digitalDrummer Hall of Famer Michael Schack has been self-isolating to avoid COVID-19. Usually an extremely busy gigging drummer, he now finds himself with plenty of time on his hands and he used Facebook to share his “Corona Lockdown” strategy.

1. I keep my downtime for the afternoon, preferably outside on my terrace in the sun. As spring is in the air, I’m actually getting the necessary natural dose of Vitamin D which I usually don’t think about.
2. Netflix ... is for late night only, when it’s the darkest time outside. It’s the perfect end of the day, clears my mind and helps me find the necessary silence and sleep easily, especially when the series episode or movie is boring.
3. Now more than ever, I do my daily exercising or drumming workouts right after waking up in the morning and BEFORE breakfast and emails. As my body has just woken up, my motor skills and memory are the sharpest and it’s easier to find inspiration.
4. After up to 60 minutes of continuous (no breaks, using my smartphone timer!) physical or drumming activities, it’s water time : drinking and showering.
5. Breakfast: I always enjoy reading my socials/online news/mails during breakfast. Productive breakfasts are the best!
6. After breakfast, I refrain from wasting time in supermarket or grocery store lines. I’ll come back to this later.
7. Studio or other work time: after breakfast, I switch on the “to do” list and work for a few hours – two or three maximum. This way, I can give my ears their necessary rest, too. Don’t forget I already played drums first thing after I woke up.
8. Lunch followed by that Vitamin D downtime.
9. I get my essentials/groceries for the night and the next morning/day when the least number of people are doing the same. This not only saves me time, but it’s also much easier to keep my necessary social distance from other people out there. I’ve found late afternoon/early evening are best. And as things are less hectic then, the staff is usually filling the shelves again. Fresh stuff!
10. After dinner, while maybe watching the news, it’s back to the studio for a couple of hours. Evenings do feel different musically as they make things sound different, too. That’s when satisfaction usually kicks in. But, if not, I just leave everything I’ve done earlier and start up a new idea. Also, evening time for me is the perfect time to record a video or get things ready for social posting.

Check out Michael’s tips in full here.