Doing what you love often means pushing through resistance, fear, or a creative rut. Meaningful work asks us to show up in ways that can challenge us or ask us to reveal more of ourselves than we’re used to. 

If you want to make an impact, it’s going to take discipline. But that doesn’t have to equate to a dreadful slog. 

It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking that being more spontaneous or whimsical is the best mode of action to help us see the possibility and achieve our dreams. That can certainly help and there’s a place for that kind of imaginative visioning. But if you’re finding yourself lost in a sea of too many ideas or opportunities, you might be better served by creating a powerful daily routine to help structure your thinking and action. 

You’re probably ready for a more powerful daily routine if:

You’re feeling directionless, unsure of where to turn next in your life or business. Feeling out of control and discombobulated is a prime sign that something is out of balance. You are dissatisfied with your rate of progress.

Life feels overly complicated or chaotic. The house is a mess, your relationships are taking a back seat, and you feel like there’s just not time in the day for everything you want to accomplish. 

Each day is an energy suck. When we’re not in at least some control of our day-to-day we can come to resent the things we do or have to get done. Rather than fueling us, our work can become a huge drain on our energy and stamina, not mention creativity and sense of purpose. 

If any of the above resonates, try on an idea or two from the list below. Start small. Do one thing every day for a week and reflect on how it feels. After you’ve locked in one piece, add another and keep going until you’ve created the right riverbanks for your life and business. 

• Wake up at the same time every day–no snoozing! The first step in building a more effective day is to treat your commitments to yourself as sacred. Even though you may feel like allowing for a few extra minutes of shut-eye is doing yourself a favor, you instead broke the agreement you made with yourself to wake up at a certain time. Keep your commitment and get out of bed when you said you would. It will propel you to keep other commitments later in the day, and build your accountability muscle.

• Think about transitions. When you wake up in the morning, what’s the first thing you do? Do you sometimes brush your teeth and sometimes stay in bed to check your phone? Planning for what you’ll do in transition moments can save mental energy by eliminating choice points. Decide what you’ll do when you finish a task or event ahead of time and you’ll save yourself the exhaustive drama of deliberation.

• Perform a ritual of intention. Maybe you spend a few moments in quiet meditation or pull a tarot card. Maybe you set a concrete goal for the day or jot down a to-do list. Find a way to bring mindful attention to your morning so you can face the day with purpose.

• Practice eating similar meals. This may sound oh-so-boring, but there’s comfort in familiarity. Before you do your grocery shopping, plan out breakfast or lunch for the week or come up with 3 or 4 max options. Our brains get overloaded when faced with an abundance of choices and our will power weakens when forced to make too many decisions in a short period of time.

• Use scents to train your brain. At the end of each evening, I light a special soy wax candle gifted to me by a friend to signal to my brain that my day is done. I look forward to the warm light and cast of shadows but its the perfumed aroma of the candle that really lets me know that its time to rest. Using your sense of smell is perfect for transition moments, when you begin or end a task, or when you need to shift mental gears. If you can’t keep a candle at work, try an essential oil or all-natural room spray.

Just by focusing on making more intentional choices about how you use your time you’ll likely discover other ideas for that work best for your work and style. 

What kinds of daily routines do you have in your life? Are you ready to implement something from the list above? I’d love to hear about your practices in the comments below!

xo,
Natanya