After spending some time paying closer attention to my day-to-day habits — how they make me feel, and the expectations I place on myself to have things a certain way — I started to notice something.
I carry around an idea of what the perfect day looks like. And the thing about that day is that it’s only achievable for a short window of time. The moment it starts slipping, I feel the stress creep in. The list of things that need to be done suddenly feels urgent. I get bored with it. Then mad at it.
Where did this idea come from — that every minute needs to be productive?
Lately, I’ve been playing with my routine a bit. Letting things be less than perfect. Maybe a dish lingers in the sink overnight. The living room doesn’t get picked up. I stop forcing myself to read a book I’m not actually into.
I’ve been noticing what genuinely makes me feel better. Sometimes that means catching up on Below Deck on a Tuesday night. Sometimes it’s having some version of meal prep done — right now it’s overnight oats. I always forget how much I love them. Just having a loose idea of what I’ll eat during the week seems to take the edge off.
Making my bed helps. I remember hearing years ago that it was a good way to start the day — probably on Oprah (I learned a lot from her… is that a generational thing?). But there’s truth to it. Same with sticking to a bedtime. Learning about sleep hygiene changed more than I expected.
I’ve noticed I carry a mental checklist — not a physical one. Writing it down feels too stressful. But mentally checking off the basics seems to make the rest of the day feel lighter.
There’s something about having the basics in place that softens the rest of the day.
I’m paying attention to that.
I’ve started experimenting with a few small tricks to help hold myself accountable. I wrote a bit more about that here.
Taking Life with Chances 
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