It is never too late to change. Literally, we can change the way our brain works to adapt to new routines, situations, circumstance. But it can take practice, patience and discipline.
Routines come in all shapes and sizes, for example, leaving work on time, changing your eating habits or giving yourself more time to do what you love to do. Maybe, you are looking to change your entire life around, bring yourself back to who you are at your best or perhaps discover this side of you using instinct and goal setting.
Below are just a few ways in which you can bring new routine, change, into your life. A snippet of your own potential.
Always give yourself credit, even if old habits try to creep back in on your way.
Set goals – if you’re looking to make more time for yourself, perhaps a goal might be to take 1 hour a day to switch off and do something you love to do; reading, walking, running, arts anything at all! There’s no limit to these goals, you might have one or ten. Imagine yourself having achieved what is it you want and then…
Make a list - make a list of what feels achievable from today. This is a tool to place more focus on your goal. What are you currently doing that is preventing you from having a more productive routine? What might you be looking to change or replace? Remember, you don’t have to do everything on that list in one day! Take your time, make it achievable. For example, if you are looking to introduce exercise into your morning routine but currently you wake late and rush a breakfast and go to work, you might start with setting your alarm earlier in order for you to bring this time into your day.
Start small – take it one small step at a time, routine comes from repetition and at first is something that needs to be actively approached, eventually it will become a subconscious part of your day. Look at what you want to achieve, what are you comfortable to start with, what is realistic?
Separate your day – think morning afternoon, evening. This will help to not overwhelm yourself with all the things you want or need to get done in a day. Set times and stick to them. Only you will know what can be put aside and what can’t and understand that there will be times where time will over run, but set some boundaries for yourself.
Try not to overthink – If you approach a day with ‘I must’, or worse, ‘I should’ (too much pressure), it may overwhelm you as you create your new path and routine. Even if this feels successful in the beginning, it is longevity you are looking for and old habits are hard to break, so be aware, move forwards, reward yourself, be kind to yourself and patiently reach your goal.
Make time for you – self-care is becoming a common term these days and it is really important for us to be able to stop, look around and take time to appreciate where we are, how far we have come, acknowledge weaknesses and strengths and have some time just for us. This time can be taken in any way that suits you. We are all different and consider self-care for ourselves in many different ways, for example, journaling, meditating, going for a walk, having a massage, watching a movie or perhaps pampering yourself. Its nice to look in the mirror each day and greet yourself with kind words and encouragement. Be kind to yourself.
Self-discipline (and patience) – Understand that things may take time. The process of change and introducing routine requires self-discipline and repetition. We can change the way we think, the way we act, the level of motivation we have if we are dedicated and willing to move forward. But don’t be discouraged if things don’t change for ever overnight. If you are going for big change or minor adjustments, we need to let our minds (brains) catch up, but with patience, perseverance and self-discipline, we will all get to where we want to be.
Ask for help – if you need some guidance and regular support in changing or creating routine, find a Wellbeing mentor or coach who can work with you to set achievable goals and processes to help you get to where you want to be.
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