3 Life-Changing Habits That Have Transformed My Daily Routine

I like to find new ways to live a healthier and more productive lifestyle. One way that I do this is by building and incorporating better habits. Of course, building new habits is not always easy in the beginning. I've learned to be patient with myself and not give up after I've failed to be consistent a few times. As I become better and better and being consistent, I feel a sense of accomplishment. After I've maintained the habit for some time, it is always fascinating to me to look back and see what big benefits have come from making one change in my day. Below are some of the best habits I have in my life right now.

Start the day With a Consistent Wake Time

I found it was easier to predict what I can do with my day when I knew what time I would be waking up. I also found that I was happier when I didn't spend my mornings debating with myself of when I should get out of bed. Overtime, I learned that it was easier if I didn't stick to a strict time but allowed myself some flexibility according to what I needed. Most days I wake up around 6am to get my day going. If I fall asleep really easily at an earlier time, sometimes I naturally wake up a little earlier. Being that I work until 9pm, sometimes I need time to wind down afterwards or spend some time with my husband, C, so I end up staying up a little later. So, I consider it to be consistent if I wake up by 7pm. It feels much better than back when I would go to bed whenever I wanted and woke up whenever I couldn't possibly sleep anymore. Plus, I get so much more done when I get up earlier in the morning.

Set Daily Goals

When I wake up each morning, I try to think of at least one thing that I want to accomplish that day. I usually come up with a few. Some of them are smaller goals and some take a little more work. Some common goals that I set for myself are things like complete a homework assignment or reading, doing a couple loads of laundry, doing a load of dishes, spending a minimum of fifteen minutes of quality time with my son, A. or paying a bill. It feels good when I complete a task off my mental to-do list and helps me feel as though I accomplished something, even if it was something small. If I do more than I had determined that morning, then I feel like I had a very productive day. At the end of the day, instead of thinking of all the things I need to do the next day like I used to, I think of some of the accomplishments from my day. I've found I grind my teeth less at night when I do this, get to sleep easier as well as better quality sleep, and have much less stress overall.

Start a Morning Routine

My morning routine changes according to whether A has school or not. If it is a day that A does not have school, I typically wake up, complete an assignment or reading, get A breakfast, do a load of dishes, get myself breakfast, then do something with A whether that be read a book, do a workbook, or other activity. On days that A does have school, I usually start on an assignment or reading, get A up and ready for school, walk/run with him to school, go for a run, rest a bit and have breakfast, and then work on more school assignments and readings. Either type of day, I don't waste much time deciding what to do and building the motivation to do it because I already know what I am going to do and in what order I will do it.