A dreadful commute has to be the worst part of anyone’s workweek. Well, unless you live moments away from the office, in which case, those not so fortunate have total commute-envy (just so you know).

I am that person. But instead of continuing to complain (since moving any closer is not an option), I decided to look for ways to make the absolute most of it. It had gotten to the point where I was becoming so frazzled and anxious sitting in traffic, thinking of all the things that were on my plate or what I would much rather be doing besides sitting in a highway parking lot! And quite frankly, it sucks to waste time.

If you are able to telecommute a day or 2 out of the workweek, consider yourselves blessed. But for those who have quite a significant trek into the office every single day, here are some things you could be doing to make it more productive, less stressful, and less painful. Make lemonade out of lemons…

CREATE A KILLER PLAYLIST + SET YOUR STATIONS

Music can make or break your commute. Sure, listening to morning shows are awesome, but there are times where you just want to get lost in uninterrupted tunes (and ones you’ve specifically handpicked). I like to listen to inspirational music in the mornings to get me amped up for the day. Music truly is therapy, and a solid playlist or use of apps (there are quite a few of them) will seriously make the commute much more tolerable.

On the other hand, you may just choose to listen to the radio. In this case, set all your preferred stations to your favorites and flip-flop between them as needed. It would be cool to have a mixture of talk-radio and music to help get you going and for the sake of variety!

PODCASTS + AUDIOBOOKS

One of my favorite ways to catch up on my favorite audiobooks, podcasts, and any TED Talks which interest me is to listen to them on my morning commute. You can learn so much about business, life and get a motivational kick in the butt from each of these. Download them to your phone and be sure the hands-free technology is set up in your vehicle.

BRAINSTORM + DICTATE YOUR NOTES

This is what I’m doing most of the time on my long commutes. To ensure that my “grand” ideas do not disintegrate into the thin air, I always like to record them using voice technology on my mobile device. Many come up with their best ideas in the car, and it would be such a shame to let them go to waste simply because you forget them. Writers, this would also be the perfect time to voice record an entire blog post (you can type it up later).

CHAT WITH A FRIEND

Once again, hands-free and if you are able to fully concentrate on the road! If you have a family member or friend whom you have not chatted with in a while, this would be the perfect time to catch up. Pretty soon, you will look up to see that your commute time does not feel nearly as long when being entertained.