The perfect routine

Here’s something they don’t tell you in all those productivity books: Your perfect routine is temporary. Always!

For months, I had this beautiful system going - weekend mornings were my designated time slots for side projects. I was getting incredible amounts of work done in those quiet morning hours. Then our youngest decided that those precise hours were perfect for quality time. Just like that, my perfect routine evaporated.

Same for my workout routine: For years, I’ve relied on that 8 to 9 PM window to get my exercise in. Kids asleep, house quiet — ideal workout time. But last month that has changed. Bedtime has stretched into this endless negotiation, and suddenly my reliable workout hour has vanished.

I’m beginning to realize that the real skill here isn’t in building perfect routines. It’s in adapting when they inevitably break. It’s about becoming an improv artist with your time. It’s about saying: “well, that doesn’t work anymore… what might?”

Life doesn’t care about your routines. Kids definitely don’t care about your routines. The sooner you embrace this reality, the better.

The only constant routine is change itself. Might as well get comfortable with it.