It was one of the rare times in my life that I decided to take such a big risk and follow my instinct to make a difference in the world. To achieve what I want to achieve requires a lot of work, a lot of sacrifices, a lot of planning, a lot of stressful nights, a lot of patience, and a lot of everything. For many months, I was focusing a lot on how to increase my productivity level and how to do the biggest amount of things in the best way and in the timeliest manner.
I put myself into this mode of answering so many different questions to manage to reach complete effectiveness like which moment of the day am I the most productive, which task should I do first to get the best outcome, what is the best food I should eat so my brain has the most clarity, or what time in the morning should I wake up and start working on my projects.
One day, I realized that putting myself into this productivity race was causing me so much pressure and forbid me to enjoy my everyday life. I almost lost the purpose of my resignation and of following my dream supporting others to change their lives while being free and happy. But by adding all these productivity ratios in my mind, I stopped enjoying the process. So, I started to wonder: What if this was my last day alive, is this how I want to spend it? My day should be spontaneous, memorable, unique, and have unexpected and surprising outcomes. And I felt that through a very tightly planned and controlled day, the possibility of all that to happen was minimized.
Of course, having a morning-routine has many undeniable benefits and high chances to achieve our daily goals. But please, let’s not forget to add in our life the concept of living in the moment and being in the now. No matter our long-term goals, now is really all we’ve got, and we should never forget that.
With this in mind, I decided that my only morning routine would be to wake up and follow my instinct for the day. I do have a plan and a list of tasks, but it’s not restrictive in any way. I want to accomplish my duties every day, but they don’t always have a specific timeframe or order. First, I take a moment to have an open conversation with myself and wonder what would bring me joy right now? To be accountable to myself and remain consistent on my work’s progress, I always give myself my word that no matter what, I will finish my tasks before going to bed in the evening. For this approach to work, it’s crucial that your word to yourself – and others – must be near as solid as concrete. Once this is established, it’s time to ask yourself: How do I want to start my day? How does my body feel? How does my mind? How does my heart or soul?
We all have obligations and responsibilities to our environment in one way or another, and we cannot benefit from the total independence of our actions. But still, what are the small things that we can allow ourselves the freedom of the choice? Ask yourself: what is it that I want? Give yourself this permission to the inner-dialog and make each day memorable in some way – in any way. Do you want to stand still and do nothing? If your body is requesting that there must be a reason. Do you feel like being playful, dance, sing, jump around for absolutely no reason? Just do that, it means that this is what you need right now. Do you feel super productive and inspired? Then work-work-work and create as much as you can. Listen to your body. It knows perfectly well what it needs for you and from you today.
What my non-morning-routine taught me is to remember every single day to listen to my body.
For further support, please, find me at The Coming Out Coaches and at MS Life Coach.
Published in Medium on September 29, 2020.