Feature written by Sophie Crabtree, who you can follow on Twitter @CrabSophie

A Leap Year famously gives us 366 trips around the sun, as opposed to the regular 365. So, as the 29th of February is named National Time Refund Day, how will you be cashing in your extra day?

I have some suggestions for you:

1. Make a start on the hobby you told yourself you would at New Year’s and haven’t had time for

2. Call the friend you’ve been meaning to catch up with

3. Do some spring cleaning – haul out the rubber gloves and the mops and the vacuum, have a tidy; you might even come across the drawer of lost things that you’d forgotten you had and find something worth some money

4. Review your spending since the New Year, cringe, and make an action plan to save for that gig or pay that deposit

5. Get outdoors, be that by getting green-fingered in the garden or finding your local National Trail guided walk (there are tonnes across the country with refreshments, alcoholic or otherwise, to bookmark your stops)

6. Try the restaurant you always walk past and drool at…

7. Get out your LPs, CDs, tapes, iPods, pray you’ve still got something to play them on, and dance like mad around your living room – it’s good for both your heart and your head

8. Book something like a holiday, somewhere exotic or a staycation, that provides something to look forward to

9. If you’re stuck at work, eyeroll, bring a tub or two of nibbles and put a cheer in everyone’s day

10. Bash out all the emails you’ve been putting off and regain control of your inbox

11. Change direction by joining that college course you’ve always wanted to do, and don’t make any excuses this time

12. Or alternatively, just down tools, pull the curtains on, and catch up on your 40 winks.

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