10 productive things to do in one hour or less
Last Updated on February 24, 2025
As busy mums there’s always productive things to do that we’d love to tackle, but feel like we don’t have enough time for.
However, what if you could turn one hour into a super productive, meaningful block of time? The good news is, you can!
Here are 10 productive things to do in one hour or less, that will help you tick things off your to do list, and make you feel like you actually had a productive day.
And for days where you have even less time, here are some things you can do in 20 minutes for a productive day.
Ready to get started? Let’s dive in!
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Do a quick declutter
Decluttering doesn’t have to take a lot of time, in fact, some of the most satisfying decluttering projects are those that make a small space look and feel instantly better.
Some ways to declutter fast are:
- Dealing with, throwing away, or filing paperwork. For example, pay a bill then file the bill away, throw out paper offers you won’t take up, or for paperwork you don’t have time to deal with, use this desktop paperwork organiser, which is the one I use, so you can store paperwork until you have time to deal with it
- Rotate toys, donate toys your kids no longer play with that still work, or throw out toys that are broken beyond repair
- Declutter a junk drawer, or an area of your home you’ve wanted to declutter for a long time
- Declutter your wardrobe by donating clothing that no longer fits, or that you don’t wear
- Declutter your kid’s room
- Declutter and organise your fridge
Speed clean
Speed cleaning is a productive thing to do in one hour or less, or as a daily habit to keep your house tidy, and can include:
- Carrying a laundry basket around each room and putting things in it that need to be put somewhere else
- Cleaning breakfast dishes, wiping countertops, and sweeping floors after breakfast
- Tidying couch cushions, putting toys away, and getting clothes ready for the next day before you go to bed
Do a weekly meal plan
Doing a weekly meal plan is one of the productive things I do, which saves me time by not having to think about what to cook each night.
Some meal planning tips that I use when meal planning are:
- Creating a list of meals that you can choose from
- Using time blocking to block out a chunk of time each weekend to write out your weekly meal plan
- Looking at your calendar to see if there’s any nights you won’t need to cook
You could also do some meal prep as part of your weekly meal planning activities, which could involve using one hour or less to cut vegetables, cook rice or pasta, mash potatoes, or portion kids lunchbox snacks into containers.
Learn something new
Dedicating one hour or less during the week to learn something new, like a new language, skill, or even a new hobby, gives you something to look forward to, and allows you to use your brain differently.
There are many resources online that you can use to do this, such as Duolingo tutorials if you want to learn another language, or You Tube videos to learn more about a hobby you’re interested in.
Exercise
As a busy mum, exercise can often be on the bottom of your to do list, but finding an exercise you enjoy, that doesn’t take a long time, can have many benefits to your mental health and mood.
Some exercises that can be done in one hour or less include:
- Dancing
- HIIT workouts
- Pilates
- Running
- Strength training
- Walking
- Yoga
Organise your digital files
Digital declutter can be just as overwhelming as household clutter, so something you can do for a productive day is to spend some time doing a digital declutter, which can include:
- Organising computer files into folders
- Backing up computer files on a portable external hard drive
- Deleting photos
- Deleting emails
- Deleting unused apps
- Replying to emails
- Unsubscribing from emails
Make time for self-care
One of the most productive things you can do as a busy mum is to make time for self-care, which allows you to recharge, and can also help to minimise mum burnout.
Here are some self-care ideas that take less than an hour:
- Baking
- Journaling
- Listening to a podcast
- Reading
- Tackling your to do list
- Taking some deep breaths
- Watching your favourite TV show
Anything that you enjoy, or that makes you feel good, counts as self-care, which could even mean decluttering your home, or writing a to do list, which are both things I consider self-care for me.
Work on a project
If there’s something you’ve been wanting to do but have been putting off, spending one hour or less doing it over several one hour slots will allow you to make great progress.
This could include things like starting a blog, painting, or even working on a business idea.
Plan your week
Planning your week doesn’t take a lot of time, but increases the likelihood that you’ll have a productive day.
To do this, look at what you have coming up in your week ahead, prioritise what has to get done, then schedule your priorities into a paper planner or digital calendar on the days you have time to do them.
To help with this, you can also start a brain dump, which is a list with everything you need to get done, or want to get done, so you can allocate these items to your weekly plan.
Contact loved ones
Staying in touch with loved ones, or friends, is something that you can do through a message, on a video chat, or on a phone call, that will leave you feeling fulfilled, and kept up to date with those who matter to you.
Productive things to do – a recap
There are many productive things to do at home in one hour or less, that will allow you to feel accomplished.
10 of these productive things are:
- Quick decluttering projects
- Speed cleaning activities
- Writing a weekly meal plan
- Learning a new language, skill, or hobby
- Doing exercise that you enjoy
- Organising your digital life
- Making time for self-care so you can recharge
- Working on a project that you’ve been putting off
- Planning the week ahead
- Contacting a loved one or friend
Using small pockets of time for productive activities can help you feel more accomplished, help you to work towards your goals, and provide you with more balance, less stress, and greater feelings of satisfaction.
What’s something you can tick off your to do list that can be done in one hour or less?
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Great list! I tend to get myself into a tizzy with my to-do list and then end up doing nothing at all! Time-blocking has been a game-changer. I love how you pointed out that each of these tasks takes less than an hour. Makes it much more do-able!
I’m so glad the tasks are made more do able, sometimes we can think tasks take longer than they do, and it’s always a nice reminder that they don’t.
This is such a great list! I remember when my girls were toddlers was the first time I realized how much work I could go through while they were napping!
Naps were perfect for getting things done!