The Power of Daily Routines

Source: Photo by Rock'n Roll Monkey on Unsplash

Recently, I’ve noticed how routine my routine is getting.

Wake up. Gym. Shower. Pack school lunches. Get kids ready for school. Go to work. Teach. Take kids to afterschool activities. Drive kids home. Play with kids. Do some chores. Eat dinner. Bathtime. Tuck girls in. Watch TV. Go to bed.

That’s it. That’s the whole routine almost every single day.

Amid the ordinariness of my daily grind, I had a strange feeling that the structure and sameness of the routine I’d gotten used to was making me more creative. I feel energized and innovative at work and home. I’m thinking of inspired lessons to teach and having more fun participating in imaginative play with the girls at home.

But when I googled daily routines, I discovered mostly warnings online. “Don’t let this happen to you!”

“Break up the monotony.”

“Life is passing you by, Drinko.”

I’m paraphrasing, of course.

My anecdotal evidence went against most of what I discovered about humdrum routines.

Well-Being Versus Chaos

Novelty is fun. Society seems obsessed with new and different—the next pop star, the latest slang, the unprecedented this or that. But novelty takes up a lot of our brain space. If I’m immersed in a strange new world, all my attention is trained on whatever I’m doing. That’s great news when we’re trying to learn something new or be in the moment, but it’s not always the best news for our creativity and well-being.

Thomas S. Weisner, a distinguished professor of anthropology, emeritus at UCLA, establishes a continuum between chaos and well-being. He writes:

Chaotic settings do not provide much opportunity for the experience of well-being, which is engaged participation in the daily activities of a cultural community that that community deems desirable.

Yes, making my daughters’ lunches each morning is boring, but it allows me to connect with my family and strengthen our bonds. Heck, just yesterday I spent the time making fresh fruit salads for their school lunches. My oldest daughter also recently started helping out with morning food prep. This opportunity for her growth and development wouldn’t have happened without the hundreds of lunch-making reps I’ve put in over the years. I am literally building our family’s culture day after boring day.

Boredom Begets Creativity

The other perk of mundanity is that it lets our minds wander. When running on the treadmill, I don’t have to think about where to place my foot or how to remain upright. I’m on autopilot, so my mind can daydream and mull things over. I think of some of my best ideas during my most boring activities.

Psychologist John Eastwood, co-author of Out of My Skull: The Psychology of Boredom, explains:

When you feel bored, because it’s an aversive and uncomfortable state, you’re motivated to look for something else. In that gap, there’s a real chance to discover something new. What matters to me and what am I passionate about? I think that looking can be a source of creativity.

Boredom provides that gap, a time when we’re not scrolling, talking, or working. It allows or perhaps forces us to find something else to do, something like musing or wondering.

That’s why I’m increasingly enamored with my current humdrum existence. While jogging, packing lunches, and driving to work, I have plenty of time to enjoy my internal flights of fancy and create traditions and routines that make my family feel stable and safe.

I may not be jumping from an airplane or walking the red carpet, but I’m reveling in my daily routine.

If you’ve been complaining about being bored lately or surprised at how routine your life has become, maybe it’s time for a reframe. There’s some magic in the mundane, some mystery and fun in the same old thing.