The magic of routines

I’ve noticed that the word “routine” evokes a vision of “mediocre and boring.”

Yet, if you stop to think, where would we be without our routines?

This is even more relevant in today’s rushed lifestyle where people are talking about never finding “me” time.

The happy truth is, that we all have the same 24 hours in a day, enough time to do everything that’s worth getting done without whining about too much to do and too little time.

Of course, that begs the question: how do some people manage their time so well?

The secret is — setting a routine and following it.

I am — or was — someone with a solid routine that worked like a dream. Then I strayed off the path, and found myself wasting time online. Luckily, my work is deadline driven and it is like a physical wound if I can’t meet one. I pulled myself quickly enough.

It all started with staying up late. Now, that’s not routine, but it can quickly become that. Sleeping late messes with our health. I wake up at the same time every morning, but the day is not as energetic as when I keep my bedtime. After all, we all need restful sleep. Allowing this disturbance in my routine hurt my day’s schedule.

Routine is an important ingredient of time management and facilitates it. A friend of mine often says that routines kill her spontaneity. We argued long and hard over that and ended up laughing because routines won.

I’ve found that when I carry out my daily and weekly routines, it frees up time while ensuring regular tasks are executed automatically. My mind becomes free, helping me work efficiently.

For example, I have a rock solid morning routine that involves waking up at 5.30 am, getting the coffee going, and then, getting started on preparing breakfast, lunch and planning dinner. I’ve gotten into the habit of making a weekly plan that, in turn, helps plan the shopping and ensures that everything is available.

I enjoy cramming the cooking into the three hours I have in the morning before 8 — and this frees up the morning for me to work without interruption. If I allow myself to think that I can tackle the cooking later, it eats into my work time and my entire schedule suffers.

Routines are known to:

Keep us mentally healthy as they keep us less stressed.
Give our days the foundation we need, so we can plan around them.
Help us stay focused which means better productivity.

Of course, I’d be the first to say that routines also must be flexible, so that unexpected changes can be taken in our stride and handled with ease. For example, emergency medical issues — or even, once in a while, playing hooky, as I like to do.

Here it is worthwhile to note that not all routines are beneficial — so it is important to take a long hard look and assess what works. At the end of the day, our routine should be healthy, rewarding and meaningful. Why waste time on things that do not make us happy or take us closer to our goals?

Routines keep us functioning smoothly so that we don’t miss something important even as we make good use of our day.

I am a list person and my existence is around innumerable lists. Of course, I learned that eventually, it is all about prioritizing, focusing and not giving in to random distractions. It is also crucial to start the day right. I begin my day with the list I prepared last night. I try to allocate time to them in their order of importance. I try to figure out if I have to do it all myself — or can I outsource?

Some routine stuff is non-negotiable and this includes breakfast, exercise, sleep, and hygiene (oh yeah — ask any work-from-home mama). And coffee. And family time.

I love my routine! If, at the end of the day, when I go to bed, I am satisfied with how the day went and find myself smiling, I am happy!

What do you think of routines? Do you have one?

Routines, a Blessing | Vidya Sury, Collecting Smiles