Chris Brogan wrote a blog a week or so ago about what he'd do if he suddenly found himself with some unscheduled time, such as a flight delay. The only thing I remember from his list is he'd write a recommendation on LinkedIn. That's a good task to knock off your to-do list but probably wouldn't make my top ten list. If I had 30 minutes of unexpected time open up, here is what I'd do.

1. Re-organize and prioritize my tasks. I'm always making lists and checking off completed items, which means sometimes my lists get messy. I find that taking a few minutes to clean them up and create clear priorities helps me stay relaxed and be more productive.
2. Investigate new social media sites. I have a list of social media sites that I keep meaning to investigate. 30-minutes is just about the right amount of time to really dig into a social media site, see what they're trying to do and then compare their value to some of the better known sites. Since a lot of people ask me about social media I feel an obligation to be well versed on the subject.
3. I like to take 30 minutes and focus on one client. I ask myself one question: What can I do or recommend that will improve their business? Sometimes this results in a proposal but most of the time I just call them, share the idea and let them know that I'm thinking about them. In my experience these types of phone calls are very well received.
4. Call a friend. Everyone is busy so it's hard to stay in touch with all the important people in our lives. Give me 30 minutes and I can leave voicemails, no one answers anymore, for 5-6 people and just say, "Hello, I was thinking about you and wanted to touch base.". (I need to do more of this.)
5. I subscribe to the online version of the Wall Street Journal but don't read it everyday. Sometimes, as a change of pace, I'll open it up and read whatever interests me. Typically, I tweet a link to the most interesting articles. It's my favorite source of Tweets.
6. I subscribe to several business journals and receive summaries regularly. It's a good way to keep current and has, on occasion, been the source of new business. It typically takes 5-10 minutes to get through one summary.
7. Promote my blog. Few blogs grow readership by themselves, you have to promote them. I use Twitter, FaceBook and LinkedIn (primarily) to let folks know a new post is up. In addition, I read several other blogs and leave comments, which is a good way to get people to read blog, in return, and you help grow an audience.
8. Speaking of blogs, 30 minutes is just enough time to brainstorm blog topics and write a short paragraph outline.
9. Take a walk or just look out the window. I have long days and seldom take a day off so every once in a while I just need to step away from the desk or whatever I'm working on to relax and regain my perspective.
10. Clean up my desktop. By the end of the week my computer screen is often cluttered. I don't like clutter so spending 10-15 minutes to get files organized and into a folder is time well spent. This is similar to #1 so here's an extra bonus.
11. Bonus: Check out the competition or one of my clients' competitors. Websites are being changed all the time. My arsenal of intelligence gathering and website analysis tools is constantly expanding so it pays for me to take the time to do a little competitor checking.

So, what would you do?

Steve