Exactly one year ago today, India experienced its first ever lock down. It was also the first time I had idle day time in the past 8 years.

Like many others, it felt pretty new to me and I’ve wasted the first few weeks bingeing on TV Shows and Social Media. 

But once it became clear that working from home is a new way of life, I resolved to make better use of my newfound free time.

In early April, I’ve created a daily checklist to make the most out of my days, and have been following the same routine ever since.

Surprisingly, 2020 has ended up being my most productive year, despite experiencing two major life events which demanded a major chunk out of my time i.e. the purchase of our first home and the birth of our baby girl.

This post is me looking back at all the things I could accomplish since the beginning of the 2020 lockdown, despite all the challenges and chaos due to coronavirus.

Education

• Completed a diploma equivalent course on Data Science.
• Became an ACE Certified Personal Trainer.
• Learned the basics of drawing.

Fitness

• Hit my best 1 mile, 5k and 10k Run times.
• Did 1000 pushups in 80 minutes.
• Did 31 Murphs in 31 days. ( 3100 pull ups, 6200 push ups, 9300 squats and 100km run )
• Was able to do multiple advanced bodyweight exercises like the L sit, Headstands, Handstands, Pistol squats etc for the first time.
• Found ways to stay fit without a gym.

Writing / Content Creation

• Created my first E – Book.
• Reached 1000 subscribers on YouTube.
• Created a Youtube video that hit 1.5 million views.
• Got published in the FPSB journal.

Others

• Became an intermediate level chess player.
• Did 60 hours of meditation in 60 days.
• Spent a day without using any technology.

Summary

To summarise, this lockdown taught me that we shouldn’t get discouraged by the things that aren’t in our control, no matter how chaotic the environment becomes.

I don’t know if I’ll ever replicate this level of personal productivity in the coming years. But I do intend to use 2020 as my benchmark going forward.

P.S The sole purpose of this post is to personally reflect upon the year gone by and not to boast of my achievements. I’m sure there are millions of people out there, who have achieved much more than I did in the past year.

Have your own lockdown story to share? Do let us know in the comments below.

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