Other People's Routines

I did a Google search on "routine" and found the following 5 websites. What I found I think is interesting, ridiculous, funny and thought-provoking; allow me to share it with you:

1) From the blog ZenHabits.net where Leo Babauta writes about "Simple Productivity," he devoted one whole post on his morning routine:

Morning Routine

1. Wake at 4:30 a.m.
2. Drink water.
3. Set 3 Most Important Things (MITs) for today.
4. Fix lunches for kids and myself.
5. Eat breakfast, read.
6. Exercise (run, bike, swim, strength, or yardwork) or meditate.
7. Shower.
8. Wake wife & kids at 6:30 a.m.

To each their own, I say. This definitely would NOT work for me and, in fact, seems almost ridiculous for me to even consider, given my delayed-phase sleep disorder, post-exertional fatigue and lack of children.

2) Moving on, I discovered the blog Daily Routines: How writers, artists, and other interesting people organize their days. I like this blog and hope that its author resumes posting soon (hint, hint!) This blog highlights the daily routines of people like Simone de Beauvoir, Barack Obama, Stephen King and Mister Fred Rogers.

From the Simone de Beauvoir post: I'm always in a hurry to get going, though in general I dislike starting the day. I first have tea and then, at about ten o'clock, I get under way and work until one. Then I see my friends and after that, at five o'clock, I go back to work and continue until nine. I have no difficulty in picking up the thread in the afternoon.

It's going to take me some time to review the posts there, but so far, I am liking that there are a variety of routines discussed, some that might work for me.

3) Leo Babauta makes a second appearance on this post; I guess he is a prolific writer. This time it's a post on the Mashable.com website and an article entitled HOW TO: Simplify Your Social Media Routine. I know I panned his Zen Habits post about his morning routine, but I happen to like this one. In summary, his advice on this topic is:

HOW TO: Simplify Your Social Media Routine
Step 1. Use simple tools to make the most of social media.
Step 2. Focus on sending out high impact messages.
Step 3. Let go of the need to read everything. Learn to scan.
Step 4. Figure out which social media give you the most value, and simplify.
Step 5. Form close relationships with people who give you the most value, not everyone.
Step 6. Manage your time wisely.

Since the beginning of this year I have really jumped into social media with both feet and I am eager to study this article more to make it simple for me.

4) Now for the heavy-duty stuff, which I unearthed at the FlyLady.net website. The Fly Lady shows you how to get serious with routines. I mean, she has examples of routines for before bed, in the morning, a basic weekly plan and weekly checklist. Here is a sample of the weekly plan:

Monday: Weekly Home Blessing
Tuesday: Free Day
Wednesday: Zone Clean and Partial Desk Time
Thursday: Grocery and Errand Day
Friday: Paperwork and Miscellaneous
Friday: Date Night
Saturday: Family Fun Day
Sunday: Renew Your Spirit Day

This is some meaty stuff. It is going to take some time to go through all this information and the website overall, but I have a good feeling about the Fly Lady. I'm thinking this might be the stuff that I have been looking for and what helps me create my own routine, with some personal modifications of course. I may be writing more about this particular website in the weeks to come...

5) Now for some fun! I am developing a healthy love of the website The Onion. It is a total spoof news website that points out all the funny in the news, entertainment, sports, politics and more. So if you are in the mood or need a good laugh, click to read Workout Routine Broken Down For Coworker. And I hope you find my posts more interesting than Kim found Eric's explanation of his workout routine!