It’s fair to say that for the vast majority of people living in developed countries, the Internet has become as much of a staple in their daily lives as that morning cup of coffee or daily commute. And as technology continues to innovate, it seems that more and more of our time on earth is spent plugged in to the Information Superhighway. The world wide web is both a necessary part of modern daily life and a distraction from it too, but far from simply using it for the sake of it, it can also become a powerful tool for our own development and growth.
If you’re looking for ideas on productive things to do this summer, here are four suggestions to get you started.
Study
The Internet is pretty close to containing most of the modern-day knowledge that we humans possess, so you can think of it as one giant learning portal that you can access any time of the day, 7 days a week. One of the greatest opportunities that being so connected in this way offers us is the chance to study and learn brand new skills.
Here in 2020, it’s possible to access an immeasurable amount of online resources, from digital higher education courses with major educational institutions, right the way through to one or two hour lectures on any topic you can think of.
If you’re thinking of adding another skill to your CV then get on websites like Coursera and Thinkific for top quality professional development, which in many cases is free or low cost. Dreaming of one day becoming multilingual? Why not start today with resources like Duolingo or Busuu. Maybe you don’t have the time to commit to a formal course or programme, but that doesn’t mean you still won’t be able to learn something new from your hours browsing thanks to virtual encyclopedias and digital libraries.
Get healthy
There was one a time where if you really wanted to get into fantastic physical shape, and take care of your mental wellbeing at the same time, you’d have to fork out for a gym membership, join an athletics club, or make regular trips to a dance or fitness studio etc. Thanks to the internet, your living room can now become all three.
Sure, nothing will ever compare to the social interaction of training with a group of other like-minded people, or working 1 to 1 in real life with trainer or teacher, but if you’re stuck at home an find yourself drifting about online, put the time to good use and take a movement class, or download some healthy recipes for the week. Specialist platforms like Alo Moves, Pilates Anytime and Dancio offer classes on a subscription basis, but many offer a free trial first, and there’s plenty of free health and fitness content to be found on YouTube thanks to accounts like Athlean-X, Yoga with Adrienne, and FitnessBlender.
Start a Vlog
Blogging is so 2010! These days, the focus is on Vlogging. If you have something to say, whether that’s about a personal interest or maybe even your professional occupation, vlogging is a great way to get your thoughts and ideas out there, and possibly even open up conversations with people all over the world.
Getting started with vlogging needn’t be difficult. All you need is yourself, a mobile phone with a camera, some music or props to add interest, and an interesting topic to vlog about. There are plenty of free to use platforms where you can share your vlogs too, YouTube is still the most popular, followed by Facebook and even Instagram thanks to its recent TV feature.
Build your own app
Ok, so not everybody wants to put themselves out there to the world via vlogging, but if you’ve got some great ideas, you can bring them to life by getting to grips with building your own apps. You don’t need to be an expert level coder, or even have any experience of it with the wealth of app building software and platforms that are now available. Tools like Mobile Roadie, AppMakr, and The App Builder, remove the complexity from developing iOS and Android apps and make it something that is accessible to everyone. Who knows, maybe you’ll end up building the next big thing in mobile, or find yourself developing a new career in app development or coding. And guess what? Yes, the internet offers plenty of free and inexpensive coding resources to help you learn, too.
