Time well spent: 3 ideas for your daily commute to and from work

The commute is back. Now what are you going to do about it?

Whether you drive a car, ride a bike, walk, or take public transportation to work, you’ll probably have some idle time on your hands. Sure, it’s nice to catch up with your own thoughts now and then, but when those thoughts move from what you need to get done at work to the free throw you missed in that JV game 12 years ago, you’ve done all the catching up you need.

So, what do you do with those extra minutes (or hours) you spend completing the to-and-from commute to the office? Here a few suggestions:

– Listen up: “Audio books and podcasts are a long commute’s best friend,” says Erin Reddick, an HR specialist in Seattle.

– Learn something: Aaron Hallow says he began listening to a ‘how to speak Spanish’ podcast so he could help his daughter with her Spanish homework. “But I really got into it and I was devouring those podcasts like crazy,” says the programmer from Arlington, Texas.

– Reach out: For many commuters in the confines of a car, the phone is a lifeline to others. But instead of calling your spouse or best friend, Reddick recommends calling older relatives and long-lost friends. “It seems trite but it’s important to keep in touch with people,” says Reddick, who calls her mother and two aunts at least once a week from her car. “It’s a nice, uninterrupted conversation,” she says. “It means a lot to them, and it means a lot to me.” Whitely makes phone calls as well, but he admits his are more targeted toward his career. “I don’t do it that often, but I like to leave voicemails for people I consider good contacts and resources,” he says. “Just a quick message to say hello and to let them know I’m thinking of them.

– Marco Buscaglia