Wondering how to create a routine and stick to it? Try these top essential tips to ensure your new routine is a success!
Routines can add so much value to your life. Whether it be for time management, productivity, or stress levels, they leave you feeling accomplished and thinking to yourself #crushedit.
So why are they sometimes so hard to stick with? After countless years of implementing various routines, I’ve come to learn why some things actually stick, and why some don’t.
Whether it be going to the gym, waking up early, remembering to call your grandma, whatever routine you want to create, by following these exact tips you will be more likely to make your routine a continual success. We will be discussing tips such as scheduling, reducing temptations, ways of accountability, and more.
After reading my top essential tips, you’re going to be a routine ninja with everything you need to stick to your goals for success. #crushingitalways.
This post is about how to create a routine and stick to it.
Essential Tips for Successful Routines
1. Be realistic
Sometimes we feel so inspired by tik tok, we decide we are going to wake up every day at 5 am. We make this decision even though 1. we’ve never woken up before 8 am before and 2. are still in the habit of watching Bridgeton till 2 am every night. I’ve been there. Sometimes the inspiration takes hold on us and we ultimately make all these promises to ourselves that frankly, we are just not [yet] ready to keep.
So first tip: Be realistic. Think of a routine that could easily fit into your current lifestyle now. If exercising every day is something you want to add to your routine, think about the kinds of exercise you enjoy, or have access to. What could I actually picture myself doing in the long haul?
It’s about the baby steps. Not totally shocking the system.
If you are someone that doesn’t exercise, you are more likely to stick to your new routine if you choose something that requires minimal effort, i.e. going for a walk every day. This is more realistic than trying to work out at a gym for 2 hours a day. Once you solidify this new routine, you can then continue to add to it.
2. Plan it out
“What looks like resistance is often a lack of clarity” – Dan and Chip heath.
The more detailed your plan is, the more likely you will stick with your new routine. You need to think about every detail as to how it will pan out. Think about your new routine, and ask yourself the following questions:
– What time will you do it?
– How long will you do it for?
– What do you need to do it? (do you need equipment like a laptop? Do you need someone to be there to assist you?)
– What activity will you be doing before or after it? (Will you still be able to focus energy between these activities, or will you be too tired? Does it make sense to do it before and after these activities? Will these neighbouring activities make it more or less challenging to complete your new routine?)
– What challenges might I face?
Say you want to stop buying takeaway and you are wanting to cook more. Do you have time in the evening to cook? How long do you need to actually cook your meals? What kind of cooking utensils will you need to make this routine a success? Will you be too tired after work to go to the grocery store? Would this routine be more likely to succeed if you ordered a fresh food delivery system, like Hello Fresh?
Ask yourself these questions about your new routine and think about all of the logistics in great detail.
3. Schedule it in your calendar
If you write your new routine down in your calendar, you are more likely to do it. Scheduling that activity into your calendar also means that time is unavailable for something else.
You’re making a date with yourself that you must show up for, just as you would if you had made plans with another person. A commitment to yourself is just as important as a meeting with your boss. You’ve thought out the details so choose a time and stick with it.
My top tips for this are:
– Try to schedule it for the same time every day. New habits love consistency. The aim is for your mind to not even have to think about it. Like brushing your teeth. When was the last time you had an internal monologue about brushing your teeth, like “ahh can I really be bothered today? What time should I do it?” You just do it. The more consistent the routine is, the less your mind has to think about it and the more likely you will stick to it.
– If it is a habit that does require some kind of decision-making, schedule it in the morning. There is literally a thing called decision fatigue. Studies show that humans make quicker and better decisions in the morning rather than in the evening as we have a certain amount of ‘good decisions’ that we can make throughout the day. Unless it is a night routine that you are wanting to implement for your sleep, I suggest that the earlier in the day you can schedule in this habit the better.
4. Link the new routine with something you’ve already mastered
If you have a solid past record of a certain routine or habit, use it to your advantage and do what James Clear (author of Atomic habits) calls ‘Habit Stacking’. James Clear talks about this technique in his book and he also has an article he has written so I will link that here. Essentially, rather than pairing a habit with a time or schedule, you link it to another activity. Pairing a habit can be more effective than trying to start a new habit on its own. For example, if you are trying to make meditation a routine and wanting to stick with it, you could pair it with brushing your teeth. Brushing your teeth for most people is a solid habit that people don’t have any issues with keeping. You could make it a rule that every time you brush your teeth you then have to meditate for 10 minutes. That goes for any solid habit. Match a habit you continually do without thought WITH a new one.
5. Find a way to keep track of your habits
Monitoring your habits keeps you aware and accountable. New habits can be tricky to implement, especially when you are busy and forgetful (aka me).
Make some sort of system where you can see if you are sticking to your routine. If you’re a paper person, like myself, draw a table that you can stick on your wall and physically tick off when you’ve successfully stuck to your routine for that day. If you’re a technology fanatic, there are so many apps available that help you track habits such as Habitify, Strides, coach.me, etc.
Not only does monitoring your habits keep you accountable, but it can also keep you motivated at the same time. I swear, there is nothing more satisfying than ticking a box or crossing something off your ‘to-do list’. Disagree? If that’s not enough satisfaction for you, you could then create a reward system. Once you’ve completed a full month of your habit and can see it on your monitoring chart, treat yourself to something nice. 😚
If you are interested in learning more about monitoring habits, I would recommend the book ‘Better Than Before’ by Gretchen Rubin (**this is not an affiliate link). This book covers a whole variety of recommendations about how to make routines and stick to them.
6. Reduce temptations
Now, these might be hard to notice at first, but watch out, temptations can definitely sneak up on you. This comes with point 2. planning it out. Again this is where planning out the logistics of your new routine becomes really helpful. I now want you to focus on all the different temptations you may face and try to eliminate them. Finding that you are wanting to wake up to journal but instead end up scrolling on Instagram? Remove Instagram, or even just your phone. Buy a new cheap alarm so that your phone isn’t the first thing that you reach for.
Reducing temptations is a crucial step to success because our minds will tell us anything to get us to take the instant gratification route. Don’t even give yourself the chance to deter.
7. Find an accountability partner
Sometimes it’s hard to stick to something with only yourself involved. See if you can find someone to become your routine buddy! You could meet up with them and complete the activity together or even just a phone call at the end of the day to check in and discuss how it went. It can be really motivating when another person is involved to keep you accountable.
8. Think about your ‘why’ and your ‘why not’
Have you tried to implement a routine like this in the past? Why didn’t it work? This again comes down to details. If you are really struggling to implement a certain routine, you then need to look deeper into it. Is this something you actually really want to do? You need to think about whether this really aligns with your priorities and goals in this current period of your life. If waking up early is clashing with you enjoying your twenties and staying out late most nights, then reconsider this routine when it makes more sense.
9. Plan your exceptions
If you know you will need a break, plan your exceptions to the rule.
If this routine is something you know you will struggle to stick with while on a holiday, or on your birthday, that’s fine, but plan it. This way you take away any remorse or guilt for not sticking to your routine AND you always stay in control of when you do and don’t stick to it. This keeps your motivation levels high, and will also kick your mind into gear when you are expected to go back to your routine.
10. Preparation is key
Actually do all the things to set yourself up for success. Now you’ve thought about the details, you’ve written it in your calendar, you’ve tried your best to reduce temptations.
What can you do to prepare your environment?
Is it making sure you’ve packed your bag the night before? Is it placing your guitar in a certain spot in your house so that you are reminded to do it? Do you need to set reminders on your phone to remind yourself? If you are exercising in the morning, why don’t you have your gym clothes ready and insight for when you wake up?
Organize yourself as much as you can before the routine takes place so that your routine is as easy to do as possible.
11. Stumble, don’t fall
Now even though I am confident that you are going to smash out this routine and stick to it like a boss, it’s important to prepare your mind for a possible slip up.
Sometimes we miss a day and we fall down the rabbit hole of giving up and quitting entirely. In truth, we are only human and incredibly busy ones of that, so be kind to yourself. Don’t fall down the trap of letting the routine slip past for a week, a month, or even a year! Just get back to it. Slip up one day? That’s completely fine. Just make a mental note that it is even more important than ever you do it the next day. If you feel like you keep slipping up, revisit the details and your planning of this activity.
Make it a rule that you can never miss two days in a row of your activity.
Don’t give up. You’ve got this.
Remember why you wanted to make it a routine in the first place.