You know that strange stretch of time between December 23 and January 2 when calendars lose meaning and you can’t remember what day it is? Perfect. That’s prime holiday downtime learning season.
We hit pause on live classes during the holidays—our instructors deserve their cocoa-and-naps era so they can return in January refreshed and ready to teach you all the tech skills. But your brain doesn’t need the same level of PTO. Holiday downtime is ideal territory for low-pressure experimenting, tiny skill boosts, and just enough momentum to walk into 2026 with more confidence.
Start small with AI tools that actually make life easier
Holiday brain is real, so keep it simple.
Generative AI tools like ChatGPT or Gemini are perfect for low-stakes experimenting—you don’t need an end goal or a five-step plan. Just poke around. Didn’t get the result you wanted? No big deal. Change the prompt. Try a weird idea. Ask Google how people prompt these days. Half the fun is seeing what happens when you nudge the tools in different directions. Even ten minutes of curious tinkering builds confidence you’ll actually use in January.
If you want something structured but lightweight, check out our AI Academy and the upcoming classes and workshops kicking off in the new year.
Play in free coding sandboxes
No stakes, no pressure—just a browser and your curiosity. Free environments like Replit and CodeSandbox’s playgrounds let you experiment without installing a thing. Build a tiny website you’ll never show anyone. Break it. Fix it. Repeat. That’s what we call a learning win.
A little technical confidence goes a long way in January, especially when someone asks, “So…did you do anything productive over the holidays?”
Borrow a spark from the GA blog
If the idea of “learning” feels too ambitious between holiday naps, start with a scroll instead. Our blog is full of bite-sized insights, career stories, and tech explainers that pair surprisingly well with cocoa and cookies. You don’t have to take notes—just let something inspire you for when the new year starts.
Line up your 2026 learning plan before the year hits you back
Holiday downtime is the perfect no-noise moment to map out which skills you want to build next. AI? Coding? Design? Data? You don’t need answers today—just pick a direction and bookmark a few courses you’ll jump into when live sessions resume.
Because when the world powers back on, the people who spent the quiet moments sharpening their skills tend to walk into the new year a step ahead.