Why Routines Are Important: The Benefits Explained
Routine can be defined as the normal order and way in which you regularly do things.
Now you may be asking, why routines are important? Or why does the order and way in which we complete various tasks matter? There are many answers to this question, as you will see below.
But first, you must understand that, as humans, we are innately methodical in our approach to life. We are programmed to organise and structure everything we do (even if it may not always seem like it). This means that, if we act on this inbuilt system, and take advantage of what we are already predisposed to doing, we will be rewarded with benefits.
Many famously successful people have done just this and used routines to optimise their performance and achieve their goals. Some popular examples include Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, and Barack Obama.
So let’s look at some of the benefits!
Time Management
By having a routine that you stick to, you provide yourself with a framework to help you organise your day. You can soon become familiar and comfortable with what you should be doing and when. Doing this will allow you to better understand how you spend your time – where it is used well, where it is wasted, and where it could be used more effectively.
Much like a to-do list, you can go through your routine ticking tasks off one by one. Your body even rewards the completion of each of these by giving you a small release of dopamine to positively reinforce the completion of each activity. And by following the same particular pattern of activities each day, means that your activities will become more and more ingrained in your routine. Eventually, this will lead to your body knowing what it should be doing at a particular time of day. This regularity and habitualisation that routine creates will allow you to manage your time better.
Focus, Drive and Discipline
Structuring your day in advance removes the ambiguity of decision-making in the moment. This is because your routine has already decided what you are doing before you start questioning yourself and trying to avoid what needs to be done. With this support in place, routines enable you to be more focused on the tasks ahead and often make you more driven to complete them.
The longer you continue your routine, the easier it will become to focus on exactly what you need to do each day. Processes will become hardwired into your body until they become second nature. As you acclimate to working to a routine, you learn to become disciplined and as you repeat your routine, you can build momentum, thus making it easier to remain disciplined and keep on track to your goals. This is often why the hardest part of kicking a habit is the first few weeks – after that, you have momentum on your side.
Efficiency and Quality Work
With set windows assigned to complete tasks, there is minimal time for procrastination and distractions if you want to get everything done in your routine. This means that distractions will be eliminated by the autonomy of your activity-focused actions. Without these distractions, you become more efficient and more effective with your time and energy. In turn, this often produces better work as you are more focused and driven. Once part of your routine, previously mundane or difficult tasks become easier to accomplish.
Importantly: less time spent procrastinating means more time spent living!
Mental Health
Routines are important in regulating our mental well-being. This may be in the form of reduced anxiety, stress, insomnia, or others.
Routines help us create predictable scenarios in our lives through planning and removing variables. They help us know what to expect and thus how to prepare for sometimes unpredictable situations. They help us feel more control over our lives. Knowing when things are going to be done can significantly reduce feelings of anxiety and worry.
Similarly, the provision of time slots to do certain tasks in your routine such as life admin (bills, emails, paperwork…) that you may stress about, allows you to set aside time and focus on these things. Because of this, stress is alleviated since you are not having to worry about these things.
In addition to preparation and readiness for the things that may normally cause anxiety and stress. Adding things to your routine that allow you to stay grounded is a good way to ensure that you remember to take care of yourself. For example; allow yourself time to journal your thoughts, or spend an hour watching that series you love and properly relax.
Furthermore, if you are going through a tough patch, having a routine provides stability for you and is something that, when everything else is seemingly going wrong, you can fall back on as it is habitual. The habituality of routines also reduces the number of decisions you have to make, which means your mind can be freed for making other decisions
When we successfully complete tasks and stick to a routine, it helps build self-confidence and gives a sense of achievement. This positive reinforcement can then be pumped back in to help you achieve more of your goals.
Physical Health
Routines are incredibly useful tools when maintaining physical health, particularly if you focus on sleep, diet, and exercise.
Sleep
Firstly, having set times that your body wakes and goes to sleep improves the quality of sleep that you get. This means that you will feel more energetic and both your body and mind will feel sharper, as well as reducing your caffeine dependency. Furthermore, by having a routine, you are less likely to be tempted to stay up late to do things which will also improve the quality of your sleep.
Food
Having a routine can greatly improve your nutrition if you use it correctly. By scheduling in time to do proper grocery shopping as well as time to prepare your own food, you are more likely to have a healthy diet rather than running out of time and resorting to quicker, more expensive, and unhealthy options.
Exercise
Since exercise often takes an element of commitment, building it into your daily or weekly routine can be a surefire way to remain fit and healthy. For example, if you wake up 30 minutes earlier each day, you will be able to do some morning yoga. Or, if you were to pencil in an hour each Saturday, you could be sure to go for a run or cycle.
Final Thoughts on Why Routines Are Important
Having a routine has a myriad of benefits, from building good habits and being efficient to keeping healthy and saving money. However, the best thing about one is that you can shape it specifically for yourself. Adjust the balance of work, family, social, and all other aspects of your life to create your ideal lifestyle and prioritise what is important to you. If you want to be the early bird and wake up at 3am every day, you can do that (but good luck)! But if you want to wake up at 10am every day, that is equally good.
By sitting down and working out a personal routine, you can discover a lot more about yourself – what you value and what you don’t. So why not start today?
Before you go
Thank you for reading my thoughts on why routines are important. If guides, itineraries and travel content like this interest you, head over to my blog page to find out more.
If you are new to Matt’s Next Steps, check out the About Me page to find out a bit more about who I am, my travel adventures, and why I wanted to become a travel writer.
Please comment below and let me know your thoughts and experiences, or if there is anything else you want information on.
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