Life is messy. Every day we meet series of activities that compete ruthlessly for our time. We spend a huge chunk of our day struggling, often unsuccessfully, to squeeze in all our responsibilities at home and at work into the time available to us. Not to forget the time we spend on our most common obsession, the social media.
This cycle is on constant repeat on a daily basis. Frustration creeps in as a result of this cycle and we are left wondering why we can’t seem to complete the productive activities we set out to complete. Then our mind comes to our rescue and pulls out a convenient excuse from our ever-full bank of excuses; “there isn’t enough time” is the most commonly used.
Is it really true that there isn’t enough time in one day? I mean, we all have a 24-hour day yet there are fellow mortals who use this time to do amazing work and still find time to exercise and make it home early for dinner. These people must have found a way to increase their allotted time.
One thing all successful people have in common is the ability to manage a 24-hour day and make out of it as much success as possible. One tool that they employ in doing this is routine.
A routine is a group of activities that is performed consecutively. It is usually followed in a particular order because it makes more sense that way; for instance, you might exercise in the morning then take a shower, that’s good, however if you do this set of activities the other way round, you’re going to be sweating all day. It makes sense doing the exercise first.
Why are routines so important?
As I said earlier, all successful people have routines. These people get up every day and know exactly what their day looks like. They know what they are going to do and when they’re going to do it. So why do they take the pains of making and following a routine?
It is simple; routines make you more effective. If your routine works, it should:
Ø Save you time.
Ø Optimize energy.
Ø Ensure productivity.
Keys to Creating a Routine
Creating an effective routine is part science and part art. The science part is in figuring out the things you need to do, while the art part is in figuring out when to do them.
· Determine Your Core Activities: These are the activities you need to perform on a daily basis, the activities that bring you closer to your core goals. Whatever these activities are, write them down and make out particular times for them first when drafting your daily routine.
· Schedule Your Paramount Activities When You’re at Your Peak: First you have to identify your peak hours, the time of the day when you have more energy and focus. Then schedule your most important activities around that time.
· Focus on Energy, Not Time: Most people schedule their activities like this:
10 am—Meeting with staff.
11 am—Work on design.
This is a terrible scheduling method. While you might check all your activity boxes on your to-do-list, you are also sabotaging your tasks. It is more effective to maximize energy when scheduling your activities.
When you are at your peak, usually in the morning, you should focus your efforts on deep work, do work that require more of your abilities and push you to your limits. Leave the shallow work that require less energy for when you have less energy.
· Track Your Progress: First, do you even still remember your New Year Resolutions? That’s how it is, you get determined to get better then a month goes by and you forget you even set goals. That’s why you have to track your goals.
After committing to a routine, you have to check and score yourself regularly to ensure that you follow the routine. Even if you’re not consistent in the beginning, you’ll soon get fed up with the low scores and sit up.
Your daily routine is what sets you up for success, it’s what separates achievers from mediocre persons. I’ll leave you with this, from John C. Maxwell; “You will never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret of your success is found in you daily routine.
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