5 Things to do during Winter Quarantine to Help Advance your Career

With the second wave of COVID-19 rolling in along with the crisp autumn breeze, it looks like we can all expect to be spending a lot of time at home this winter. The first time around, quarantine didn’t seem so bad – we all baked some sourdough, binged Tiger King, and met up with friends in the park for a socially distanced hangout or two. But with a second round of shut-downs looming while the weather becomes increasingly chilly, we’re going to need something other than Netflix and bread to make it through the winter. If we’re all going to be sitting around waiting for the snow to clear, why not do something that will actually benefit us professionally? I’ve compiled this list of five things we can all do to keep our careers moving forward, even though we’re stuck at home.

Take a free online course

Some of us might still be having nightmares from the stress of law school, but taking a free online course is much more relaxing and fun, and it provides you with a new knowledge set that you can add to your resumé or use to impress in your current job. I was recently introduced to two different platforms for trying out online courses that I’m  excited to share, but I’m sure there are many more if these don’t suit your interests or learning styles.

Khan Academy is a nonprofit organization that provides a variety of free courses for children and adults. If you want to learn how to offer more web-based services, there are different types of coding and computer courses. There are also courses on economics if you need a refresher, or topics like art history and US government if you want to try something new.

If you’re more interested in legal learning, Coursera provides access to courses from international universities, including many law courses. A couple of interesting current offerings include “International Water Law” offered by the University of Geneva, and “Internet Giants: The Law and Economics of Media Platforms” offered by the University of Chicago. While the courses are free to enroll in, you may need to pay if you want the official certificate upon completion of the course. Courses vary in length and difficulty, so you can pick something that isn’t a huge commitment if you just want to test the waters a bit.