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They say every dark cloud has a silver lining. Here are 9 things to consider during the COVID-19 lockdown.

1. You’re not being flaked on: The flake rate was at an all time high before the lockdown. Now with restaurants, movies, malls, and other venues closed, the dating scene is at a standstill, which means you don’t have to worry about being flaked on.

2. You get to slow down: Living a life of rush, hurry, and on auto-pilot was our society’s norm before the lockdown. Now you get to slow down and take a break from the soul sucking, fast-paced lifestyle of modern life.

3. You get to practice minimalism: Before the world was plagued by the coronavirus, it was plagued by consumerism. By the lockdown causing concerns for a financial crisis, you have the perfect opportunity to remove yourself from a culture that’s fixated on buying unnecessary things and focus on things that’s only necessary for survival, which is a key principle in minimalism.

4. You get to improve your relationships: Since the world is on lockdown, you’re not out and about meeting new people. As a result, you get to focus on improving your existing relationships with friends and family. As far as significant relationships go, you get to see if your relationship is more superficial or one of substance. Have you heard the saying, “If you can’t quarantine together then you shouldn’t be together?”

5. You have more incentive to cook: Although take-out food has become a popular option during the lockdown, there’s still a lot of uncertainty about the spread of coronavirus. This means you have a lot of incentive to cook your own food. Cooking has always been a safer and healthier option because you can be sure that it’s clean and you can monitor what goes in it.

6. You get a lesson in humility: Money, status, and fame has a way of making people feel like they’re superior than others. By the world being on lockdown, you get to see that no amount of money, status, or fame kept you from being locked in your house just like everyone else. With the current situation at hand, no one really has the room to be arrogant or boast.

7. You have more time: Before the lockdown, people were pressed for time. It was the result of the hustle and bustle of modern living. Now you have more time than ever. This means you get to catch up on your rest. You get to organize and declutter your space. You get to learn that new language you’ve been putting off!

8. You’re more grateful for life: Who would have thought a couple of months ago the world would be on lockdown to prevent the spread of a deadly virus? Everyday the number of cases rise. If there’s one thing that this time has likely done, it has made you more grateful for life. Do you still want the house on the hilltop and fancy cars? Maybe so. However, you now get to see that those type of things are a distant second to what’s most important, which is waking up and seeing another day.

9. You get to self-reflect: By the lockdown forcing you to slow down and increasing your time alone, you now have the space to look inward and re-examine your life, or self-reflect. Through self-reflection, you get to figure out who you really are outside of the world. You get to identify what you really want out of life and make changes. You get to see if you need to let go of something or someone that’s no longer serving you. Without a doubt, the lockdown has put you in position to slow down, be still, and as Socrates would say, “Know thyself.”

“Maybe it’s not just a time for self-quarantining or social distancing. Maybe it’s also a time for self-reflection — to figure out who you really are independent of Babylon.” ~ Balanced Vaughn

We live in a time where flaking is at an all time high and it’s becoming harder and harder to find someone who follows through with their word.

For those who are unaware, a flake is someone who makes plans or promises, but fails to follow through.

Often times, a flake will either cancel plans at the very last minute or not show up, giving no warning or reason for not keeping their commitment.

To be clear, a flake is not someone who cancels an arrangement for an actual emergency (e.g., a family crisis).

Instead, a flake is an unreliable person who seldom, if ever, keeps their word.

Many people today wonder why there’s an increase in flaking.

Is it due to poor time-management skills? Is it due to over-committing? Is it due to texting and how it’s made easier to bail on someone?

While these reasons may be the case for some instances of flaking, they don’t get to the root issue of the flake epidemic.

The number one reason for the flake epidemic is that people don’t value each other anymore.

As time goes on, many people have become cold-hearted and dismissive towards one another.

Also, with the help of social media, many people have developed traits of narcissism and only seek relationships for self-serving reasons, such as validation, and not to form a genuine connection.

More so, many people lack empathy and simply don’t care how they treat others.

When someone flakes it also signals that they don’t value your time. Why?

Because people make time for what they value in life.

One thing to know about flaky people is that they often feel that their time is more valuable than anyone else’s, which makes it easy for them to flake.

Sadly, as time goes on and more people become self-centered and less empathetic, the flake rate will continue to rise.

For obvious reasons, being flaked on is highly frustrating and it can be very tempting to call a flake out on their flaky behavior.

If you do, be mindful that flaky people typically don’t respond well to someone calling them out on their behavior.

They’ll often twist the situation and try to make you feel like you’re the one in the wrong for expecting them to keep their word.

Also, be aware that many people’s minds are warped and they will purposely flake just to “test you” to see how’ll you respond.

This practice is common particularly in the beginning stages of dating.

To save yourself the headache of dealing with a flake, it’s best to just cut contact.

The person who flakes may or may not want to make amends.

No matter what happens, don’t allow someone to disrespect you or your time.

Your main focus should be to protect your peace of mind and surround yourself with people who genuinely values you.

Time is your most valuable asset, so the last thing you want to do is waste it.

If a person truly wants to be in your life, it will be evident through their actions.

“Hey, I know we were planning to get together in a couple of minutes, but something came up and I can’t make it. Sorry.” ~ A Flake