3 Weeks to a Routine

Establishing a RoutineTwo weeks ago I told you that I had been struggling to get back into a routine of writing and that it had been hard to get going. It was a popular message; apparently many of us get stuck and struggle to get unstuck.

To get unstuck I committed to a plan to write messages regularly, in which I would share mentor type thoughts and ideas with my self in the past or myself in the future. This plan gave me the “What am I writing about?” and the “To whom?” that I felt I was missing. So…here is the 2nd message in my new series and it turns out it’s from my past self to my current self with some tips, reminders and encouragement for establishing a new routine and making it a habit.

Waking up early – and I mean really early – is a normal part of a rower’s day. But don’t make the mistake of thinking that rowers are good at getting up early or are naturally inclined to like it. The truth is that they know how to get used to, or more accurately how to get familiar with, what an early routine –(an uncomfortably early routine!) – feels like. As it becomes a habit, it’s easy for a rower to see all the advantages and opportunities of the early mornings and barely notice that seeing blurry 5’s or even 4’s as a first digit of time is not entirely normal.

Here’s what getting up really early taught me about establishing new routines:

Waking up early one day, or even every day for one week is not a routine it’s a novelty. Doing something for 1 week is Continue reading