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This Week’s Question: Are you the type who needs to take a lap around the office every day at precisely 2 PM? Do you just have to give yourself a pep talk before every meeting? Maybe you can’t start your day unless you drink your coffee from the same exact mug every morning? We want to know what your workday rituals are — what do you do to make sure your day runs smoothly, even if you aren’t so sure that your ritual actually accomplishes anything?
1. Take a Break From Your Screens
At 10 AM, I step outside and take a five-minute walk without my phone to clear my mind. Our office is downtown, so seeing the busyness outside helps boost my creative thinking.
At noon, I eat my lunch and read the business section of the Columbus Dispatch (our local paper). Once again, I leave my phone behind during lunch. The reason for this is because I’m always in front of a computer, and I try to take breaks from technology.
Small daily frustrations can get pent up and suddenly explode at the least opportune moment. If we repress emotions, we get physical issues. If we express them, we may get relationship issues. Learn to release emotions in a healthier way with visualizations so you can get unstuck without destructive behaviors.
For example, you could take 60 seconds at the end of each workday to sit quietly in your chair with your eyes closed and breathe deeply. Notice the emotions you have experienced today and really feel what is coming up for you and where it is located in your body. Now imagine a dark cloud swirling around in that location gathering up all the emotion. Breathe out heavily and picture the dark cloud lifting up and dissolving in the air around you.
The very first thing I do each morning is make sure our website is up, that all the screens are working and that they load quickly. To check our site and the analytics does not take long, and it puts me ‘at peace’ … until, of course, the first crisis hits — which is usually not too long into my morning!
Coconut Butter Coffee: I absolutely have to start every workday with a delicious coconut coffee filled with healthy fats. It is similar to ‘Bulletproof Coffee,’ which many people will know of. The ingredients are organic coffee, a stick of organic grass-fed butter, and about the same amount of coconut oil. This drink helps me focus almost instantly, while also fueling me until well past midday, as I like to take a late lunch. As an added bonus, the coconut makes it taste absolutely delicious. I’ve managed to get a few colleagues and friends as hooked as I am on the drink, although it can be a bit of a hard sell initially when you mention adding butter!
You don’t have to be Miranda in The Devil Wears Prada to rise to the top. The most successful people in my life have all gotten where they are by being kind and showing gratitude.
I take the time every day to celebrate my wins, big and small. Instead of building a connection with others by complaints, I try build a connection through important milestones throughout the day, no matter how small. Small everyday experiences, like making it to that yoga class on time or finding a new work jam to add to your playlist: focus on these things instead of beating yourself up when things doesn’t go your way. I continue to write down my ‘daily wins’ in my day planner. The act of writing them forces me to take inventory of the good and celebrate what I have accomplished.
I might be a young entrepreneur, but every morning I have to read a good, old-fashioned print newspaper. It’s a refreshing break from staring at a screen all day, and there’s something scared about the morning ritual of the crunch of the pages. Call me old-fashioned, but I prefer my news delivered antebellum style.
As a remote employee, my favorite ritual is the morning coffee break Skype chat our remote team has. We talk about life, just like any office team would in a real work setting. We also have a champagne break/happy hour at the end of the day. It keeps us connected, as we all work from around the world.
My personal daily ritual is around my workspace. By the end of the day, my desk is a mess of resumes, contracts, client info, etc. Each morning I like to come in and clean off/organize my workspace. Cleaning up and rearranging my desk perks me up and gets me ready to tackle whatever new challenges are awaiting me. Also … there’s a lot of coffee involved.
