What to do during long car commuting each day?

[martinogg]

I would like to ask for suggestions about what activities could be done whilst driving for up to 2 hours a day.

I drive 50 miles each way to work, on motorway roads. The journey takes 1hour each way. To pass the time, i have been listening to pod casts about various subjects; learning to speak mandarin, cantonese and of course listening to Steve Pavlina's podcasts.

Can you suggest other activities that could be done during this drive?

My interests lie in my career of graphics and games programming, and personal development.

Listening to pod casts and audio books really is all i have thought about.

I wonder if there is any sort of 'brain training' pod casts, which excersizes the mind, sort of like the Nintendo DS game; a multi-subject audio which talks through a question or problem, and there is time given within the pod cast to give an answer, no writing required!

Please let me know if you have any suggestions or advice for using up this extra time in a meaningful way.

Thanks,
Martin

[David Cain]

Have you thought about learning a language? There are lots of language learning audio programs, and with two hours a day, or even one, you could progress quickly.

[SMA]

Hi, Martin;

I'm sure you'll get lots of ideas posted here, but my suggestion is to pick up some tape/CD sets from people in fields which interest you.

Steve's podcasts are a good start, and anything Presonal development- and/or business-related such as Brian Tracy, Jim Rohn, Wayne Dyer are good as well.
This is just a sampling - there are lots of different programs with many different messages and angles, but listening to personal and professional development material on a consistent basis will make a MARKED difference in your perspective and performance in all levels over time. The difference between listening to the radio and listening to empowering or learning material is a fundamental difference in those who achieve their goals and dreams and those who do not, from both my own experience as well as from the anecdotes of many, many highly successful and happy people.

Hope this helps!

Cheers,

SMA

[Some Random Loser]

This may sound weird but "how about nothing?" I've found prolonged driving to be spooky meditative at times. I tend to drive very slow and relaxed, and I stay out of people's ways, when driving meditatively.

[bluedragon]

Aren't you concerned about not being as focussed and alert as if you were not meditating?

Myself, when I drive, I listen to pickup podcasts. Like those here:
Pickup Podcast on PodcastAlley.com -- The place to find Podcasts
They're such great personal development messages, mixed with social themes and dating ones. I find them all extremely intelligent and insightful.

[martinogg]

Thanks for the replies,

Good idea about the driving style, I personally found i became a lot less stressed by driving at 55-60 instead of the speed limit of 70mph; less bumpy, saves fuel and less stress by never having to overtake. I didnt think of specifically not listening to anything but I do find that tiredness in the evening after work is a real issue, so the meditation idea probably wouldnt work well for me.

My girlfriend is an opera singer, and she practises singing when on a car drive. Whilst its not the best posture to sing (and deafens any passengers ) its extra practise and a way of using this time to her advantage.

[RT Wolf]

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[Some Random Loser]

Originally Posted by bluedragon

Aren't you concerned about not being as focussed and alert as if you were not meditating?

I'm actually much more alert. The driving itself is the meditation. The focus is totally on driving and flowing smoothly along. There is no attempt at meditation, just driving perfectly smooth and safe. This is easiest using a car one is good with driving, and following a route that one is intimately familiar with.

[JAX]

When I use to commute I would add variety.
Books on tape- self-improvement and also fiction.
I really enjoyed listening to favorite commedians.
Music- instead of the radio, pick your favorite songs and put them together.

JAX

[sirkinm]

Have you tried masturbating? Jk. I get to listen to whatever I want at work, so I do a bunch of podcasts. In fact, I'm making a site on the best podcasts on the web, though it's not nearly ready yet (only a few entries), you can find it at: mikespodcasts.com

You should get an account at Audible.com. You'll be a very well-read guy (well, I guess it's well-listened guy) in just a year.

[WayneKey1]

Tho, I dont have a regular commute I like to use the long drive time to call friends and family members that I have not really kept up with. There is a short list of the ones in my head that love ideas and are often ready to get into a real idea to idea conversation with.
One of the brain workouts that I like is simply using link memorization techniques to remember random things from the countryside in a sequential order. On a regular commute you can literally use the ordinal link scheme to memorize your town or city's layout. Kinda silly but it keeps the brain cells working and you never know when you might need to know exactly where something is (when your tech stuff is down).

[ChaosKiwi]

Maybe you could get a hands free cellphone kit and spend the time chatting with friends or sorting out business stuff.

What about games? Not sure how meaningful they'd be but they can be a good way to relax.

Randomly waving, smiling, winking, and giving the thumbs up to other motorists and seeing there reactions always makes me chuckle. Even just observing other motorists in there cars can be interesting. You'd be surprised how many people appear to be crying as they drive along!

[Power]

When you drive, you become a robot. Don't be a robot
This principle also applies in our life. We are unconsciously awake (consciously asleep) and miss out what is happening around us because we are too busy to pay attention.

The moment you start driving from point A to point B, pay close attention to your journey (smell the roses as they say). Consciously pay attention to the places that you go through, the buildings, the intersections, any landmarks?...

You'll be surprised to find things that you never thought that was there and you've been driving on that same route for years!