6. Build connections:

With social distancing, people are spending more time on social media. Take advantage of this opportunity to network. Take advantage of this opportunity to network. Try to make your social media presence stronger. Everybody is now talking about COVID-19 and sharing the challenges they’re facing, so it’s really quite easy to join the conversations right now and make yourself known. You can also reach out to potential collaborators on social media or even email. Since everybody's working from home and likely missing having people around, they would be more open to engaging in conversations.

All said and done, don’t feel pressured to be productive. As Fay Lin, a mental health advocate, said in a recent tweet: “It is ok to struggle with productivity, mourn the experiences that were cancelled due to social distancing, and feel anxious about the uncertainty.” Use this time to take a break and hit the reset button on your life. Long hours, late nights, failed experiments, missed deadlines, working weekends, little time for family and friends: your life has probably revolved around these since the time you started your career. Now that you have the time, why not take it easy for a bit? Take rest, take time out for yourself, consciously practice self-care, enjoy a candlelight dinner with your spouse or playtime with the kids, have video calls with your friends, and use this time to recharge and rejuvenate yourself.