Making The Most of Traffic

Making the most of traffic

 

Does traffic stress you out? I can just picture the typical commuter. Rehashing the day’s events in their mind with mindless radio chatter blaring but yet unnoticed, simply noise. White knuckles gripping the wheel as frustration rises along with their blood pressure. To all of that I say STOP IT!

 

First, I would encourage you to design your life differently, if possible. Look for options that could minimize your travel time and create a better life.

  • Telecommute
  • Different hours
  • Change jobs
  • Ride share
  • Public transportation
  • Move your home

Certainly I recognize that these options aren’t always feasible. However, I would beg to suggest that some alternate travel/work options may be more reasonable if strongly considered. Consider breaking pre-conceived notions or simply old habits and give way to the options above.

Living in Atlanta, rated one of the worst cities in America for commute times, you may even experience delays when they aren’t expected. Lets face it sometimes things just happen. This blog post is designed to create a paradigm shift when faced with delays. Stop thinking of traffic delays as a nuisance but shift your mindset to see them as opportunities! Opportunities for personal growth.

Below are 6 options I’d encourage you to consider when you find yourself in traffic. Engaging these 6 ideas will allow you to Make The Most of Your Traffic Time.

 

Pray

God seeks us and desires a relationship with us. Relationships require communication. No better way to engage this down time than speaking with your creator. Don’t get hung up on not being able to close your eyes. You will benefit from the relationship/conversation and even get a free pass about the open eyes!

Podcasts

Located right on your phone is the Podcast icon. Open the App and explore the “Rich” content which is available to you for free. This is certainly my go to right now. A few of my favorites include:

Audio Books

This is one of my wife’s favorite ways to travel. She frequently is spending the day in her vehicle while seeing clients and chooses to listen to books on Audible. Here is a link to Try Audible for Free. You may also want to consider Blinkist which are Non-fiction book summaries. Here is a Blinkist Discount Code.

My first experience with listening to books was years ago while just beginning my career. My first firm was located in Decatur. Decatur was about an hour and a half from my home in North Atlanta. What a great experience when each time you start your car and you’re immediately thrust back into the plot. So, take the time to listen to some classics that you may have missed along the way. You may also follow my reading list at Goodreads.

Learn A New Language

I must confess that I’ve never actually done this one. However, Productivity guru Tim Ferris and others suggest this as way they have chosen to spend their drive times. Spending this time enhancing your skills and mind are far superior to wasting them being stressed over things which, at that point in time, are out of your control. I like and foresee utilizing this idea if I am ever faced with routine drive time in the future. Here is a link to a Fluentu Blog post on the The Best 5 Audio Language Learning Apps.

Expand Your Vocabulary

In my aforementioned firm, being my first real career position, I was anxious to fit in with the older partners and my new clients (all of which were older than me at 25) I spent $300+ dollars on a set of CD’s which were designed to expand my vocabulary. It was a lot of money for me at the time but I am glad that I did it. Always invest in yourself! The good news is that technology now allows you to create an expanded vocabulary without spending $300 or any dollars in some cases. PA word of caution to be careful with over sharing your newly expanded vocabulary to often; allow it to flow naturally! Here is a link to Minda Zetlin’s Inc. Magazine article sharing The 7 Best Vocabulary Apps. Again, I am glad that I used the time wisely to increase my knowledge. It is so easy while driving in traffic to veg out listening to nothing (which is OK sometimes) but a better option if you are just looking to decompress may be our next idea listed below.

Find Great Music

Be intentional about finding great new music! Lets face it; Mainstream radio plays the same artists over and over ad nausea um. Take your drive time to find artists that you haven’t previously heard their music. Expanding your palate for music, much like your vocabulary, opens your mind and expands its creativity. This is rarely done when listening to a song you’ve heard dozens or hundreds of times. Spend your drive time with different radio stations or if you have satellite radio try my favorite station, Coffeehouse. To really seek out new music try Gnoosic. Gnoosic is a service that points you to new artists based on your responses to questions about your likes and dislikes. Like all of the other suggestions; spend the time on purpose. The next time you impress your most hipster friend or kids by knowing the latest up and coming artist, you’ll be glad that you did!

 

Personally, I am thankful that extreme travel time isn’t a part of my life. Although it isn’t just by chance I have chosen to live intentionally and designed it as such. You can do that too! So, take the time to consider all of the ideas listed above and use them to enrich your life. Please share with me how you Make the Most of Traffic. Connect with me and other readers of The Life You Can Afford to Live through these social media channels. Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn.

 

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