It’s OK to Change Your Routine

Don’t stick to a schedule for the schedule’s sake. Don’t serve a routine because it’s your routine. 

Schedules and routines can bring us needed consistency and peace. Building them requires dedication even when we don’t want to be dedicated. But a routine should always be a means to an end. It should help you accomplish something or achieve a state of mind. 

If you’re in a time in which your routine is burdensome, pause for a while. It’s ok. 

During the first few months of quarantine, my routine was shot. Usually it was a 7:15 wake up, a walk to a coffee shop, a chapter of a book, breakfast, and at my desk at 9:30. But when coffee shops closed, people stopped emailing, and sadness sunk in, my routine became burdensome. So I stopped. I started sleeping in. Taking my time in the morning. Working a little later instead.

At first it felt like all my hard work to build my routine was lost. But after a few months, I got back into my routine. And I realized my schedule and routine were more like tools in my tool belt that I could access again when I needed to. 

Now I have a new routine that helps me achieve productivity and peace. It’ll likely change again soon, and that’s ok.