When you think about your life, do you tend to identify it in different segments? Think of the various roles you play and the persona that goes with it. It could be work life, parent mode, homemaker, supportive spouse and friend. Whatever the role, there are probably different characteristics that come out when you are in those stages of your life. You might have to be strict and tough when you are in parent mode trying to get your kids to follow the rules. You might have to be soft and calm when being the supportive friend and spouse. We adapt to the needs of the situation and the people that are around us. Think about your daily routines the same way. Each segment of your daily routine requires adaptability to be impactful.

First, it is important to think about routines in clusters. Every person has a morning routine, work routine, eating routine, evening routine, personal care routine and nighttime routine. If you do not work, you can replace that with ‘daytime’ routine. I’m sure that you have an ideal schedule to fit in errands, volunteering, childcare, cleaning, etc. Whatever this looks like for you, just as you have different characteristics depending on the life role you are playing, each routine established in your day is the same way.

Let’s breakdown each routine cluster:

Morning Routine

There is a lot of truth to getting up on the ‘right side of the bed.’ Your attitude first thing in the morning will impact your entire day. Think about what you want to accomplish that day and set an intention. Morning meditation can really do a world of good to prepare you for the day. I personally like the app Simply Habit to use for meditation, but there are a lot of options out there to help get you started.

Speaking of bed, another great habit to incorporate is making your bed every morning. According to U.S. Navy Adm. William H. McCraven "If you make your bed every morning, you will have accomplished the first task of the day,'' he said. "It will give you a small sense of pride, and it will encourage you to do another task, and another, and another. And by the end of the day that one task completed will have turned into many tasks completed.

Another important thing to incorporate into a morning routine is drinking water and having some form of breakfast. You can read my article on dehydration, but before you get your morning coffee, force yourself to drink a full glass of water. Next, no matter if you are a person who doesn’t like to eat in the morning, force something into your system. It kick-starts your metabolism, creates a good choice first thing, and truly impacts your overall health both mentally and physically when you have fuel in your body.

The last key to a successful morning routine is to do something just for you to decompress before the day. If you wake up, run out the door, sit in a commute and go to work, you are on edge before you get to your desk. Think about what an extra 30 minutes could do to your mental state. Maybe it is a workout, reading a book, prayer or journaling, or simply sitting and enjoying your coffee while reading gossip columns. No matter what that time looks like for you, be sure to get a little ‘me’ time before your day gets consumed by everyone else that needs you.

Work Routine

Do you ever feel like you are going to meetings to prepare for the meeting about the meeting? Do you find yourself with days where you can’t get motivated to start? Is your day filled with distractions between meetings, calls and emails where you don’t get a chance to do your ‘real’ work? These are just a few examples of what happens when you don’t have a daily work routine. Of course, there will always be things out of your control, but no matter what happens through the course of the day, how you START and END your day can make a huge difference. Let’s explore what is in your control.

Schedule:

I LIVE by my Outlook calendar. I book EVERYTHING I am going to do that day, from going to the gym to eating lunch, on my calendar. It helps make sure that I don’t get double booked and that I can have time for myself during the day. When you are making your schedule, it is also important that you are buffering your day with time to work on big projects. I try to block off time each day to focus on tasks that I can’t be distracted during. During this time, I’ll silent my phone and close out my email so that I’m not distracted. Of course, there are times things get moved around, but if you go into the day with the intention of what your priorities are, it is much easier to stay on task.

Breaks are Important:

Our brains have two modes: the “focused mode,” is when we’re doing things like learning something new, writing or working. “Diffuse mode,” is our more relaxed, daydreamy mode when we’re not thinking so hard. You might think that the focused mode is the one to optimize for more productivity, but diffuse mode plays a big role, too. This is where breaks come in.

In order to be productive, you must get away from your work. Take intentional breaks. It could be a walk around the building, running a quick errand, or taking a 15 min. power nap in your car. Stepping away from your work makes you MORE productive. If you can, try to fit in meditation in the day. It helps you get clarity and focus. There are some meditations as short as 5 minutes that can be very impactful.

When you are planning your breaks, think about when you are the least productive during the day. Do you always feel demotivated around 3 p.m.? If that is the case, then you should schedule your break around 2:45 for 15 minutes to get up and walk around before the slump can happen.

Ensuring you get a break:

There are a few tactics you can use to make sure you get up and move.

Use technology

Apple Watches and Fitbits have vibrations to notify when you haven’t gotten up recently. You can set a reminder on your phone to go off every hour to remind you to get up. You can put it on your outlook calendar to make sure you get it in.

Blocking

Set up your day into blocks of time. 90-minute increments of productivity. Follow that by a 30-minute block of break/catch up. This is when you would check your email, stretch your legs, review your to do list, take care of quick tasks, etc. This includes both personal and professional tasks.

Evening Routine:

Just as important as starting your day off with a great routine, you need to end your day with a great one. When you have a good evening routine you can sleep better. When you sleep well, EVERYTHING is better. In 2017 the US “sleep market” was worth an estimated $28.6 billion. Before you invest in a $1,000 mattress or a sleep medication, consider incorporating a few new habits into your nightly routine.

Eating dinner at least two hours before you go to sleep.

It is important to give your body time to digest before getting into a completely horizontal position. The digestion helps improve your quality of sleep and keeps your metabolism active.

Turn off devices at least 30 minutes before bed

You will start turning your brain down and preparing for sleep when you can remove the stimulation that comes from various screens.

Drinking water

It is just as important to end your day with a glass of water as it is to start with one. You can refer to my article on hydration for the importance of getting enough water in your day.

Decompress

Do something you enjoy that helps you wind down. Let me rephase that. Do something, that doesn’t involve devices, that helps you unwind. For me, it is reading in the evening. It could be a puzzle, adult coloring books, flipping through magazines, crafting, exercising, putting, darts, etc. The purpose is to clear your head at the end of the day without relying on screens. Yes, you should decompress before you get into your day as well as at the end of it. Your brain can only process so much. It and you both deserve the rest.

Meditate

Can you tell this is a big one to me? Meditation can be a lot of things to different people. It could be sitting in silence or to relaxing music while taking deep breaths. It could be journaling about your day. It could be prayer. You can do guided meditations or on your own. You can spend 5 minutes or 30 minutes. No matter what it looks like for you, it is important to incorporate some type of self-reflection in your day.

Stretching

Another great way to make sure that you get a good night sleep is to make sure you are as comfortable as possible. Doing some deep stretching or yoga before bed can really help make sure that you are going to be able to get into the best position possible in bed. You can do your stretching while watching TV if that is part of your evening routine or as part of your meditation.

Personal hygiene routine

It is important to take care of yourself on the outside as well as the inside. Give your skin love. Consistency is a great way to make sure that you can see the results in all the effort.

These are some examples of routine clusters. You might have a cleaning routine throughout the week, or a child activity routine. You may be focused on an eating routine that involves 5 small meals a day or intermittent fasting. The main goal for now is to recognize what routine clusters make up your day or week. Now that you’ve identified the various routines that make up your day, you can see where you have the biggest opportunity for improvement to get to that ideal schedule. In the next blog post I will discuss the steps to take to get closer to the routine that is best for you.

Routine Clustering