The flexible leisure time of the future

Those who can choose to work from home or maybe some form of hybrid work – a few days at home and a few days at the office – are presented with new possibilities for their leisure time. The nine-to-five is disappearing as a more flexible leisure time becomes possible, and one that can occur at any time during the day. Or at any time during the year.

Many associate leisure time with health and exercise. But there are several indications that we will be spending a lot of our time on other activities, in ways we haven’t done before. The climate and our engagement in creating a better environment have gotten a boost during the pandemic. We’ve become more interested in not letting our stuff go to waste and using what we can over and over again. It requires leisure time to be able to repair, build, resew, and carry out other activities that we have discovered to be highly enjoyable. This is especially true when we can show off the results on social media and in our communities.

Websites will function more like homes and clubs rather than big broad forums. Advertisements will become more sophisticated, and the line between your reality and social media is being eroded. For a long time, we have observed a desire for real experiences in virtual worlds, and thanks to inspiration from the world of gaming, we are constantly discovering new ingenious ways to recreate real life online. You will be invited to digital weddings and nights around the digital campfire. Maybe we’ll soon use avatars to meet and hug our VR friends on social media or share a beer as people. The transition to increasingly virtual worlds is possible thanks to developments in connectivity, cloud computing, and more powerful portable devices.

But as we have begun to realise the importance of physically spending time together through mingling, parties and warm hugs, we will also dedicate more times to socialising with our relatives and friends.

Picnics are not a new phenomenon, but they have still skyrocketed thanks to the pandemic. We make our way to the park with our chairs, plates, and glasses. We happily set the table (or blanket) for Mother’s Day or an after work. We’ll be seeing a lot more people “picnicking”, both in the city and the countryside.

More opportunities will be needed for meeting up outdoors in the city’s in-between spaces. It is about flexibility and environments having different functions at different times of the day. Even now, in some cities, we see empty streets and parking lots transforming into promenades and spaces for play and sports before and after rush hour times. Other city spaces will also be tested to see if the city can be made more thoughtful and human – such as through floating parks or running tracks and bicycle paths along the rooftops.

“Guerrilla gardening” will become completely legal and even encouraged by those in power. The reasoning will be that those who plant and grow things will also take care of them. And who doesn’t want a greener city?

And what was that thing about hanging out by the pool? You see, the growing sharing economy with its clever climate ideas will make us see many things in a different light. Soon there will be an app on your phone that tells you which neighbours have a swimming pool to rent for a few hours when they are out of town!