My day is different every day. Because I work for myself and get to make my own schedule, I get to incorporate variety into each and every day, making my days anything but routine.
The Non-Routine Routine
Some days I work from home in my pajamas on various projects. Others I’m running to meetings or appointments with clients all over town. Some days I work 12 hours straight. Others I take a 3-hour mid-day break to go stand up paddle boarding. Some days I sleep in and work late into the night, and once a week get up for a 6:45 am (ouch!) meeting with my small group of fellow business owners.
The Morning Routine — Getting My Daily Bread
Although I prefer a varied schedule, I do need to balance it out with some regular morning routines. Each morning, no matter what time I have to be up, I awake an extra hour early to have my quiet time with God. I pray, read Scripture, and journal about what’s being spoken back to me in my prayers and readings. If I don’t start my morning this way, I have no peace the remainder of the day.
Next, I eat the same thing for breakfast every morning. This may sound a little odd coming from someone who likes all kinds of food and will eat just about anything (including kangaroo and camel when I spent a month in Australia). But I never seem to tire of my regular breakfast menu and actually look forward to it each morning.
I like all kinds of food, so, during the day I can get a little carried away with food selections. So, I counterbalance that with a healthy meal in the morning. I have organic cereal with unsweetened almond milk, a hard-boiled cage-free egg, a slice of 7-grain sprouted bread with all-natural peanut butter, and a cup of organic green tea or black tea (without any sweetener).
It shocked my family to hear just how much I now eat for breakfast, because growing up I hated breakfast. I rarely ate breakfast as a child and even all the way up into my mid-thirties.
The Result — Improved Health
At age 43, I am now the healthiest (both physically and spiritually) I’ve ever been in my life. I contribute that to both my morning routine and the variety I incorporate throughout the rest of my day.
I’m sure it also has something to do with the fact that I no longer work an 8–5 job in a toxic, micro-managed environment for someone else. Leaving my full-time job with benefits to pursue my own passions allowed me to do the work I love in the way I love. This is what makes me look forward to waking up to my morning routine every day.
Originally published at medium.com