As someone who juggles two businesses, a sales career, and a regular commitment to my health and wellness, I rely heavily on goals to stay focused, organized, and held accountable in my growth.
Goals provide me with pivotal reference points in structuring my roadmap to success, but they are just that, reference points that guide me from point A to point B.
Goals are NOT the reason for my success- I am.
We are what we repeatedly do. Routines, then, integrate the life we want through consistent, daily repetition.
This reframe shifts you from a dependent, goal chasing mentality into a mindset that focuses on the success, abundance, and fulfillment already inside of you.
The secret ingredient is implementing routines in tandem with your goals that support the life you desire, so that you can immediately embody who you want to be regardless of your achievements.
Ironically, when you focus less on your goals and more on the process of who you are becoming, you align yourself to think and act in accordance with your goals, thus making them easier to reach as a byproduct.
Through routines, YOU become the success, not your achievements.
Below are the seven major reasons why:
#1: Routines are process focused
Goals emphasize the importance of a futuristic event that becomes an illusion of whom many thirst for their entire lives. Seeking validation through your achievements will never quench your thirst, because they are not what truly nourishes the spirit.
It is not achieving the goal that makes you happy, it is the person you become in the process that brings ultimate fulfillment. Routines dissipate the mirage of the goal by bringing your attention inward in the present moment, allowing you to grow right where you are.
#2: Routines create momentum
About 90% of people will not hit their New Year’s Resolutions in 2023. It is easy to set big goals amid inspiration, but once that inspiration leaves, so does your progress.
Willpower and motivation are not always reliable. Routines take these emotions out of play by removing the decision making process and putting you on autopilot. This “fool proof” strategy helps you spend less time thinking about what you want to do, and more time actually doing it.
Energy creates energy. The more consistent your routine is, the more momentum it compounds, thus supercharging your growth in the days, weeks, months, and even years ahead.
#4: Routines provide authentic connection with self
Routines are more than what you just do in your average day. When set up effectively, routines become rituals that prioritizes time for self-care and self-nurture. We are not here to serve our routines; our routines are here to serve us to make it as effortless as possible to foster our health and happiness.
Routines are the time and place in which you “fill your cup” with things that serve your mind, body, and spirit. This allows you to connect, ground, and center yourself to handle anything with the right frame of mind.
#5: Routines provide structure
Even if you are one who doesn’t thrive on a strict schedule, research has shown that routines can lower anxiety and stress and boost mental health by adding structure and a sense of control throughout your day.
Structure also helps you to track and measure your progress by keeping you organized and focused. With the right structure in place, you free yourself to make the most of the natural ebb and flow of your energy levels, thus creating the ultimate life balance.
#6: Routines improve skills
The “Routine Effect” is a term known for when people develop their skills through consistent repetition. Routines, like practice, help you improve specific skills over time through synaptic pruning, which strengthens the connections between neurons in your brain over time, allowing for a more efficient and effortless way of doing things.
If you’d like to get better at writing or meditation, for example, incorporate that practice in your daily routine to strengthen the neurons responsible for the task at hand. Soon you will be able to do it with more ease and expertise.
#7: Routines create lifelong habits
Synaptic pruning also occurs in every habit that you build. Through routines, you build and strengthen the network of connections in your brain the more you do something. This allows you to habit stack, which means adding a group of new or healthy habits / activities on top of each other to increase the odds of doing it again.
Eventually, these habits turn into lifestyle changes that become a part of who you are. You become the success. This is how you can continue to grow even in the hardest of times.
In conclusion
Success is much more than just hitting your goals, it is creating a quality and fulfilling life that you can embody each day. Routines are the gateway to ultimate transformation as they facilitate growth and expansion right where you are, regardless of your achievements. This is how you make transformative changes in your life that last.
What does your daily routine consist of?
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