The Importance of Consistency

The key to keeping your life simple and healthy is creating consistent routines. I first wrote that back in 2011 and I still believe and practice it today. To quote F. Matthias Alexander, “People do not decide their futures. They decide their habits and their habits decide their futures.” And a routine is, after all, a habit.

I’ve come up with several routines over the years that have helped keep my body healthy and my mind focused, and here they are.

Schedule the Important Things. During the weekday you can develop good habits by working out or taking your favorite yoga class on scheduled days. Schedule appointments only on certain days, and make sure that Mondays and Fridays are left with no appointments so that you can gather your thoughts and catch up. This helps you deal with the unexpected while ensuring that the important things always get done.

Toss, File, Act. Try to spend 5 to 10 minutes each day keeping your work space well organized. Organization is a breeze when you go through the mail and toss, file, or act on it on a daily basis. Throw away things you don’t need and reorganize your desk before you quit working. Write out a to-do list at the end of the day and leave it for yourself the next morning. Do the same at home, too. Soon this will become a habit and a way of life.

Go-to Place. At home, find an area for things that you need on a daily basis: keys, purse, backpacks, or letters to be mailed. Also, keep a petty cash jar handy for all household members to use for parking, lunches, or a tip for the delivery person.

Don’t Forget Weekends. For us, we like to eat out on Friday nights. Saturday is our shopping day for food, clothes, or any other errands that need to be done. On Sundays, we like to stay at home and cook for the week. This routine is a way to unplug and relax from the hectic week, something we look forward to. Having this day to regroup also helps us to prepare for the week ahead. 

Get Some Sleep. We all need between 7 and 9 hours of good, quality sleep per night to function at our best. So commit to getting into bed and turning the light out an hour earlier than usual. Or take a nap in the afternoon on the weekends. 

Walk the Dog. You and your best friend will benefit from a routine walk or hike. That’s why my time to walk my dog Jake is on the weekends, without fail. As soon as I put my baseball cap on and pull down his leash, he’s ready to go. Even he’s on a routine! This clears my mind and helps both of us to stay active and moving.

Attitude of Gratitude. Buy yourself a journal and spend a few minutes a day counting your blessings. Gratitude gives you a positive frame of mind. Research shows that routinely practicing gratitude may be the best pathway to happiness, health, long life, and prosperity.

Replace Habits. Make an effort to identify bad habits. Focus on creating new, positive ones to replace the bad. For example, I love to watch TV, especially the Food Network. But instead of focusing on the negative aspects of reducing my TV time, I developed a routine of sitting quietly, reading with soft music playing in the background. This breaks up the not-so-good habit with a better one and keeps me balanced.

You’ve heard it all before; repetition strengthens and confirms. Knowing you can fall back on built-in routines will get you through the day and further develop healthy habits. Just sayin’.

Published: New Mexico Apartment News Magazine – March/April 2019