Simple Steps to Create Routines for Success
Hello Readers 👋
Over the past few weeks, I’ve worked with some of the most driven athletes, helping them mentally prepare for success. One of the most essential mental skills we’ve focused on is the power of routines.
We are the result of our daily habits and routines. If we want to elevate our performance and achieve our goals, we must first transform the routines that shape us.
In this newsletter, we will cover:
- What are routines, and why are they important?
- The simple steps to create your own routine.
- How you can ensure that you stick to these routines.
What are routines?
Routines are intentional actions done in sequence to get you to a specific outcome.
Wether that is a state of mental or physical readiness, or feeling how you would want to be feeling emotionally.
Take, for example, your morning routine. Your goal might be to feel energized and prepared for the day ahead. You start by going to the bathroom, turning on your favorite tunes, brushing, showering, and getting dressed. Finishing the routine by making a smoothie for breakfast. Each intentional action flows into the next to finally lead you to the feeling of readiness that you were hoping for.
With consistency, routines become a tool that, in any situation, can shape how you feel, think, and act. If you take advantage of it, you can approach any situation with the mindset you want.
Just like a map helps you get from point A to point B, routines help you get from where you are to whatever mental state you want.
Steps to create a routine
- What is the end goal?
Before building a routine, decide what you want to achieve. What mental or emotional state do you want to be in? Do you want to feel confident? Excited? Calm and present?
Take, for example, two individuals. One is preparing for a teaching presentation in front of his peer. The other is about to step onto the rugby field against a rival. Each requires the individual to be in a different mental state.
Knowing your end goal will guide you as you set up your routine.
- What is your starting point?
Now that you know where you want to end up, define where you are starting out. Does your routine begin at the start of the day or 30 minutes before its "showtime"?
How are you feeling at the start of this routine? Are you calm, scatterbrained, unfocused?
Understanding your starting point will help you become more aware of the gap between where you are now and where you want to be.
- Chart the path
This is the fun part. You can design your routine—a set of actions completely within your control to help you reach your goal.
Control is key! Whether presenting or stepping onto a tennis court for a high-pressure match, things will always be outside your control.
When your routine is centered on actions within your control, it creates a sense of stability and confidence. Regardless of external circumstances, your routine provides dependable steps to get you to your desired mental state consistently.
How do you stick to routines?
- Persistence
As with all good things, this will take time. At the start, it will feel like there is no difference. However, with time and persistent action, you will see the difference.
“A little more persistence, a little more effort, and what seemed hopeless failure may turn to glorious success.” - Elbert Hubbard
- Think like a scientist
In the path to creating the perfect routine, you will have to adjust your trajectory a few times. Learn to think like a scientist and experiment with your routine.
Some actions may not work as well as expected. Rather than getting frustrated by the outcome, learn to step back and view it with objective curiosity. Assess what worked and what didn't, and adjust accordingly.
- Practice your routine!
How you do one thing will end up being how you do everything.
Say you are creating a routine to calm you down during stressful points in a match. However, in practice, during pressure moments, you don't practice this routine. When it's match time, and you find yourself in a high-pressure situation, you will fall back into your old habits rather than turn to your planned routine.
So once you have a routine set, practice it repeatedly. So that when it counts, your routine will get you to your desired outcome.
Your routine may not be perfect right off the bat, and that will make it hard to stick to. However, with persistence, practice, and viewing obstacles like a scientist, you will find it easier to stick to these new routines.
I want to leave you with a quote that sums up this blog.
"We are what we repeatedly do...Therefore, excellence is not an act but a habit" - Will Durant
What do you want to be repeatedly doing?
What will get you closer to being your most successful self?
Best,
Karan
