You could argue that mind-numbing tasks are fine distractions in winter, but summer is about making more time to do less. Here are some yawn-worthy tasks to edit out of your life so you can have the summer you really want.
1 Attending formal meetings
Transform dull sit-downs by keeping on the move with a walking meeting – taking in the air, the sights, the exercise gains! Works online with headphones or IRL with a colleague.
2 Wrestling with your lawnmower
Why should you mow, when a Honda Miimo robotic lawnmower can do it? The robotic lawn-trimming champ Miimo is happy to take over, so get it set up then retire to the terrace to watch (or don’t – the new range has Bluetooth connectivity as standard and the option for 3G/4G too). And if you want to keep things really simple, the HRM 1000 – with its pared-back display – is your friend.
3 Endless procrastination
Do the thing! Don’t just talk about your dreams, make them happen. Start the painting, write the book, train for that 5km run. A little at a time is better than not at all, so work out the smallest first step you can take and do that.
4 Taking the same old route
Satnav is a godsend but also as adventurous as a plain baked potato. Instead, mix it up and go your own way; it’ll make the journey feel more interesting and could help to keep your brain active, too.
5 Continually updating your socials
Less is more. Constructing a plausible, yet aspirational, reality for anonymous onlookers is time consuming. Stick to a couple of posts a week – that way, your audience will be more pleased to see you.
6 Pruning
Choose slow-growing evergreens, such as azaleas or dwarf rhododendrons, and back away from the secateurs. For structure, slow-growing dwarf conifers provide a wide range of colours and diverse shapes with minimal effort. All do well in glazed frost-proof containers if you like your plants on your patio.
7 Seeking garden perfection
Not every corner of your garden needs to be manicured and pristine. Rewild a section and let nature take its course. The bumblebees will thank you and the random, tangled beauty of it all will make quite the contrast. Tip: the Honda Miimo lets you leave some longer meadow sections for greater biodiversity.
8 Stressing over gift shopping
When you see something you love, buy it, and keep it until you’ve worked out who it’s for. A go-to gift cupboard prevents an afternoon wasted hunting for last-minute panic buys.
9 Wondering what to wear
Have a couple of hangers of trusted outfits on standby, always ready to go. For some reason, picking out clothes the night before takes half as long – perhaps because you’re more awake – and means the befuddled morning version of you has one less fire to fight.
10 Waiting in for deliveries
You never hear the doorbell anyway. If you’re able, click-and-collect is the one. It gets you out of the house, or gives you a nice diversion on the way home from wherever you’ve been having much more fun.
11 Counting down to holidays
There’s more to time off than your bumper vacation. There’s joy to be found in a day off here and there, doing something local, lowkey and fun – maybe even a little hands-off gardening, watching your Miimo gobble up grass while you relax.
12 Weeding
Weeds can’t thrive where there’s no light, so make your flowerbeds too busy for invaders to get a look in. Cotoneaster dammeri (also known as bearberry cotoneaster) is evergreen, produces attractive berries, and is ideal for ground cover, along with evergreen pachysandras, also known as green carpet.
13 Spending forever cleaning
Set yourself a time limit and be realistic about what can be done. To make it feel more fun and stave off boredom, spruce up the place in zones, stick on a playlist or set challenges for yourself as you do it. How many colour-themed things can you put away? It works!
14 Feeling guilty about being inside on a summer’s day
It’s fine, you don’t have to spend all day gently baking in the sunshine. Give yourself permission to binge on a box set or read on the sofa (all while Miimo does the hard work for you and keeps your lawn in tiptop shape).
15 Watching reality TV
They fight, they make up, they fight again, they take longer to make up, and repeat – until you realise you’ve been stationary for eight hours. There is no plot, so don’t lose your own.
16 Hovering over high maintenance plants
Open to feeling the dirt under your fingernails but don’t want to be tied to attention-seeking flora? Cherry tomatoes, asparagus, beans, onions and peppers pretty much do their own thing once planted, you just need to show up with the water and an encouraging smile.
17 Jumping on a work call
A “quick call” almost never is. Ask for, or offer, an emailed precis instead. Everyone can read at their leisure, be more focused, and not feel under pressure to find immediate solutions. And if it has to be a call, be sure it has an agenda – and therefore an end in sight.
18 Waiting for your phone to charge
A battery pack doesn’t take up much space, so you’ll always be connected, and you can keep up with the group chat while you’re out in the garden.
19 Ordering the same thing at a restaurant
Favourites are favourites for a reason, but how did they become your most-loved foods? Because you took a chance and tried them the first time, right? Open your mind and enrich your palate.
20 Endless to-do lists
Start a tiny, achievable one to feel that rush of completion.
21 Cleaning garden furniture
Invest in a good quality hardwood set of garden furniture that can withstand the elements and doesn’t require any treatment, such as iroko, teak, or sapele mahogany.
22 Saying yes to things you don’t want to do
Stop doing things you don’t want to (you could start with letting a robotic lawnmower such as the Honda Miimo sort your lawn out instead of putting in the hard work yourself), and you could literally find yourself with hours of extra time on your hands to do the things you actually enjoy. Those long summer nights are meant to be adored, after all, not ignored.
Find out more about how the latest Honda Miimo robotic lawnmowers could transform your lawn