» Is Your Routine Working For You?

Every Saturday Senora Tomy arrives to clean my condo. She comes with fresh towels, the bed sheets she had removed the week before, now cleaned and pressed, and her broom, mop and bucket. Tomy enters with confidence and assurance. She has been cleaning this condo weekly for more than 25 years and it shows.

I watch her first remove the entry mat and hang it outside the condo. Then she goes straight to the bedroom and changes the bed. She has a weekly routine that is thorough, effective and efficient. She has this place spic and span, including cleaning all the windows inside and out in less than two hours.

On the other hand, I was speaking with an entrepreneur who at 4:00 in the afternoon still hadn’t had a shower or changed out of his pajamas. He was feeling disgruntled, overwhelmed and disorganized. I wasn’t surprised to notice his feelings of complete chaos.

Routine is an important part of an effective entrepreneur’s schedule. Yes, it may be some people’s nature or personality more than others, but in working with thousands of entrepreneurs, I would bet that the most successful entrepreneurs have a schedule and routine. They do “not wing it” or “fly by the seat of their pants”. Do you?

I know that I get up at more or less the same time every day. Here in Mexico, I am fortunate that I don’t need to set the alarm clock but I can wake up with the sun. I shower and do my morning routine BEFORE I get involved in phone calls, emails and the office routine. If I start making phone calls, writing emails and get involved in my business, then the day seems to slip by and before you know it, it is noon and my teeth aren’t brushed! That doesn’t feel good!

So why is a routine critically important? It says to the sub-conscious mind that this is “work”. I can almost guarantee you that your sub-conscious mind has a belief that “work” is regimented, routine, scheduled and orderly. People just know that when you “go to work”, there is a time clock to punch, a boss to account to, and a schedule or timetable to adhere to. That is a belief that has been programmed into every one of us.

The other belief that your sub-conscious mind probably has very well entrenched in it is that anything less than routine, scheduled and orderly is clearly linked to the more creative, artistic, free-flowing style of an artist or writer. Unfortunately, the link to that thought is usually the starving artist belief.

The program in your sub-conscious mind probably looks a lot like this:

Schedule = efficiency = profitability

Free-flowing = creativity = broke

That doesn’t mean that every artist, writer or actor is broke just as much as it doesn’t mean that every regimented entrepreneur is wealthy. I just have found in working with entrepreneurs in healing sessions that there are some definite, set beliefs and programs that are fairly universal. This is one of them. And it certainly doesn’t mean that the programs are true or can’t be changed.

What program is your sub-conscious mind running? It’s fairly easy to find out. Results in your life are very revealing.

Just ask yourself: Does my routine or lack of routine create the results that I want? Do I feel confident, calm and organized throughout my day? Are there any feelings of overwhelm, anxiety or increased stress that come because of my choice to be scheduled or not? Am I creating the level of income that I desire or am I always broke?

Let’s say you are super organized, regimented like the military but you’re
also exhausted, stressed out and not having a ton of fun in your business. Then maybe you need to relax and allow more free-flow and creativity into your business. If you’re one of those entrepreneurs that find themselves in their pajamas at noon and you’re stressed, overwhelmed and feeling chaotic or broke, then set a tighter schedule for a week and stick to it as best you can. Note if you feel differently about your week or if you are less stressed and more productive.

After 27 years as an entrepreneur, I know what works for me. I need routine. I need to go to bed at approximately the same time. I need to get up at roughly the same time. I need to eat regularly and I absolutely must eat well. I need “Jan time”. I need “God time”. I need privacy, solitude and quiet during my week. I am really clear on my boundaries and how I best can function in the world. My routine works very well for me.

Those may not be your requirements for optional performance but I suggest that you get clear with what works for you. By making a few adjustments, you may find that your productivity and profitability improve dramatically while your stress levels and feelings of overwhelm diminish.

This is a process for most entrepreneurs so be gentle on yourself and have fun while you find the routine that works best for you.

Have a wonderfully productive month,

janjanzen1