It’s raining cats and dogs, and going outside is not an option. What do you do when you’re bored on a rainy day? It’s always tempting to binge on Netflix and just chill inside your condo. For a change, why not use this time to discover new skills to learn?
Life skills are not the typical type of knowledge you learn inside the classroom. Nonetheless, learning essential life skills will enable you to cope with daily challenges and surprises life throws at you. Putting your life skills knowledge to practice may help you save money, and more! Skip your usual rainy day chill and get busy inside your condo by starting to learn and practice these 15 essential life skills:
1. Home repairs 101
No matter how new your condo may be today, time will come when it will start needing repairs. One day, you’ll wake up to a leaky pipe, clogged sink, or an annoying squeaky cupboard. If your condo needs some minor fixing, no need to call a pro because you can learn how to develop the life skill of doing simple home repairs, all you have to do is search it online and watch home repair tutorials on YouTube.
For example, if your sink starts to clog, you only need three materials you can easily find at home to fix it: vinegar, baking soda, and hot water. First, remove the standing water from your sink. Next, pour a cup of baking soda in the drain, followed by a cup of white vinegar. The solution will start to bubble; after it subsides, plug the sink stopper and let the solution rest for 15 minutes. After which, pour hot water down your drain and see if the clog clears up. Repeat the process, if necessary.
2. Play a new instrument
Learning how to play a musical instrument is one of the new skills you can learn inside your condo. If you want to learn to play something else besides the guitar, you can probably start with learning how to play a recorder (a.k.a. a fipple flute), which is very affordable to buy and easy to learn as an alternative to the flute.
You can purchase one at a brick-and-mortar store or online for only Php500 or less. An instruction manual usually accompanies recorders; so even without an internet connection, you can learn to make music with this instrument. Once you’ve mastered the recorder, take it a notch higher and try to learn how to play the violin next. Who knows, you might end up uncovering a hidden talent as a musician.
3. Cook like a pro
Learning how to cook your meals will help you save money and maintain a healthy lifestyle. If you’re fond of hosting parties at your home, having pro cooking skills will make a huge impact on the enjoyment of your guests. Using different recipes and cooking tutorials online, you can even whip up easy international food grubs for your party. To practice, try cooking for yourself and for your family on weekends. You can even share some food with your friendly neighbor and ask for feedback on how you can improve your budding culinary skills. Once you’ve perfected your recipes, do not forget to write them down; so you won’t forget. You may even want to share them with your close buddies. In fact, if you get really good at it, you can even start your own home-cooked food business and sell your products online! Indeed, learning to cook like a pro is one of the essential life skills that can bring in potentially great income.
4. Learn a new language
To enjoy the rainy season, trying to learn a new language can be rewarding. For one, it can help prepare you to become globally competitive, in terms of global career opportunities abroad. It also has a positive effect on your mind, as it can help delay Alzheimer’s, boost your brain’s power, and increase your concentration. To begin learning, you can buy a bilingual dictionary to learn a few words, take up online language tutorials, or use apps such as Duolingo, if you prefer.
5. Practice how to draw, paint, or illustrate
Drawing, painting, or illustrating are examples of life skills activities you can do when you’re bored on a rainy day. It takes time to master these skills; but with practice and the help of tutorials, you could become a good artist. To make the most out of your works, you can hang them on your walls and observe how you improve. They are also unique gift ideas you can give your friends. If you prefer, you can even produce stickers out of your creations and sell them online.
6. Try your hand at calligraphy and hand-lettering
Calligraphy and hand-lettering has been growing as trends lately. People are hooked on how to write artistically using either a nib or a brush and ink. Learning how to write in modern calligraphy is an enjoyable rainy season activity. Using an online or printed guide, you can master the basics of calligraphy. For sure, after that, you will be enjoying writing your name or some quotes decoratively on paper or on a canvas.
7. Home cleaning and decluttering
When you’re stuck in your condo on a rainy day, one life skill training you can take up is learning how to clean, declutter, and live a zero-waste lifestyle. Aside from sweeping and mopping, there are other cleaning tactics that you can learn to make your house squeaky clean and smell amazing. For example, to clean your shower head, you can place it in a ziplock and fill it with vinegar. Let it soak overnight so that the vinegar can dissolve the deposits in your shower head and make it look new.
8. Learn furniture and home styling
Learning how to build simple furniture at home is an example of one artistic life skill to learn. If you have extra wood planks at home or if you want to deconstruct an old piece of furniture and transform it into a new one, then it’s time to learn how to build. You can start with simple home fixtures such as a wooden frame. From there, you can move on to making simple stools that will be useful inside your condo. You can also learn how to style your condo to make it look more spacious, or more “you.” Learning these skills will help make you a pro at home styling and you will not need a professional home stylist to style your home.
9. Learn how to sew, stitch, and patch
Clothes succumb to wear and tear that will need repair, as time goes by. Fixing a zipper, patching up a hole, or replacing a missing button does not require a tailor’s help. Learning the basics of sewing, stitching, and patching will save you money without even having to leave the comforts of your condo.
You can also buy clothes that are slightly big on you because you will know how to make them fit you. You can even transform your old clothes into new ones. So instead of throwing your clothes away or buying new ones that will occupy extra space in your closet, your old clothes can be recycled if you develop this life skill. You can get inspiration online on how to upcycle your old clothes and add pizzazz to your wardrobe.
10. Learn how to perform CPR and basic first aid
Emergencies can happen anytime, anywhere, and to anyone. Knowing what to do in case an emergency happens, is a matter of life and death. According to Ma. Teresa Montemayor in the Philippine News Agency, she pointed out that cardiovascular diseases are among the leading cause of death in the country.
In 2014, an ex-basketball player, Samboy Lim had cardiac arrest during an exhibition game at Ynares Stadium. No one in the stadium knew how to do cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR); more than 20 minutes passed before Samboy was brought to the hospital. Fortunately, he survived the cardiac arrest but will have to live with permanent brain damage. You do not need to be a nurse or a doctor to know this life skill training. There are videos on YouTube and other online articles that give step-by-step instructions on how to do CPR and other first-aid basics you can do in times of emergency.
11. Know how to trim your hair
Prices of salon services are increasing; so knowing the basics of trimming your hair or your bangs can save you money. Before trimming your locks, remember to purchase a trusty pair of hair shears instead of risking your luck with kitchen scissors. Kitchen scissors are not meant to be used to cut your hair. Using them can fray your hair and cause unwanted split ends. Tons of videos are available online that demonstrate step-by-step how to trim your bangs correctly. Once you’ve perfected the art of trimming your hair, perhaps can also offer to trim the hair of some of your family members instead of them spending money to get a trim at the salon.
An additional life skill you can develop is learning how to groom your dogs or trim their fur instead of regularly taking them to the groomers. Knowing how to at least trim your dog’s coat can help lessen your visit to the groomers and save money.
12. Learn self-defense
With the increasing crime rate, it is essential to develop the life skill of self-defense. Knowing the basics of how to physically defend yourself from criminals and people who mean to do you harm can save your life.
While martial arts training is usually done in a class, there are online video tutorials of basic martial arts and self-defense moves you can watch and learn from. That way, you can still actively learn inside the comforts of your condo, even when it is raining. As an added bonus, you can share your learning to your family and friends; that way, they can also protect themselves if ever they’re in danger.
13. Practice how to do a massage
Work, school, and relationships can cause undue stress for anyone. To relieve yourself of stress, it would be nice to be able to massage yourself. However, be sure to take extra precautions when massaging others because you do not want to cause them any injuries. Trying to learn this new skill can help relieve your headache, cramps, and other body pains. There are charts online that illustrate which parts of the body to apply pressure to for pain relief or a good night's sleep.
14. Get better at small talks
The development of technology and ways to communicate don’t always translate into connection. Quite often, you’d see people too preoccupied with their mobile phones; they even use it to avoid face-to-face conversations. This rainy day, put down your phone and develop the life skill of small talk with your neighbor next door. Developing this skill will also help you build friendships with strangers, thereby allowing you to build connections and networks. So wherever you may be, if you know how to start small talks, you can gain friends.
15. Practice the art of gift wrapping
Another new skill you can conveniently learn inside your condo is gift wrapping. Gift wrapping adds flair to your gifts. You can get gift wrapping ideas based on the personality of the person you’re intending to give a gift to. For sure, once they learn about the effort you’ve made to personalize your gift wrapping, they’ll appreciate you and your gift even more. You can learn the basics of gift wrapping by watching videos online. You can even learn how to do intricate origami that you can add to your gift wrapping designs. Use scratch paper or old newspapers to practice gift wrapping with.
The items in the essential life skills list that you can and should learn are endless. It takes time to learn these new skills; and when it’s raining hard and you’re stuck at home, that’s the perfect time to learn. Get the most out of the rainy season by actively learning different life hacks that can save your life, make you a better person, and add color to life.