A few of weeks ago Coronavirus/Covid-19 forced the UK to go into lockdown. It’s been almost 4 weeks so far and we have at least another 3 to go.
I already closed the piercing side of my business before lockdown started and with all my stock at home I’ve been pretty easily able to continue selling online. However since I had no clients to see and no social visits to look forward to, I needed a plan to occupy my time (both to feel the benefit of productivity and avoid a negative effect on my mental health).
Here are a few things I plan to get done during the lockdown.
1. Home Improvements
I moved into my flat in 2016 but never really took the time to really make it mine. Things are not as functional as they could be, not as suited to me/my life as they could be and some things just need replacing altogether!
I’m hoping lockdown will enable me to have a real think about how my home works for me and that by the end of it, it’s as functional as it can be and everything has its place.
2. Declutter and Deep Clean
Along the same lines of home improvements… if I’m making sure everything has a place and works for me it doesn’t hurt to get rid of a few things, make some space and have a deep clean of all areas while I’m at it.
I’m decluttering clothes, tech (cables, old devices), furniture and even pet accessories!
On the deep cleaning side it applies to more than just rooms- all animal enclosures are getting a deep clean and clothes I haven’t thrown out are being thoroughly washed and ridded of pet hair (I expect most will end up being replaced soon anyway as I’m due a wardrobe refresh)
3. Business Admin & Accounting
I don’t think there was ever a time I didn’t have a fuckton of admin work to do and I wasn’t behind on my accounting, so I’m hoping to use some of this lockdown time to get ahead of that and other every day admin that needs to be done.
Selling body jewellery means I have a vast range of products to deal with and there’s admin associated with each and every one of them. E.g. I need to update all my product descriptions on my website…
4. Business Improvements
On top of what I need to do to keep my business running, there are a lot of things I want to do to make it run better. I hope to get the bulk of the work for some of the improvements out the way now so I can reap the benefits of them during lockdown.
Most of these improvements are digital things, but on the practical side I also want to spend some time just thinking about how I organise, display and keep track of all my stock and see how I can improve on that process.
5. Get In Shape
Autumn last year saw me heading to the gym twice a week as a non-smoker and starting to look all nice. December came and I started smoking again and by my birthday in January I was really unhappy with my weight. I realise now I am just getting to the age where I can’t just eat whatever I want with no consequences. During lockdown I’m hoping to ditch Aysh Chubbaysh for good and find a workout routine that I can get in the swing of and keep up long term. It’s been a little annoying having a sprained ankle when I want to do cardio, but I’m hoping it won’t stop me from seeing the results I want- it just might take a bit longer.
6. Establish A Routine
I haven’t had a real routine for years. Not a morning one, not a night one, not a day one. No order at all.
Actually that’s a lie. I have routines, they’re just bad ones.
I often try and make new routines but I can never stick to them. Sometimes it’s because of schedule changes, sometimes I’m just not being proactive enough and other times the routine I’ve created is just impractical. I’m hoping an extended period of time where I don’t really need to go anywhere will enable me to at least establish a morning and bedtime routine that I can continue even after this is all over.
7. Learn To REALLY Relax
I was terrified of this lockdown for a few reasons. First was the fear of my mental health dragging me down and second was the fear of last year’s mental health dragging me down as I hit a super rough patch in March 2019. I worried that these things or a combination of them would make lockdown hell.
It’s not been hell, but I wouldn’t say it’s been smooth sailing either. When I’ve got something productive to do and I want to do it then I’m fine. It’s actually chilling out that I’m struggling with the most. I either sit there doing nothing or I’m not engaged in the ‘chilling out’ activity. I am trying to combat this by spending more time with my animals, finding new hobbies and using mindfulness techniques from my DBT therapy. I recently started playing GTA V a little (after it not being touched ever), so I’m hoping that a mix of games and animals will keep me engaged while I’m chilling out since I need to fully participate in both activities.
So there you have it. 7 things I want to achieve during this UK lockdown. There are probably a few more things on the list of things I want to get done, but these are certainly the main ones right now.
I actually thought of this post idea at the start of lockdown but I got caught up in executing on the content before I had a chance to actually write this, so expect to see a follow up on how I got on with it all!
What do you want to get done during lockdown?