The reality of ROUTINE

Aside from talent, the most successful persons in history had one thing in common: they were "geniuses" in their domains, masters of their trades. The majority followed strict (and detailed) protocols. Routines appear monotonous and the polar opposite of what you're told makes up a "happy existence." Happiness, we deduce, stems from a never-ending quest for "more," whatever that "more" may be. What we don't comprehend is that having a routine does not imply that you spend the same number of hours in the same workplace every day. Every month, your regimen may include a trip to a different country. It could be that you're doing something out of the ordinary on a regular basis. The key isn't so much what the routine entails as it is how steady and secure your subconscious mind becomes as a result of repetitive motions and predictable outcomes. It doesn't matter what you want your daily life to be like; the important thing is that you make a decision and then stick to it. In summary, routine is vital because habitualness creates mood, and mood develops the "nurture" side of your personality, not to mention that allowing impulsiveness to jerk you around creates a breeding environment for everything you essentially don't want. The majority of things that bring genuine enjoyment aren't merely brief gratifications; they also come with resistance and demand effort. Yet there is a way to nullify the feeling of “sacrifice” when you integrate a task into the “norm” or push through resistance with regulation. These, and all the other reasons why routine is so important (and happy people tend to follow them more).

1)       Your behavior shape your mood, which is a filter through which you experience life. It would seem reasonable to suppose that emotions are influenced by thoughts or stressors, events that occur during the day and throw us off. This isn't the case. Psychologist Robert Thayer claims that our habits shape our moods: how much sleep we get, how often we exercise, what we think, how often we think it, and so on. The point is that it's not a single thought that makes us crazy; it's the pattern of having that thought over and over again that compounds its effect and makes it appear true.

2)      You must learn to let your conscious decisions, not your fears or impulses, guide your day. A mind that hasn't been tamed is a minefield. Anything can mislead you into thinking you want something you don't actually want if you lack regulation, focus, basis, or self-control. "I'd rather go out for drinks tonight than prepare for that presentation tomorrow," may seem reasonable in the short term, but it is devastating in the long run. It's probably not worth it to miss a crucial meeting just to go out for drinks one night. Learning to create routine is the same as learning to let your conscious choices about what you'll do with your day guide you, while letting all the other, transient stuff go.

3)       Happiness is measured by how well you perform rather than how many things you do. More isn't always better. Happiness isn't about trying new things; it's about continuing to enjoy what you already have in new and diverse ways. We're practically skewered with the worry that we're unhappy because we're not doing "enough," because we're taught that passion should drive our every thought, move, and choice.

4)      Because you are no longer confronted with the unknown, your "fight or flight" impulses are deactivated when you govern your daily actions. This is why individuals have such a hard time with change, and why people who stick to their routines have such a good time: their fear instincts are turned off long enough for them to appreciate something.

5)       Routine offers us a sense of security as children. It provides us a sense of purpose as grownups. Surprisingly, the two emotions are more similar than you might believe (at least, their origin is the same). It’s the same thing as the fear of the unknown: As children, we don’t know which way is left, let alone why we’re alive or whether or not a particular activity we’ve never done before is going to be scary or harmful. When we’re adults engaging with routine-ness, we can comfort ourselves with the simple idea of “I know how to do this, I’ve done it before.”

6)      Because routine continually repeats a decision you've previously made, you're content. If you decide to write a book and commit to writing three pages every night for ,however, long it takes to finish it, you are affirming not only your willingness to begin, but also your ability to finish it. It's the healthiest way to feel validated, in my opinion.

7)      Routine becomes the path to "flow" as your body self-regulates. "Flow" (in case you didn't know—you probably did) is simply what happens when we become so thoroughly immersed in what we're doing that all thoughts and worries fade away and we're just completely focused on the task at hand. The more you educate your body to react to various cues, the better:7 a.m. is when you wake up, 2 p.m. is when you start writing, and so on, you naturally fall into flow with a lot more ease, just out of habit.

8)      When we don't stick to a routine, we educate ourselves that "fear" means we're doing anything wrong, rather than simply being emotionally invested in the outcome. A lack of routine is the perfect environment for procrastination to thrive. It creates gaps and intervals in which our subconscious thoughts can say things like, "Well, you can take a break now," when we actually have a deadline to meet. However, if you're accustomed to taking a break at that time, you'll simply let it because "you usually do"