10+ Easy Productive Things to Do When Bored at Home

There are a lot of productive things to do when bored that will save you time later. So why deal with boredom when you can use the time efficiently?

Jump to:

• What To Do When You Are Doing Nothing
• Productive Things to Do When Bored

There’s no better time to do all the things you’ve been putting off doing than when you’re bored.

What To Do When You Are Doing Nothing

If you really and truly have nothing to do, why not focus on the things you know you should be doing?

Chances are there’s laundry to fold or dishes to clean, but if you felt like doing your regular chores, you wouldn’t be bored.

By focusing on the tasks you rarely think about, you can actually get a lot accomplished.

Productive Things to Do When Bored

Don’t waste your time just hanging out being bored to death. There are so many activities that can be done to make better use of your time.

Here are some simple ways to be productive instead.

1. Update Social Media Profiles

We don’t mean posting some cute pictures of your kids or updating your work history.

Every so often, it’s beneficial to have a good look at your social media accounts. That’s why it tops the list of productive things to do when bored.

Check your privacy settings to make sure you’re not sharing more information that you want to be.

If there’s anyone who you don’t want to check in on you, make sure they’re blocked from seeing your content. Edit your friends lists and the people you follow.

Do you really need to be friends with the woman who worked in the cubicle next to you seven years ago? Maybe not.

Keeping your social media profile settings up to date is something you should do regularly anyway. No better time to do it than when you’re bored.

2. Learn a New Skill or Hobby

If you’ve ever wanted to learn how to knit, sew, crochet, do origami, or learn a new language, what are you waiting for?

One of the best things you can do when boredom sets in is to learn a new skill.

If you’ve always wanted to ride a motorcycle, read up on different kinds of bikes and the pros and cons of each.

Interested in learning piano? Read up on how to read sheet music.

You might not be doing the thing you’ve been wondering about, but you are learning things that are essential to learning it in the future.

3. Clean and Organize

Yeah, yeah, we know this is probably the most obvious productive things to do when bored. But think about cleaning the things that you don’t normally touch.

Dig out all your mismatched socks and try to make pairs. Organize that drawer in the kitchen that’s always full of who-knows-what.

Clean the jars on your spice rack. Go through your medicine cabinet and throw away anything that’s expired.

Do all those little tasks that you know you should do but that you never seem to have time for. No is the time to do these things if you’re bored.

4. Make a To Do List

A “To Do” list can be as involved as you want. It’s one of the best productive things to do when bored that will give you more tasks to complete to keep you active.

Focus on the next week and the work meetings you have to prep for and all the things you want to get done before the weekend. Or, make one that covers a month or even a year.

You can even come up with a 5-year plan if you want to.

If you spend the time you are bored planning how to be productive later, you’re still making good use of your time.

As a bonus, checking things off your to-do list down the road will feel so good.

5. Clean out Your Purse or Wallet

Your wallet probably has a lot of old receipts. And there may even an expired credit card or two.

Your purse might have old tissues, make-up at the bottom that’s past its expiration date, loose coins, and even old diapers or pacifiers if you have young kids.

This is the kind of thing that you probably think about doing every time your reach in your purse or open your wallet but never get around to. Now’s the perfect time.

6. Purge Your Closet

Take a good look at the clothes you have hanging up in there and when you actually wore each item of clothing last.

Maybe you’re holding onto a pair of jeans from high school that you’re hoping to fit into again one day or you have a bridesmaid’s dress that you feel guilty getting rid of.

Pull out anything that doesn’t make it into your regular rotation and either donate it or throw it away. And, you can sell those items online to make some extra cash and save money.

7. Make a Menu and Grocery List for the Week

If you’re into meal planning, plan out your week when you’re bored at home. If you’re not into it yet, it’s the perfect time to start.

Plan a week’s worth of dinners and make a grocery list as you go along.

If you still have time after that, move onto figuring out breakfast and what you can easily use as leftovers for lunch. That’s one less thing you’ll have to do later.

8. Schedule Your Appointments

Do you have dentist and doctors’ appointments scheduled for you and your family?

What about your pets’ vet appointments? Eye doctor? Hair salon? Manicure? What about car inspections and oil changes?

Get out your planner and review your schedule. Check to make sure you have all the important things booked.

9. Teach Yourself a New Recipe

Did you recently go to a new restaurant and have a meal that you can’t stop thinking of?

Or maybe you just saw one of those cooking shows on television where they just make it look so easy to make something looks so delicious?

If you’re interested in upping your kitchen game, open to a random recipe in a cookbook and head to the store. You’ll not only get a delicious meal out of it, you’ll also learn some new skills.

10. Update Your Contacts

How many times have you started to write an email and it auto-suggests the address of someone that you don’t even remember?

If you go through your address book and get rid of all the people that you don’t remember, that won’t happen anymore. You can do the same with your phone contacts, too.

And this is simplest productive things to do when bored that will make it easier to find the contact you’re looking for later.

11. Go Outside

Go for a walk. Ride your bicycle. Find a new hiking trail. Take your kids to the park. If you’re bored, fresh air will boost your motivation.