9 Ideas to Inspire the Most Productive Summer Ever
Summer vacation is here, which means more time to hang by the pool and relax for hours on end. While it’s tempting to use all your free time to soak up the sun, you might find yourself wanting to read a few books or start a garden instead. If you’re hoping to make the most of your summer vacation, here are nine ways to stay productive and prevent yourself from having one too many lazy summer days.
1. Learn a New Language With Duolingo: Don’t let summer vacation make you forget all the Spanish you learned during the school year. When you download Duolingo, you can keep your language skills fresh, even when you’re chilling by the pool. (Free on iOS and Android)
2. Publish a Book With 3-Day Create ($9): Do you dream of writing your first novel? Or do you simply want to write an e-book to give away on your blog? Regina Anaejionu of byregina.com offers an awesome 57-page guidebook that leads you through the entire process of brainstorming, writing and publishing an e-book, online course or digital workbook.
3. Discover Your Passion With The Desire Map($11): Take some time this summer to reflect on your personal and professional goals. Especially if you’ve been feeling a little lost, The Desire Map is a great resource for helping you outline your goals and plan for the future.
4. Get inShape With an App like Sworkit Lite: Summer is the best time of the year to stay active. Get your sweat on this summer with Sworkit Lite, a free fitness app that allows you to customize your own workout schedule. (Free on iOS and Android)
5. Improve your drawing skills with Sketching 101 ($20): Would you love to learn how to create beautiful drawings? Learn the basics of sketching with Mary Phan. Her 55-minute class is perfect for any beginner and will have you drawing beautiful flowers and leaves in no time at all! Drawing not your thing? That’s okay. We’ve got classes on everything from knitting to tying knots!
6. Take Your Blog to the Next Level With 365 Blog Topic Ideas ($15): Although many bloggers slow down during the summer, the upcoming months are a great time to plan content for your site. Jumpstart your blogging inspiration with 365 Blog Topic Ideas, which is an awesome book filled with a post idea for each day of the year. Once you have the ideas, take our Photography for Bloggers e-class ($19.99) to brush up on your snapping skills to accompany all of your great ideas.
7. Save Money With an App like Moven: Hoping to save up for a new car this summer or set aside some cash for a mini-vacay? Use Moven to keep track of your expenses and manage your bank account. It can even tell you if you’ve saved up enough money for that cute bathing suit you’ve been dying to buy. (Free on iOS and Android)
8. Learn How to Watercolor: Summer is a wonderful time to immerse yourself into your creative passions. If you’ve been dreaming of learning how to watercolor, Melissa Esplin offers a great tutorial on how to learn calligraphy through watercoloring. (via Melissa Esplin)
9. Learn How to Code With Girl Develop It: If you want to learn web and software development, Girl Develop It will hook you up with in-person classes (they’re in 47 cities across the country!) and community support to achieve your techy goals. Coding changed these moms’ lives — you’re next!
What do you hope to accomplish this summer? Let us know in the comments below!