Coping With A Long Commute

Nowadays many of us make long commutes to work and back, sometimes lasting hours.
Some companies, especially those in which Information Technology and computers are used heavily have begun to realise the damage that long commutes can have. The more enlightened ones have become more open to accepting flexible working patterns which might allow employees to work from home now and again, or even completely. This can reduce the impact caused by the daily grind of getting to and from work. For example, you can produce a document at home and send it via e-mail to the office instantly. You can even hold a meeting with other staff members and clients now that we have teleconferencing.

However, for some jobs, there is no escaping the daily commute. So, how do you cope? This will largely depend upon your method of travel. There are certainly some things that would not be appropriate if you are driving but would be entirely suitable for a long train journey.

One thing that suits both car, bus, and train is using Audiobooks. For anyone who has never heard of these, They are just ordinary books that are read by someone else and recorded. If you have an MP3 player there are many web sites where you can legally download free audio books.

Many record shops, department stores and even some supermarkets stock these on both CD and cassette tape. However they can be expensive so instead, go to the public library and borrow theirs. Some people find that if they go for the more fluffy and easy-to-follow things it can be easier to use in the car. In the days when I used to commute for over an hour at a time I was very fond of listening to lectures. I learned vast amounts simply by making more use of the two hours spent in the car each day.

Taking this one stage further, you could also use the time to learn a foreign language. Many people say that this is something that would really love to do but they just never have the time. Those same people are often the ones that commute each day. Using CDs I did a German language course over a few months. It's a while since I did it and I'm certainly quite rusty now, however at the time I would have been able to hold my own in conversation should the need have arisen. How handy would this be as you think about your next year's holiday?

Along those lines, (with due awareness of the copyright laws etc) you could occasionally ask friends to make compilation CDs to listen to: it's a good way to introduce yourself to some new music.

If you're travelling on the train and you're not the sort of person to talk to a stranger then these ideas are great for you too. However there are considerably more options available to you:

Read a book, the old-fashioned way, once again, the option is there to learn something if you want to or perhaps even to just lose yourself in a work of fiction. The library can help you with this. However there are plenty of stalls and shops that sell second-hand books. You can often pick up a book in excellent condition for less than a pound.

What about learning handicrafts (knitting, crochet, etc)? This way you also end up with something you can use, perhaps a new top, scarf or hat. Incidentally it’s worth pointing out that many men have discovered that they really enjoy knitting as it helps them to relieve stress and winds and down after a hard day. It could work for you too!

There are plenty of others ideas -
Become great at soduko or crosswords.
People watching can be fun. Study your fellow commuters and write or make up stories about them or draw them. Who knows you may end up writing a book that other commuters can read or discover an artistic skill you never realised you had.

You could invest in a mini DVD player and work on whittling down your “movies-to-watch” list or play a game boy (or whatever they call them now).

Meditation or self hypnosis can both prepare your mind for the day ahead and calm your mind after a busy day. Most probably you never have time to sit at home for 30 minutes and practice quieting your mind - but on the train you can have 30 minutes of pure bliss. It can help even more than sleep at times. A cell phone with an alarm will help you emerge before you've missed your train stop if you aren't getting off at the end of the line.

A good way to get exercise, if you can, is at the end of the day, don't get on the bus at your usual stop - walk to a stop further away if you can. It can also allow you the ability to do errands on the way home, instead of having to go out again when you get home. Once again it could also help you to clear the day's events from your head

One of the problems with long commutes is that; by the time you get home you are so tired that you are in no mood to cook. Often people will eat an unhealthy ready meal or go to the local takeaway. Why not invest in a slow cooker or crock pot and a crock pot cookbook. You chuck a load of things in your crock pot in the morning and switch it on. When you get home - a delicious hot, nutritious meal awaits you. There are TONS of crock pot recipes out there on the Internet too, so don't assume you're only limited to stew or pot roast.

If you do drive everyday it’s worth bearing in mind that more and more people are taking up Car pooling. If you only have to drive once or twice a week instead of 5, you’ll be able to relax and read a book or paper maybe on 4 of the 5 days and only have the stress of driving through the city on one day each week. It's great for the environment too. Alternatively, you might consider ditching the car altogether once in a while and taking the train or bus if it’s appropriate.

We’re never going to live in a society where commuting becomes a thing of the past. But it's only dead time if you allow it to be that way. Use it