The Power of an Effective Routine

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The Power of an Effective Routine

Many great men and women—successful people like Steve Jobs and Amanda Steinberg (the founder of DailyWorth)—have one trait in common. They all harness the power of routine. Routines increase productivity and help us achieve the greatness within us—greatness often lost in the clutter of a disorganized lifestyle. Today, let’s talk about the power of an effective routine and how to create one.

Why Create a Routine?

It’s too easy to stagnate and procrastinate. Most of us tell ourselves we’ll achieve a million things in one day, but then we waste our time scrolling through social media or lazing around. These are bad habits—common ones, however. If we spend our whole lives stuck with bad habits, we’re not likely to get far. We’ll end up like a majority of unhappy Americans—mediocre, dissatisfied, unrecognized. Routines force us to adopt good habits. Good habits will help us rise above the rest.

How to Create an Effective Routine

Creating an effective routine doesn’t happen overnight. We need to experiment and find out what works and what doesn’t. But here are five ways for crafting an effective routine:

1. Personalize the Routine

Each one of us leads a unique life. Therefore, each of us should have a unique routine. No one should copy anyone else’s routine. Just because other people are most productive at 4:00 a.m. doesn’t mean we’ll be. We need to take the various factors of our own lives into consideration, asking questions like: “Do I work better in the morning or at night?” “What responsibilities do I need to work around?” “Where do my priorities lie?” 

2. Start Small

When we set unrealistic expectations for ourselves, we often fail. Not everyone can dive into a vigorous routine right away, and we shouldn’t be expected to. Taking small steps like waking up at a certain time and performing three new tasks daily can help ease us into productivity. From there, we can continue adding more tasks until we reach our highest goals.

3. Be Specific

Knowing what we want to accomplish is as important as the steps we take to reach our goals. Productivity won’t be useful unless we’re working toward a specific end. For instance, I want to become a successful writer. I structure my routine around practicing the craft and reading authors I admire.

4. Use Tools

Things like online calendars, physical planners, and to-do lists are the best friends of highly productive people. These tools keep us organized and help structure our day. I suggest using at least one of these tools when starting a routine. I use all three tools I mentioned above.

5. Test Variations of a Routine

Creating a routine is similar to writing a novel: write, edit, re-write, repeat. Like writers experiment with concepts and style, routine-makers should test different versions of their schedule and see which one works best. Routine-makers can experiment with rearranging the order of tasks, adding different tasks for each day of the week, scheduling specific times slots, etc.

Concluding Thoughts on Routine

I think everyone can achieve greatness in their own way by shunning procrastination and embracing productivity through the power of routine. I hope this article helps anyone who reads it unlock their potential greatness and take action.

The Career Service Station is your resource for motivation and advice. If you need more tips and tools to boost your career, book a call with career expert Robert Braathe today!

Citations:
https://medium.com/swlh/the-incredible-power-of-routine-take-your-productivity-to-the-next-level-e6708dcac574
https://www.lifehack.org/articles/productivity/how-12-highly-productive-people-used-the-power-routine-achieve-greatness.html
https://www.thespruce.com/how-to-create-a-daily-routine-2648007
https://www.forbes.com/sites/samanthaettus/2014/11/17/morning-routines/?sh=60eec63c7b1f

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