Routine and rituals. It has been in my head for a long time and I have not invested enough resources and time into it. All I have so far is a vague idea and no motivation to put it into place and persevere to create a habit.
Coffee Break by Jane Dunn Borresen
Summer
We had two weeks of uninterrupted sun and heat, we did the drinking outside, and I even got a slight tan. It’s time to say it: every summer is the same and I hate it. What I dislike the most are the forced activities (it’s so nice outside, it’d be a shame to waste the day!) and the inevitable unstructured time.
Since I was about 15 all of my summers and weekends were spent working in restaurants, I wanted to avoid the unlimited amount of free time at all costs. The boredom I experienced as a kid, doing nothing for two months now sounds like a dream. Only because I now have my own independence and money. To be perfectly honest I do not have much recollection of my childhood, but as far as my tinted memories go, I looked forward to September and going back to school. I didn’t particularly like school, but I did like learning and I loved having structure.
At university, when I was pretty much working every day, whether it was for my courses or for my student job, I would take a couple of weeks off at the beginning of September to travel alone and that was pretty much it. It was exhausting at times but so exhilarating! The constant busyness combined with structured time and stimulating activities led me to strive. By that, I mainly mean a predictable schedule with just enough free time to do my hobbies, meet with friends and do nothing between classes.
Morning
As we are approaching mid-July, I can feel the drive to learn new things and I am looking forward to September; as for summer, it is a state of mind—cloudy and dark weather, tempered by golden light and the smell of the rain. I had more than enough unstructured time, it drove me into a wall of endless procrastination, stress and discomfort. Days are harder to go through as I am dragging my feet at everything. I am full-on lazy (procrastinating involves a certain willingness to accomplish a task and succeed).
The main issue I have been struggling with for the past four years is finding the balance between routine and stimulation. My job is both dull and demanding, making me bored yet still mentally drained after my workday and all I want to do during my free time is to dumb myself down. Any type of routine flies out the window way too easily and I find myself increasingly struggling. Over-bored at work, overcorrecting on the weekend and wondering how to overcome this draining cycle.
I have always enjoyed waking up early to have the time to read a book and the newspapers before school or work, I ritualised it by preparing coffee and often lighting up a candle. This creates an easy-to-follow structure to start my days and allows me to do all my “mentally demanding” hobbies such as writing (I did not type my article this morning and the result is a late publication). I have been combining it with some bedtime revenge procrastination (putting off bedtime to make up for the lack of free time during the day), those extra hours are perfect to find inspiration and journaling. This quick fix has always been working for me. All in all, a routine gives me the structure to be more inspired, productive and happy. Can it be September yet?