Change your routines, change your life
On the journey to simplify our lives, we need to learn self-care for ourselves. We cannot take care of anyone or anything else if we do not learn how to take care of ourselves first. Learning this skill is not as hard as one might think. Just a few simple changes in your daily routine can make a world of difference in simplifying your life.
For one, I hit the floor running for many years due to hitting the snooze button multiple times. I found myself running late, rushing around gathering my things, not eating breakfast and possibly walking out of the house without my cell phone. Then I would speed to work, praying there was no traffic and that I would not be more than 5 minutes late, only to realize I was wearing a black shoe and a navy shoe as I was getting out of the car.
Starting the mornings off with this type of chaos sets the tone for the rest of the day, which I might add always ends up stressful. Ifyou start your day off like this almost every day of the week, you will always feel stressed and anxious.
I decided to change my morning and nightly routines to see if this would help me be more productive and less stressed during the day.
After dinner, I make my lunch every evening and put it in the refrigerator so I can grab it quickly on my way out in the morning. I place my purse, keys and cell phone on my bedroom table, and I lay out my clothes for the next day. Then I stop using electronics after 8 pm, if I can help it, and begin the process of winding down before bed. I go to the little reading area in my living room and read a book from my favorite author. I turn off all of the lights except for the lamp by my reading chair and a few candles. Reading for about an hour seems to clear my mind and helps me relax so I can fall asleep easily. Finally, I go to bed, and it’s lights out by 9pm.
Instead of hitting the snooze button, I decided to start getting up at 5 am every morning, which was not as hard of an adjustment as I thought it would be. I then grab a cup of coffee and step out on my patio so I can listen to the sounds of the morning as the world wakes up. I try to think of nothing but the morning sounds around me while I sip my first cup of coffee. After this, I grab a second cup of coffee, because I love coffee, and I go to the special reading place in my living room. I light a candle, grab my journal, take a moment to write my thoughts on how I feel and what I am grateful for and finish with writing three goals for the day. Since I prepared the night before, it’s much easier to get dressed for work, find my purse and keys and grab my lunch on the way out. I even have time to eat breakfast!
Now I get to the office early, making my day productive instead of stressful.
By making a few changes to my daily routine, I have changed my overall emotional and physical wellbeing more than I thought possible. I shared my habits to help give everyone an idea of how to get started in taking back their day and maybe that will help people find their simple little life.
If you have any tips or tricks you would like to share on writing or just simplifying your life, email me at publisher@thevindicator.com.