Our daily lives, for the most part, are controlled by the habits that we have developed over our lifetime. Many times we don’t realize that the behaviors that we exhibit are habits, because they have become automatic and intentional.

A lot of habits that we have are unconscious actions that automate the more mundane tasks that we have throughout the day. Many of them start at the time that we wake up and continue until we finally fall asleep.

Research suggests that up to 40% of our daily routine is habitual. From brushing our teeth, to the way we make our coffee; from the routes that we take to and from work, to the way that our desks are organized. All of this has become an intentional, automatic function of our daily lives. Continue reading →

Have you ever noticed that it gets harder to make decisions toward the end of the day? You’re too tried to figure out what to have for dinner or what to watch on TV. That’s because we all have a finite amount of decisions that we can make in any given day.

Knowing that helps us prioritize. We can cut out a lot of decision making by implementing habits and routines. That way we save them for the important stuff. It also frees brain space for more creative and productive thinking. Routines are a great tool that simplify our lives and cut out a lot of our daily stress.

Chances are you already have a morning routine. You get up, you get your coffee, read the paper or check email and fix some toast before heading into the shower. Let’s expand on that. If you create a “uniform” for yourself, you don’t even have to think about what to wear. You just grab a pair of pants and a shirt, or a skirt, tights and sweater and off you go. Continue reading →