We wake up, we shower, we have breakfast, we go to work, we eat, we go back to work, we come home, we chat a little with our loved ones, we do various tasks, we watch television or do sports, we have dinner, we sleep… and start again. A large number of people will feel identified with this succession of actions, being in reality their daily or almost daily routine. Many of them will have sighed with a certain boredom.
And the routine is monotonous, being for many something boring or limited and generating the desire to introduce some variation. But the question is… how to do it? How to get out of the routine? In this article we are going to try to give some guidelines or indications to try to introduce modifications that allow us to live our lives as something a little less monotonous.
For better or worse, most people know what routine is: it is defined as the presence of a series of customs and habits that are repeated continuously over time and whose achievement is often carried out automatically.
Routine implies the existence of a functioning scheme from which the subject does not move, and on which, as a general rule, there is no idea of ​​introducing modifications And the constant repetition and lack of novelty can cause us to end up thinking that our life is nothing more than a concatenation of the same actions, leading to a certain boredom. That is why most people with a fixed routine usually want to modify it from time to time.
But routine also has good things: it provides security in how things are going to be and makes it difficult for us to have to face unexpected situations that are unrelated to what has already been planned. In fact, this is one of the main reasons why, although it may be monotonous, there is resistance to introducing changes. Novelty entails a risk, a risk that can be somewhat scary and have different consequences.
In addition, Many people justify not changing their routine by the fact that they have no other alternative And it is true that in a society like today’s we generally need to have a job, pay bills and maintain our home. However, this does not imply that there is also part of the excuse: although it is possible and even advisable in some cases, it is not necessary to make a radical change in life to introduce modifications that make our lives more exciting.
Guidelines to get out of the routine
Getting out of the routine involves carrying out actions different from those we normally do, something that may be easy to say but in reality has a certain complexity. That is why in this article we are going to see different guidelines for introduce changes in our daily lives and get out of our routine
1. Identify your routine
The first step to being able to get out of the routine is to recognize that it exists, and to be able to identify it. If you consider that you have a very routine life, you should take into account what you do on a daily basis that is repeated continuously.
2. Value what makes her unpleasant
Once we have identified the routine we follow, it is necessary to assess what about it all displeases us, produces rejection or makes us feel stuck. It may be useful to make a self-record or a schedule of our daily life in which we also value how each performance makes us feel.
3. Consider what changes you want
What do I want to achieve? How far am I from it? What can I do to get closer? These three questions are fundamental. It’s about considering what you want and what aspects of the routine bring us closer and which distance us. We must also assess what we are willing to do to change. Sometimes it may be necessary completely break with previous patterns (for example, changing a job that does not satisfy us or ending a relationship that does not fulfill us).
4. Eat and sleep properly
Food and sleep are some of the elements that are least often taken into account and yet are ones that are most important when it comes to explaining our well-being. This also influences the perception of life as routine. It is important that eating and sleeping are acts in which we are focused on what we do and that we do it well: getting enough sleep and eating in a balanced way is essential for maintain our physical and mental health
One of the things that can make us see our daily lives as routine is the fact that we do everything anytime, anywhere. It is not uncommon for spaces and actions to intermingle, making it difficult to separate the different moments and making it easy for a sense of continuity to appear that is difficult for us to disconnect from. We must separate spaces and moments, having each thing its time and place and creating a break between different tasks: do not work stretched out in bed or in the same place where you eat.
6. What do you like or desire?
One of the aspects that will allow us to change our routine is to begin to value elements that we do not practice in our routine and that we would nevertheless like to implement. Ask yourself what your hobbies are or what catches your attention. Maybe we like crocheting, rock climbing, or going to the opera. Leisure is important , and we often don’t take advantage of the moments we have free. It is important to generate moments when we can cultivate our tastes.
7. Set new goals
Perhaps one of the most important ways that can generate the greatest change is the idea of ​​forming a goal or objective, something we can focus on and find highly motivating
These goals can be practically anything, but the point is that they are something far from our daily activity. For example, learning to play an instrument, speaking a language, studying a career, losing weight, taking a trip or volunteering, or playing sports may be goals that are somewhat different than usual. It is even possible that the goal is to change jobs or find a partner. Of course, they have to be realistic goals.
8. Generate small intermediate steps to reach the new goal
Our original goals can be complex to carry out if the objective is very ambitious. However, this does not mean that we should not try. We must establish small intermediate goals that allow us to gradually get closer to the final objective, these goals also being something stimulating in themselves.
9. Commit and persevere with the change
It is very good to make plans, but they are useless if there is no firm commitment to carry them out. We need to keep in mind that difficulties and obstacles may appear but we must be able to be decisive and face the fact that change requires effort.
One thing is clear: in most situations changes will not occur spontaneously but require involvement and effort on one’s part. As Einstein said: if you want new results, don’t always do the same thing. Sitting on the couch and complaining is understandable at some point, but in practice it is useless and it will be necessary for us to commit to change.
In addition to the previous changes, it may be useful to try to modify small aspects of your environment. Introduce new elements to your office, redecorate your house change your clothes between work and your leisure time or play music that activates or relaxes you (depending on your needs).
11. Meet people and keep an open mind
Meeting new people will push us to see new vital perspectives, to learn from others and to give of ourselves. It is important to share and be open to trying to understand the way others understand the world
12. Get in touch with nature
Most people who live in a city have little or no contact with nature. And the truth is that such contact has been shown to be beneficial for a large number of conditions such as stress, depression or anxiety. Going on getaways in natural places from time to time can help us better endure the usual routine and can generate changes.
13. Do sports
Sport is always something positive in terms of reducing stress levels and increasing endorphins, In addition to being one of the possible modifications in our daily life (if we didn’t do it before) that can generate a big change for us. Of course, it is important that it does not represent a new routine, but rather a challenge that we really want to carry out (although at first it will probably be necessary to force ourselves a little)
14. Allow yourself to improvise
One of the big problems with routine is, precisely, that it is tremendously predictable. Thus, we must leave room for improvisation in our lives : It is okay to leave a certain amount of time unplanned, in which we can do what we feel like doing at the moment or what arises.
15. Get out of your comfort zone: explore new possibilities
Something essential if we want to break the routine is to leave aside our comfort zone. It is important to dare to experience new things, even if we don’t know if we will like them or not. Maybe it’s enough to explore a new neighborhood in your city, a type of activity that you had never considered trying or visiting other cultures and countries And very important: do something you want to do even if it scares you.
16. Meditate or do mindfulness
Another way to proceed may be to do some type of meditation or mindfulness, through which we begin to fully experience the moment we are in, leaving aside thoughts and judgments and letting them flow without altering us.
