Do We Need Daily Routines and Rituals?

Or should we just improvise our way through life?

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I guess the first question should be, well, what are you trying to achieve? Any objective worth working for needs structured effort. Even the creative geniuses who might give the impression that they do everything on inspiration, typically have a specific structure, habits, routines, and rituals. Some without even realizing it.

How about the rest of us, mere mortals? Our lives are chaotic, intense, and full of events that are difficult to foresee. Daily rituals bring a semblance of order, a feeling of predictability to our lives. I am not talking about — waking up, getting a cup of coffee, going to work — and I know where I am going to be for the next 8 hours or so. I am talking about the incremental steps we need to take every day to move us closer to our goals — whatever they are — financial, health, related to work, or hobbies.

We choose our goals. But that is only a start — we also choose whether we will work to get there or not. Life is typically a marathon, not a sprint. Any significant achievement is a result of countless hours, days, and years of work. To accumulate deliberate practice of such volume, you need structure.

This is where rituals and routines come in. Think about it. Religions figured it out a long time ago. We can argue endlessly about how religions have brought positivity or negativity into humanity’s history, and that religious rituals have been a primary element of control over the masses or have brought meaning and purpose into our lives. We’ll argue some other time perhaps. But repetition and routine, the regularity of prayer, fasting, pilgrimage, and other religious practices have also introduced structure and predictability into people’s lives for centuries. There are good reasons why millions have accepted that and continue to this day.

A ritual is a pattern of behavior, certain actions performed regularly, in a defined sequence. They can help improve physical, mental, and emotional well-being. We can use them to structure our days, reducing decision fatigue. They can help us focus on the tasks at hand and improve mindfulness. They can reduce stress — by creating a sense of stability and predictability. Specific rituals can boost physical well-being (exercise, healthy eating habits), emotional well-being (journaling, meditation, engaging in hobbies, etc.), facilitate personal growth (reading, learning), improve your relationships (regular activities with your family members, such as family meals, etc.), reduce waste of time, give you a sense of purpose and meaning and finally, reduce anxiety and help improve mental health. Think of rituals as your sanctuary where you recharge before or after a day in the modern world. As Stoics remind us, we are in control of very little in our lives. We can only try to control our thoughts and our actions.

Rituals also work great for people whose work or hobbies involve writing, painting, composing music, or any other creative endeavor. Forget the myth about inspiration. Consistency is what produces masterpieces. You need discipline to maintain a strong work ethic for a long time. Rituals and routines will help with that, and moreover, will boost inspiration and the state of flow. As you refine your process, achieving flow will get easier and easier. You will improve your skills and expertise over time. Regular practice (as long as it is deliberate practice) is how any artist improves technique, expands repertoire, and generally becomes better at his or her craft. Routines also help overcome creative blocks — the best way to handle a plateau is to keep a structured approach to work. Sure, you change a few things, maybe even take a break, but then you need to pick up where you left off and continue working. And what is essential for an artist — routines — a regular practice — is what insulates you from the impact of both success and failure.

Here are some famous examples of routines — author and former Navy Seal Jocko Willink wakes up every morning at 4:30 and works out. He posts a picture of his watch that shows the reading around 4:30 AM, every day on Instagram. Founder of Tumblr David Karp’s rule for the morning is not to read e-mails. CEO of Amazon Jeff Bezos has a rule of no meetings before 10 AM. Steve Jobs is said to have asked himself each morning “If today was the last day of my life, would I want to do what I’m doing today?” Writer Haruki Murakami wakes up at 4:00 and writes for five or six hours.

There was a time when I tried to introduce fixed morning and evening rituals into my life. Failed miserably. First off, a lot of advice on this topic focuses on getting up very early — that I have always had trouble with. I have always hit the peak of my productivity after 8–9 PM and can usually keep working deep into the night, which obviously affects my waking up time. I guess to each their own. That said, I haven’t given up on turning myself into a morning person though. Here is why.

I have a set of things that I want to accomplish every day:

• Read the daily entry of the Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday
• Write my journal entry using the Stoic’s Diary (also by Ryan Holiday, which offers stoicism-related prompts for daily journaling)
• Read books — minimum 20–25 pages
• A learning objective — languages, watching Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu instructionals, studying concepts — whatever I am into at that time
• Exercise at least 5–6 days a week

I have noticed over time that because of my preference for working on personal tasks later during the day, I am obviously more tired and always feel under pressure because I want to get these done before I go to bed. Sometimes this is precisely why I go to bed later than I would like to.

On those rare occasions when I wake up really early in the morning, I go through the first four of the five tasks (exercise is always in the evenings — that I am not going to change) and then it is almost like the rest of the day is free with possibilities for additional things I might want to do. Research something I am curious about. Watch or listen to an interesting podcast. Write. Just sit down and listen to a piece of classical music that I meant to listen to for a while. And so on.

So regardless of what I do in my own life, morning can be a very powerful time of the day, if we choose to make it so. I am happy to report that I have been increasingly more successful at doing precisely that. Give it a try.

Here are a few things to consider as activities after you wake up. I skipped the obvious things like showering, hydrating, having breakfast, and so on:

• Make your bed. It is nice to start the day with a completed task, however small.
• Stay away from screens. No phones. No e-mails.
• Get sunlight in your eyes. Listen to Andrew Huberman on this: “Viewing sunlight in the morning causes ~50 percent increase in circulating cortisol, epinephrine, and dopamine. These leverage healthy increases in energy, immune system function, and mood.” Not to mention that you will start sleeping better at night.
• Journaling. You can do it however you prefer. Gratitude journaling, planning your day ahead of you, reviewing the past day, random thoughts, journaling based on prompts, or all of the above.
• Meditation. As Gandhi put it: “I meditate one hour every day. When I have a tough day ahead, I meditate for two hours”.
• Connect with loved ones. Have a meal together, a quick chat, and a hug. Starting the day with a positive interaction with your loved ones sets the tone for the day.
• Plan your day. Think about what is the one thing you will focus on. Or 3 things. Or however else you prefer to plan. Keep this kind of planning very brief. The point is just to help you focus on what matters.
• Reading. Most people acknowledge the importance of reading, yet have trouble finding time for reading during the day. So get this done early.
• Exercise. Many people add morning exercise to their routine. For me, exercise is strictly for the afternoon or evening. I do Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and kettlebell workouts and I prefer my body to be completely awake for such intense activities. Try and see if morning exercise works for you.
• Deep Work. Block time for deep work. Depending on what it is that you do, this may or may not work for you daily, but it is a powerful way to make progress. Check out Cal Newport’s books for more on this.

For evening rituals, here are two things that are essential in my opinion:

• Review the past day and plan for the next one. Take a few minutes to reflect on your day. This helps clear your mind and brings closure to the day. Then spend a few minutes organizing and preparing for the next day. Maybe pack your bag, or make a to-do list. Trust me, you will appreciate it in the morning.
• Have a bedtime routine. Disconnect from screens, say an hour before bedtime. Read a book, take a warm bath, do breathing exercises — whatever helps you relax and signal to your body that you are approaching sleep time. To create a sleep-friendly environment, your bedroom needs to be dark, quiet, and at the right temperature.

I often hear people say that they do not have motivation. I believe rather than motivation, people need clarity. What do you want? Do you know how to get there? What kind of work will it take? Once you introduce routines and rituals, your action becomes specific. You give them time and place. All of a sudden, there is nowhere to hide. All that is left to do is get on it.

So, do we need daily rituals? The short answer is, if you want to move forward in life and achieve something, you do need A ritual. There is no perfect ritual. Only what works for you. Personalize it. Make it your own. Experiment with different elements and find what works best for you to start your day on a positive note and wrap it up peacefully.

• Write your ritual down.
• Keep it somewhere visible.
• Don’t overcomplicate it. Start with 1–2 things. Add things gradually.

IMPORTANT. If you fall off the wagon and skip a day or two, don’t overthink it. It is fine. Just get back on track the next day. Don’t try to compensate or anything. Simply re-start. Even if you don’t do it 100% of the time, what matters is the intention of doing it 100% of the time — that will get you the results you are after.

I will leave you with two final quotes. As author Austin Kleon puts it: “A little imprisonment — if it’s of your own making — can set you free. Rather than restricting your freedom, a routine gives you freedom by protecting you from the ups and downs of life and helping you take advantage of your limited time, energy, and talent.” Or, as Aristotle put it: “We are what we repeatedly do.”