Laundromat Laureate: 5 Ways To Be Positively Productive While Waiting For Your Clothes To Dry
Laundromats are unquestionably a life-saver for millions of Americans; in fact, people spend almost five billion dollars every year getting their clothes clean. Beyond getting your favorite outfits ready for prime time, though, a laundromat can be an excellent place to accomplish other things simultaneously, leaving you with soft, fluffy clothes and the feeling that you've really made great use of your time.
1. Read The Labels
That formerly favorite shirt of yours may actually need to be washed by hand or taken to a dry cleaner, but if you never read the label on it, how would you know? While it's best to learn the special care instructions before you buy an article of clothing (mainly because you'd likely never buy it if you knew all the work involved in caring for it), doing so at the laundromat will help to avoid shrinkage and spoilage of your otherwise favorite clothes.
2. Reach For Your Dreams
People find many excuses for not following their dreams, but if you think about it, life is really too short for any of them. Rather than being hypnotized by the spin cycle, start researching a way to bring your dreams to fruition. For example, if you want to start a business or patent an invention, learn exactly how it's done. Then next time the towels are on tumble dry, create a five-step plan, consisting of the moves you can make to get your idea off the ground. Within a few months, you should have all the knowledge you need (and be completely out of excuses) to take your dreams to the next level - reality!
3. Write A Letter (By Hand)
Hand-written letters are a lost art, but not entirely obsolete. If you put pen to paper, you could make someone's day, give them a lasting memento or be more direct and honest than you could ever be in a brief text. Especially if there's someone special in your life who's older and remembers the days before computers, a written letter is striking and soulful by comparison.
4. Plan Your Budget
Ugh! The budget...Most people don't have one and even fewer actually follow set spending limits, but it could save you a considerable amount of money in the long-run, perhaps even helping you find your way out of debt. Formulate a smart spending formula and every week while you're doing laundry, tackle the obstacles standing between you and financial freedom. You could write out a money-saving grocery list and check out sales at all the local stores on your cell or laptop, rather than simply daydreaming as you await for tumble-dry to finish!
5. Purge Your Cell Phone
An overload of unused apps on your phone hogs resources and if you're like a lot of people, you also have a ton of old pics that will never see print and other files that are otherwise unproductive and wasteful. Spend a few minutes clearing out the cobwebs and your phone should perform better, as well as have more room for more beneficial programs, such as those that help you manage time, money, the space in your freezer and more. Or how about an app that will help you plan that business you've been dreaming of? Either way, you and your phone will be more efficient following a purge.
You'll love your laundromat (like Indian Village Laundromat) even more if you spend the time between cycles doing something productive or empowering and who knows what else these creative sessions could lead to!