How to Optimize Your Daily Routines
And Create Instinctual Success Responses to Life
To be honest, this entire article can probably be summed up by this incredible quote by Steve Ferrante:
“Success is like a snowball…it takes momentum to build and the more you roll in the right direction the bigger it gets.”
I would suggest that the snowball begins by establishing the right routines in your life. And I’m not just talking about your morning routine, as important as that is, but, in a sense, daily “rituals” that program yourself to say and do the right things at the right times.
Righteous Repetition
Let me explain what I mean. We have all heard the phrase, “practice makes perfect.” However, fewer of us have heard Vince Lombardi’s response to this notion: “Practice does not make perfect. Only perfect practice makes perfect.” Thus, incorporating righteous repetition must be an integral part of our lives in order to develop the muscle memory of success (and grow that snowball!). This occurs through developing daily routines.
Your morning and nightly routines are excellent ways to implement productive activities (exercise, meditation, journal writing, etc.) that help prepare you for the day and your night’s sleep. This enables us to, no matter how we sleep or how bad of a day we have, realign our current self with our best self — our highest self. It’s similar to tuning your guitar strings before you play it: it allows its best sound to come out.
What Even is a Routine?
When we understand what a routine is, we understand the potential that we have in developing more routines throughout the day. A routine, defined by Oxford Languages, is “a sequence of actions regularly followed; a fixed program.” What if, on top of programming what you do when you wake up, you programmed how you respond to negative criticism? How you act when you first meet someone? What you say to someone when they’re having a rough day?
We often don’t realize how many routines we have already established within our neural networks. We instinctively act certain ways when we encounter certain situations. Who’s to say that we can’t identify those instinctive habits we have and modify them to project our highest selves to the world on a more consistent basis? Of course, like a snowball, it can be a slow start and take time to adjust. However, the more we commit to fixing our ineffective routines, and doing so in the right way, the better we get at doing it (growing the snowball). This is how we practice perfectly.
For example, new routines you develop could look something like this:
- When you hear negative criticism, a mental trigger is set off for you to smile, thank them for their input, and mentally reaffirm to yourself, “I control how this affects me. I control my destiny.”
- When you first meet someone, you program yourself to smile with your eyes, give a genuine compliment, and ask a question to get to know them better.
- When you hear someone is having a bad day, you immediately hug them and say, “I’m sorry you’re having a rough day, that sucks,” and simply be there for them.
As we develop routines like these in our lives, we are enabled to live more proactively instead of reactively, we (literally) program productivity into our daily lives, we act more congruently with our highest selves, and, most importantly, we serve others more effectively and authentically.
Spice and Substance
There is a lot of flak out there against the idea of routines and how that makes your life feel more mundane. On the contrary, I would advocate that establishing the right routines allows you to bring more mindfulness and intention to your day. Correctly implemented over time, they are what will fuel your success. Indeed, variety is the spice of life; but your daily routines are what give the substance to the spice; the sirloin steak to the A1 sauce, if you will.
Spend time this evening writing in your journal, specifically noting those points in your day where you felt you were not your best self. Ask yourself why you feel that happened, work backwards to find the root of the problem, and adjust as needed. This way, you can start developing the right routines, right away.
I would love any feedback you have on the ideas I share or how I can improve my writing. Let’s start a conversation and better ourselves together. If you have read this far, I deeply appreciate your time and thank you for your support. Have an extraordinary day.
