My Daily and Weekly Routines
I’m writing this explanation of my daily routines for 2017 on 12/26/16, so this entire post needs to be taken with a grain or two of salt. In all likelihood, it will turn out to be inaccurate in just a few weeks as I figure out where I’ve been too ambitious or optimistic and where I haven’t stretched enough.
But, primarily for the sake of getting things started on the right foot as of January 1, 2017, here’s my current plan as far as daily habits and routines goes:
Rise every morning at 5:00 am
I’ve always loved getting up early. There’s something about the fresh start that comes with rising when the rest of the house is still quiet and accomplishing something of value while others snore on.
Of course, I love sleeping too, so you understand my struggle.
But I’m not looking to begin getting up daily at 5:00 am just so I can join the “early risers” club along with Benjamin Franklin and others. I want to do it because of the guaranteed solitude it affords me.
You may recall that I count solitude among my most urgent needs. It is, in fact, the ultimate comfort zone for me: silent, alone in a comfortable room, with mental stimulation available to keep me occupied. I’d despise being stuck in solitary confinement, mind you, but only because it would be against my will. If I had a similar cell in my basement, and going there meant no one would be allowed to visit me until I chose to come out, I’d be there most of every day.
My first two hours are mine
I know I need some time first thing in the morning to wake up and function properly, so I’ll give myself until 5:30 am to enjoy my first cup of coffee and noodle around on my phone or waste time in some other equally mindless way. It’s about the best I can manage at that point of my day (no matter how late I sleep.)
Following that, during the next hour and a half, I’ll force myself through the day’s exercise regimen, shower, pray, meditate, and read (including my daily Bible reading program.) I’m not going to be rigid about the order of individual activities, but I’m going to guess that exercise will come first simply because I hate it with a passion and the more I put it off, the less likely it is to happen at all.
The next three hours are flexible
I have various responsibilities I need to care for regularly, but they’re not necessarily broken up on a set daily schedule, so I’m going to consider this three-hour block from 7–10:00 am to be flex time that can be invested in any number of necessary activities, or — if nothing of greater importance needs to be done — in recreation.
I’m also going to make a concerted effort to remain available to my kids during these hours and to spend an adequate amount of quality time with each of them each morning during this period. For my daughter, that’s usually as simple as being together in the living room and sharing casual conversation. For my son, who’s on the autism spectrum, it’s usually a little more involved and time-intensive. My goal is to be able to “go to work” at 10:00 am with a perfectly clean conscience.
Go to work at 10:00 am
Although I’m fortunate enough to work from home every day, I’ve actually found that to be a detriment at times because there’s simply no delineation between home and work. There’s no commute, no dress code, no time card to punch… no clear physical or mental barrier to cross over to say, “now I’m at work, it’s time to be productive.”
As a result, my schedule has often been very fluid and based primarily on whim in lieu of a hard deadline looming.
Beginning in 2017, however, I’m going to “go to work” at 10:00 am sharp Monday through Friday. Rather than working in my easy chair with a lap desk, I’m going to go sit at my formal desk, close the door, and focus solely on work (as I should) for the entirety of my work day, finishing up at 6:00 pm.
But I’ll still keep my schedule flexible
That all being said, I’d be a fool to voluntarily throw away one of the greatest benefits of working as I do, namely the flexible schedule. The company I work for is very flexible with when work actually gets completed as long as it’s done by the time it’s due, and beyond that there are only a few scheduled meetings and client conference calls that have hard-and-fast times attached.
While my 2017 plans involve a much more traditional work schedule designed to maximize my productivity and minimize distractions from my working environment, I reserve the right to kick back and relax for a little while here and there if all my work is caught up and nothing of importance is rising over the horizon.
Stop work at 6:00 pm
Anyone who’s worked from home can tell you this is often even more of a problem than working too little: it’s hard to force myself to stop working at times when the to-do list is long and deadlines are looming.
But my priorities are clear: my family, my friends, myself, and my God all take precedence over work. So, when my time is done for the day, I owe it to myself and everyone else on that list to close the laptop, leave the desk, and give them the attention they deserve.
Normally we’ll eat dinner as a family somewhere in the 6:00 hour. On Wednesday nights, we go together to our place of worship starting at 7:30, so the period from 6:00 on is usually filled with eating, dressing, and driving.
But every other night of the week — unless we have special plans that involve going out or having company over — the hours after dinner are a time to relax and enjoy each other’s company. It may include screen time (although honestly, watching TV doesn’t do much for me anymore.) More often I’ll be reading a book in between conversations, or maybe indulging my fiction aspirations.
Go to bed at 10:00 pm
I used to love having the option to stay up all hours and know that I was really “an adult” because no one was going to tell me when to go to bed.
But you know what? I’m usually dead tired by 9:30 or so anyway. And I know if I’m getting up consistently at 5:00 am, that’s not going to change. Even if I feel like staying up late, though, I’m going to try to stick to this part of the routine because I know my body needs a minimum of 7 hours of sleep to feel rested. Staying up later than 10:00 just about guarantees I’ll get up late the next day, and it becomes a snowball effect that can obliterate a number of important routines and habits.
Weekends are for home projects and family time
On Saturday mornings, my whole family volunteers in a Bible education work in our local area. On Saturday evening, we spend an hour or two having our weekly Family Worship time together. And, on Sunday mornings at 9:30, we meet again at our place of worship for another program similar to Wednesday night.
Beyond those important scheduled events, however, we tend to keep our weekends pretty free and clear.
I considered setting up my sleep schedule to allow for sleeping in on the weekends — and I may still try that down the road if it seems necessary — but knowing myself, I can imagine that just making it harder to get up at 5:00 during the week. So I intend to maintain my early morning routine throughout the weekend too.
What I want to avoid doing, however, is regularly working on the weekends. I fell into a trap earlier this year where I started viewing my workweek as seven days rather than five and ended up working every weekend for months in a row. I didn’t realize how badly it was burning me out until one Monday morning when I simply couldn’t stand the idea of attending the daily staff meeting and had to call in sick. There was nothing physically wrong with me, I was just completely burnt.
I don’t ever want to get there again. I appreciate having the option to divert work to the weekend if circumstances require it, but I don’t want to ever plan on working through the weekend with regularity.
Instead, I want to spend my free time on weekends relaxing, recharging, enjoying time with my family, and pursuing hobbies, home improvement projects, or any number of other activities that don’t involve my laptop.
So that’s the daily and weekly routines I have planned thus far. I’ll certainly update this post if and when adjustments seem necessary. And if you have any suggestions or stories regarding routines you’ve found helpful, I’d love to read them in the comments below!
