Puzzles aren’t just for retirement homes and senior citizens. In fact, working on a puzzle is a great de-stressing activity to do either by yourself after an intense biology lab, or with a group of friends to mentally reset at the end of a school week. Difficulty levels range, too, so you can pick an easy jigsaw when you want to chill out but also keep your hands and mind busy, or a more complicated one thousand–piece set if you’re in the mood for a challenge. Chill or challenge, puzzles boost your critical-thinking skills, stimulate your brain, build confidence, and teach you to think outside the box.
And the more you practice spotting visual connections, recognizing patterns, and following your intuition, the more you can put these skills to the test when solving problems in the real world. For example, let’s say you’re creating a big presentation for your boss somewhere down the road. These skills can help you think through all the needed visuals, along with what copy or scripting needs to be done, and whether there is any duplicative information that needs to be removed.