed up for Motley Fool’s Stock Advisor product. I researched different stocks and learned more about how to evaluate companies.

I recommend Motley Fool as a starting point and today there are several platforms that make investing super seamless, including Robinhood and SoFi.

Note: This is fun to do with friends. Find a couple of friends and share investment learnings or set up an investment friend group and have each person research a company and share their findings.

Resources

• Website: Motley Fool. The website is free, but I recommend investing in their flagship product Stock Advisor for $99 for 1 Year Unlimited Access (includes a 30-day 100% Membership Refund Period in case you’re not into it)
• Podcast: Noah Kagan interview with The “Dean of Valuation” NYU Finance Professor Aswath Damodran. I really enjoyed this episode and thought it provided great context on the economy, stock picking, and the future of business post covid.
• Online Course: Udemy Options Trading for Beginners. (Disclaimer: I have not done this course yet but plan to. It’s top rated and about 2 hours long).

#3 Explore new career opportunities + brush up on your skills

This time has brought a lot of uncertainty around our jobs. Whether you’ve been laid off, furloughed, or are still employed but have been thinking about looking for a new job, this can be a good time to reset and do some exploring + soul searching.

Brush up on your interview skills, make a list of companies you’re interested in, and reach out to people in roles/at companies of interest to learn more.

Even if you’re not actively job searching or interview prepping, the books recommended below provide great frameworks for approaching problems that you can apply to your current job. And if you’ve been exploring switching job functions, case studies are a great way to learn what type of problems you might be interested in solving.

Take the time to reevaluate your career goals or brush up on your skills.

Resources

• Tech/Marketing Interview Assessments, Books, and Articles: Lewis C. Lin is the tech interview GOAT. His website has several resources and links to all of the books he’s written. My personal favorites are Decode and Conquer and Case Interview Questions for Tech Companies.
• List of companies that are freezing hiring (and those that are still hiring): The cofounder of Candor started this and it’s so valuable if you’re job hunting right now.
• Gallup Strengths Finder Assessment
• Yale University is offering it’s most popular online course, The Science of Well-Being, for free. The course is designed to help you be happier in life and your career.

#4 Try online therapy

This pandemic and all of its effects can take a toll on your mental health. Many of us are worrying about loved ones getting sick, dealing with the impact of the pandemic on our jobs/lives and facing a lot of uncertainty about every aspect of life. We’re also in isolation which can cause loneliness, anxiety and depression. While I’m a big believer in therapy overall, I’ve felt its benefits more than ever during this time.

Online therapy has been my answer to therapy for a few reasons: it’s more affordable; I can schedule time in the app and message my therapist anytime; and I can be much more consistent since I can do it from anywhere. I use Betterhelp, but recently came across Real Therapy which just launched. They’re offering their services for free right now. I did a digital mental check-in and it was incredibly valuable. Highly recommend.

Resources

• Betterhelp. This link is my personal referral code that you can use for a free week of therapy.
• Real to the People Therapy: The team at Real is setting out to redefine therapy and I’ve been super excited about everything they’re doing so far. They were set to open a Real Therapy space in NYC in April, but are not able to do that yet. Instead the team is bringing Real to the people— finding new ways over the next month to provide high-quality care and a chance to connect during a critical time, all free of charge. Love ❤

#5 Check out a digital music festival, day party set or producer/songwriter/rap battle

I am living for these online DJ sets + festivals and am hoping this trend remains well past covid. There are too many to post, but these are some of the ones I’m looking forward to.

• DJ D-Nice Club Quarantine on 04/04 7PM EST on IG Live: You don’t want to miss this. Everyone from Drake to Michelle Obama tuned in last time.
• Great write up on Club Quarantine written by my friend Landon Franklin: “Call Me D-Nice”: Lessons From The Perfect Storm That Brought #ClubQuarantine to the Masses
• The Do-Over is doing an 8 hour set on 04/04 starting at 3PM EST on IG Live: Listennn. This is one of my fave day parties ever — I’ve been to the Do-Over LA, NYC, SF, and Rio and it’s great music + great vibes every time. This set features DJ Jazzy Jeff + the Soulection crew. Bonus: The Soulection radio station Beats 1 Apple Music is fiiiire.
• Digital Mirage Online Music Festival streaming all weekend on YouTube.
• Coachella 20 Years in the Desert A YouTube Original Documentary. Streaming free on April 10. Trailer here.

#6 DIY Trivia Night over Zoom

This one is brought to you by The Nudge — an app that delivers inspirational plan ideas for stuff to do in your free time via traditional text messages. As a super planner myself, getting detailed plans + ideas delivered right to me via SMS is a *dream*.

During covid, the Nudge team has been delivering ideas for things to do at home and I loved their latest recommendation for a DIY Trivia Night with friends. All details for how to set it up + run it here. They also link to a few other online games to play with friends.

• The Nudge app is available in SF, NYC, Seattle, and Austin.

#7 Read

This is self explanatory, but I’m sharing some of my favorite books of late + some great reading resources.

Nonfiction

• Grit by Angela Ducksworth
• The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why it Matters by Priya Parker
• The Customer of the Future by Blake Morgan
• Strategyzer’s Testing Business Ideas: This is one of the best books I’ve come across. It’s a guide for rapid testing business ideas. It reads more like a guidebook than a book and I learn something new/valuable every time I pick it up.

Fiction

• The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
• Long Bright River by Liz Moore
• Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid
• The Holdout by Graham Moore

Resources

• Goodreads: A website/app to keep track of what you’re reading, follow others to see what they’re reading, read reviews, set reading challenges and more.
• Book of the Month: A monthly book subscription. You get one new hardcover book each month for a much lower price than if you bought it yourself. I love having a new book to look forward to each month. (Sign up through the link to get your first book for $5.)

#8 Establish a workout routine

Working out can be hard when we have access to all the gyms + fitness studios our hearts desire. Maintaining a healthy workout routine when required to stay home is even harder. Keeping a workout routine has been keeping me sane. Here’s what I’ve been using for at home workouts:

• Peloton App/Website: You do not need to have a bike to use the app and they are offering a free 90-day trial. They have meditation, strength training, yoga, core workouts, bodyweight exercises, outdoor runs and more. You can filter by time, type, music genre, etc. I’ve been using it daily!
• Undersun Resistance Bands: These are super heavy duty bands that were a great alternative to and much easier to store than a weight set.
• Body by JA Live Barry’s Bootcamp Workouts: I used to go to Jess’ Barry’s classes when I lived in the bay and they were my absolute favorite. She’s been doing the floor series of Barry’s workouts on her IG and they are killer. Follow her for Barry’s workout and lots of workout + life inspo. She is #GOALS.
• BounceBayArea Live IG Workouts: My Bounce workout fam is bringing the good vibes from the workouts + post workout brunches straight to your living room. I’m tuning in today 04/04 at 1PM for a workout brought to you by Coach @amandajayla! Follow Bounce on IG for the latest on workouts and if you live in the Bay, check them out live once we’re able to go outside again.

#9 Start a new creative practice or create just for fun

Everyone is creative. Creativity is a human quality that exists in every single one of us. So stop being so hard on yourself and pick up that old creative habit you may have had long ago or start a new one you’ve been curious about. We have more resources than ever available to us (thank you Internet), so why not pick up a new hobby.

Resources

(there are so many more)

• 750words: This website is all about helping you establish a writing habit. 750 = 3 pages. This is all online and all private. They gamify the habit to really help you stick with it. Writing doesn’t come natural to me so I’m excited to try this.
• Canva: Graphic design made easy. I love this product so much. It’s a good beginner graphic design tool with endless inspo and templates. You can also find helpful graphic design content in the Canva Design School section to help you get started.
• Medium: Write and share publicly. Super easy to get started.
• Udemy + YouTube: Tons of videos to learn anything and everything from drawing to sewing to painting to [insert literally any hobby].

#10 Brainstorm new business ideas

There are different paths to coming up with business ideas. If you’ve ever dreamed of starting a company, but are looking for the right business idea to pursue, this can be a great time to be curious and do some brainstorming. Do this alone or hop on a zoom video call with friends and brainstorm together.

Resources

• Podcast: How I Built This with Guy Raz. Guy interviews entrepreneurs to dive into the stories behind some of the most successful companies.
• Article: IDEO U Brainstorming Rules & Techniques
• Article: What Are The Best Ways To Think Of Ideas For A Startup?
• Article: 6 Brainstorming Techniques For Coming Up With Small Business Ideas

If you made it this far and decided you don’t want to do anything but chill, I fully support rest + relaxation + coping in the way that’s right for you.

Stay safe + sane out there!