Are you a creature of habit? How much of your life is routine? How often is it spontaneous?

One way to look at life is through the lens of interconnecting cycles. There are a lot of things you do every day in the same way, and then there are cycles that recur on a monthly or annual or even longer interval.

Often times you may not even realize that something is a habit or a routine until there is some sort of an interrupt. But what are routines good for anyway?

Well, first of all they save you from decision fatigue. Too many choices can be overwhelming, have you ever shopped for a balsamic vinegar at a well-stocked market?

Sometimes you just need to save your brain power for the bigger things in life. We all know what it’s like to agonize over a really important decision.

Our natural proclivity for habits can be a double-edged sword. Developing good ones is the key to a happy and healthy life, while succumbing to lazy ones can lead to disaster.

It’s far too easy to allow yourself just one extra helping every time you eat because it feels so good to be full and comfortable, but then you find yourself looking at the scale and wondering if it is broken. It’s easy to slip into bad habits, especially if they help you tune out things you’d rather not be dealing with.

These past couple years of pandemic life have turned everyone’s routine upside down or inside out. And while the downsides are obvious, there is a silver lining deep within the clouds of disconnection.

In ‘normal’ times we may never have the time and space to slow down and self-reflect. The pandemic, for better or worse, has encouraged us to re-examine our routines, take a closer look at our habits, and make choices that serve our best interests.

The trick to dialing in your lifestyle is to make small adjustments and iterate. Sudden, drastic change rarely lasts. B.J. Fogg, the Stanford researcher and author published a book called Tiny Habits which pretty much explains the concept in the title.

In fact, in one of those “they say” factoids that is rattling around in my brain, (probably an article I once read, who knows), that one of the most effective places to start if you’re trying to get your life together is to simply get in the habit of making your bed right after you arise each morning.

(I know, chances are that you, my gentle reader, already do this, along with the requisite stretching exercises and the obligatory eight ounces of water.) But I digress.

For those unfortunates among us who may be suffering from depression, disorder, or simply general malaise, a daily bed-making ritual is a great place to start. It takes five minutes max, gives one an easy win and sense of accomplishment before the day has barely begun, and reinforces that early effort with a cozy and orderly resting place to be grateful for at the end of the day.

Far be it from me to discharge spontaneity however! One has to experience occasional disorder to truly appreciate and evaluate order. The two energies are truly in a dance with each other, the trick is knowing when to fly by the seat of your pants and when to stay in the groove.

Your mileage may vary, so upshift where you can and dial it down when you must. Your cycles, patterns, and daily rhythms are what your life is made of, so make the most of it!

Much love till next Monday!

M+

Mark Metz
Director of the Dance First Association
Publisher of Conscious Dancer Magazine