So you’ve graduated from college, and now you have more free time than you ever thought imaginable - a.k.a. 24/7.
While still in school, the only thing you wanted was free time, but now that you have heaps of it, you’re starting to experience that 7-letter word. Yes, you know what I am talking about: boredom.
For some people, boredom is not a big problem, because they can feel satisfied after a day of sitting in front of the TV playing video games or watching Netflix. But for others, including me, a day of nothingness is okay occasionally, but for the rest of the time, we need something to occupy ourselves.
For the past 2 months, I’ve struggled quite a bit with boredom, and the lack of purpose that often comes along with it. Lucky for you, I’ve come up with a pretty extensive list of activities that will get you moving. Hopefully, with these activities, you can end your day with some satisfaction, and start feeling excited (instead of discouraged) by the prospect of the next day.
Without further ado:
1. Start working out!
You may be used to working out on a regular basis from college, and so this may already be a regular part of your schedule. If not, put it in there! With endless free time, you have the perfect reason to start working out and get fit. If you have the means, sign up with a local gym and set a time each day you’ll go in. If not, there are plenty of workouts you can do at home, and you can easily start scheduling walks or runs into your days! And I can assure you that you can take up hours of your time looking up workout regimens and exercise schedules.
2. Look up top attractions in your area.
With lots of free time, you should explore what’s around you. Maybe you live near a big city, and there are countless parks, museums, sites, etc. that you have never checked out. Or maybe there are some small towns near you that have fun little stores in their town center- spend a day walking around there. If you’re looking for ideas, head over to Google and type in “Best things to do in…(enter your city here!)”.
3. Go hiking or biking!
Getting outside always tends to boost your mood, and especially during the fall months, hiking will get you up close and personal with the beautiful foliage in New England. No matter where you are, there are likely to be different level hikes- often, there are wooded paths you never even knew about right near your house! Going for a bike ride is also a great option, either in the neighborhoods around your house or on a bike path, if there is one nearby (although, if you can fit your bike into your car, don’t be afraid to drive a bit to a bike path!).
4. Do seasonal things, like apple picking!
A perfect activity to fill up a fall afternoon is to go apple picking. In New England, there are apple orchards all over the place, and nothing is going to bring you more cozy joy than finishing up your apple picking adventures with a nice hot cup of apple cider and an apple cider donut 😊 In the winter, go out sledding or ice skating! And in spring and summer, you could go out kayaking or paddle boarding on a local lake, or go to the beach.
5. Cook for your family.
If you’re like me and you’ve just graduated from college and are job searching, you are likely living at home. If that’s the case, I’m sure your parents would appreciate a nice home cooked meal courtesy of their kind son or daughter. You can use up several hours just searching for recipes and grocery shopping for the right ingredients, and then a couple more hours cooking the meal itself. Or maybe you can go ahead and bake an apple crisp with all those delicious apples you just picked 😉
6. Try joining Meetup or a young professionals association.
Meetup is a website whose sole purpose is to provide you with activities to do! There are thousands of groups created around a certain interest/age group/region, and you can join them and get email updates on what meetups are happening. If you’re outgoing and ambitious, this website is a great tool to get out there, meet people, and fill up your time. Even if you’re a little shy, joining Meetup and seeing what’s happening is still a great idea- maybe after a couple weeks, you’ll work up the courage to attend an event. There are also a lot of young professional associations out there, whose goal it is to connect young professionals, like you and me! You can use these events to network and try to find a job, or you can use them to meet people and make friends in the area.
7. Volunteer!
Volunteering is one activity that is bound to give you some purpose, and definitely leave you feeling satisfied and accomplished at the end of a day. There are always soup kitchens, community centers, and food pantries looking for volunteers. Contact your town and ask what volunteer opportunities they have. Another great option are the Boys and Girls Clubs, or if you plan to be available for a longer period of time, you could sign up to be a mentor for a child.
8. Check out random coffee shops.
This is one I’ve recently enjoyed. I bet there are countless local coffee shops around you that you’ve never been to, or even heard of. Look them up! The best ones are where you can get your coffee in a real mug and sit in a comfy couch while reading a book or this article (hint hint). This will get you out of the house and give you a much-needed change in scenery. If you’re not a coffee-lover, know that I am not either, but there are some tasteful non-coffee-tasting coffee drinks out there, and when all else fails, there are chai lattes.
9. READ. READ. READ.
I LOVE reading. There’s nothing like getting into a good book, and having hours go by without you even noticing it. There really are books out there for everyone- go to a bookstore, or check out your local library. Once you have a book, you can go to coffee shops, parks, libraries, etc. with it!
10. Organize your room.
This one probably got a groan out of you...but if you’ve just graduated from college, you probably have loads of stuff and are not sure where to put it all. I have boxes of clothes downstairs that I need to somehow fit into my room, and I just know that will be a multiple day project once I finally motivate myself to get into it.
11. Netflix...
Unless you’re a time-filling ninja, you are not going to be doing something 24/7. You will still find yourself with down time, and that is the perfect time to catch up on some good old Netflix.
Now that you've spent several minutes reading this article, I hope you’ll have some more creative ideas to help you fill that free time and beat the boredom!
