how to reset how you live your work day

Sometimes we feel resentful of the monotonous routine of our workdays and even our weekends. You may feel like you don't have time to do the things you want. There are changes you can make not only to reorganizing your day but altering how you perceive your day.

Photo by Edmond Dantès

add more time to your day

Sometimes we feel like we are just going through the motions, day after day. We wake up, get ready for work, go to work, come home, and go to bed. If you feel like you don't have time to do the things you want - whether it's curling up with a book and decompressing, engaging in a yoga practice or workout, or doing a hobby you love - one step is to add more time to your day by waking up earlier.

If you wake up early already but find that you spend a lot of time in bed in the morning scrolling on your phone or beginning to answer emails, set a second alarm that tells you to get out of bed and start your day. Anytime we spend mindlessly scrolling is typically time not well spent. You may tell yourself that it is "giving yourself time to wake up" or "how you relax before you go to bed" - you will likely feel better by spending that time in a different way, whether reading, watching a favorite TV show, meditating, or journaling.

incorporate mindfulness

Piggybacking off the previous section, you can fight back against monotony by being more mindful throughout the day. Mindfulness is a mental state of being aware of the moment, acknowledging and accepting your feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations in that moment. It can be used as a therapeutic technique to recognize and sit in negative feelings instead of reacting, but it can also be used as a way to feel more positive about your life and identify areas you want to see change.

I recommend this list of 50 small acts of self care with a big impact if you aren't sure where to get started.

take care of your health

Whether you have health issues or are interested in preventative steps to protect your health, sometimes taking the steps for your health is easier said than done.

One of the best ways to get started with taking care of your health is to identify the goals you are interested in (or are most important), write out the steps to meet those goals, and then prioritize where you're going to start. 

For example, if your goal is to be more physically active, there are many ways to achieve that. You'll want to brainstorm ways to get to that goal (and define what achieving that goal looks like) that work for your lifestyle. Launching into a running program when you don't go on daily walks, or saying you'll go to the gym every day each week aren't realistic goals to start with. Instead, consider something like "go for a morning/afternoon/evening walk two days a week" or "sign up for a gym orientation".

For your health, you may be trying to get your blood pressure under control or go 6 months without a cavity at your dental checkup. Taking care of your teeth has a much larger impact on your health than aesthetics alone - bleeding gums and tartar build-up are associated with inflammation throughout the body. If you don't see a dentist regularly, reach out to a local dentist to make your first appointment.