Was, like many of us, your New Year's Resolution to broaden your skills or knowledge this year? 2022 is your year. The year for self-improvement and wellness. And learning something new can provide you with many new opportunities - as well as being hugely beneficial to your mental and physical health.
There are absolutely tonnes of awesome ways you can learn new things or enhance the skills you already have. And best of all, some of them can be done for absolutely free! So it is true what they say, learning something new doesn't have to cost you a thing!
We've researched a variety of skills that the British people have said they'd like to learn this year. And we've picked out our top 10 free ones to share with you guys.
1) Learn a New Language Online
Whether you want to learn a whole new language or see what you can remember from your French class in elementary school. There are lots of ways to do this for free!
A great example of this is Duolingo (available for your android or iPhone). Here you can learn up to 35+ languages for free such as French, Spanish, German and Italian.
Learning a new language could help boost academic achievements, provide professional and career advantages, and give you more social and global skills to name a few. If you really want to invest in your language learning there are paid courses available online such as Link World Languages.
2) Try Out a New Recipe in the Kitchen
You might look inside your kitchen cupboards and feel like you’re on an episode of The Final Table. But fortunately, the internet is full of cooking advice to give you some inspiration!
Learning a new recipe is a great way to help you to fall back in love with cooking and is a great way to get the family involved too, which can be really rewarding - as well as fun! You can find free recipes on sites such as Simply Cook, choose your favourite and get started!
Don’t forget there is also the option of baking too - if cooking isn’t exactly your thang.
Cooking your own, great food can also be financially rewarding - as you won’t have to pay for takeaways or go out to restaurants to eat as much.
3) Learn How To Play An Instrument
Learning to play an instrument is the beginning of a journey. One that is exciting and fun - as well as super rewarding!
It also has lots of benefits such as improving memory, developing concentration and relieving stress.
And luckily, there's no need to pay for a pricey instructor or even any need to leave your own home when learning to play a new instrument!
There are lots of interactive and easy step-by-step guides online that can help you achieve your goal at your own pace. Playground Sessions is a great example of companies that offer free online piano tutorials, for example.
You should also check out YouTube, where you can find a whole heap of free online tutorials.
If you do want to spend a little then there are also courses that you can take online with providers such as Centre of Excellence where you can learn at your own pace.
4) Brush Up On Hair & Beauty Skills
Video hosting sites such as YouTube and TikTok, as well as social media platforms such as Instagram are great free resources for hair, makeup and other beauty tutorials!
These videos can be long or short depending on the amount of time you have. So are great if you are in a rush but need some quick tips and tricks to help you look and feel amazing. You can also find free tips and tricks on well-known makeup brands’ websites such as Sephora.
You can easily search for, then subscribe to or follow any hair/beauty influencer accounts that grab your attention. The more you follow, the more recommendations you’ll receive for other channels sharing the same content - so you can constantly learn new techniques or find inspiration for new styles.
What better way to learn how to create that fishtail plait you’ve been wanting to try or how to apply black eyeshadow without looking like you've been in a fight?! (We've all been there).
5) Improve Your Writing Skills
Many people underestimate the importance of having excellent writing skills and what benefits this can have on most careers.
Writing is one of the oldest forms of communication that still exist today. Think about it - our daily communications are nearly always in the form of writing. Whether this is text messages, daily emails or posts you make on your social media accounts.
There are free tools you can use to improve your writing and grammar skills. For example, Grammarly may just become your new best friend! It is completely free and only takes a few seconds to install into your browser. It's an automated grammar checker that will highlight any spelling, grammar or punctuation errors you may have missed.
6) Practise Yoga & Meditation
Mental health issues such as depression, anxiety and stress are prevalent in the UK and are serious health conditions alongside heart disease, asthma and even cancer.
Yoga and mindfulness meditation have become increasingly popular throughout the country and have many benefits on not only your thoughts but your health, too. You can learn meditation and yoga for free from sites such as Complete Unity Yoga, you’ll find great tips in their blog area.
Don't worry, we're not saying you need to learn how to balance on your head for this to work. But maybe you have 5 or 10 minutes in your day to do some mindfulness meditation. This could be at work, in your car or even before you go to bed.
There are lots of free apps that you can download such as Headspace and Calm that you can access at any time.
7) Work On a New Sporting Hobby
Sports and active hobbies are a great way to get moving, which is super important for your physical and mental health.
Getting kids moving and having fun again has never been more important, and it all counts towards the 60 minutes of physical activity they need every day.
Why not take a football to the park and play a friendly game with some friends or family? Or maybe cricket or basketball is more of your thing. Either way, this doesn’t have to cost anything and usually, there are local clubs where you live.
Walking, jogging, running and cycling are also great ways to improve your fitness for free! And if you don’t have the supplies you need such as running trainers or a cycle helmet, pop down to JD Sports during their sales to pick up what you need.
8) Delve Into Your Family History
You may not think that learning about your family is important. But there are a lot of benefits to learning and knowing about your family history and it is totally free!
It can give you a sense of identity. Nothing is more eye-opening than learning about who you are. Learning about your ancestors, embracing your culture and understanding where you came from can open your eyes to how beautiful and unique you are.
It can also make you more resilient. Knowing about the struggles your family may have suffered will give you the strength and confidence to know that you can get through anything. Just like them!
Most importantly it will also give you the time to really get to know your family and who they are as people. They will be able to tell you all of their wonderful stories throughout their life - the good and the bad - which can be a great bonding experience.
9) Knit Your Own Blanket
No matter the season, there’s no denying the fact that snuggling inside a warm blanket beats going to work or running errands any day!
Toss a good book, and maybe even a glass of wine into the mix and you’re practically in staycation paradise.
So why not have a go at knitting your own blanket this year? Michael's has free online classes that give you step by step tutorials on how to do exactly this.
Plus, you can stash your blanket anywhere. From your living room sofa to the end of your bed. They also make the perfect gift for people who are always cold!
10) Listen to Podcasts
The best thing about podcasts is that you can listen and learn on the go!
You can choose to be entertained or learn something new whenever you want, wherever you are.
If you're super busy, then you can even listen to your podcast while you do the dreaded chores such as folding laundry, cooking dinner, or washing the dishes! It will make your workload seem much lighter.
There is a podcast for pretty much anything and everything - from learning about your hometowns' history to brushing up your knowledge on current affairs. And best of all they are mostly all completely free!
So, what are you waiting for?!
If you need any more advice on how you can learn something new for free this year – please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
