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Friday, March 7, 2014

Personal Planning - Training Your Brain with the 100 Days Calendar


When you don't get up, shower, dress, have breakfast, clean your teeth and put on your makeup then go to work it is pretty hard to set up a routine that you stick to. For a long time I have gotten up when I feel like it, had breakfast as late as 10 o'clock, forgotten to clean my teeth, had a shower after doing the garden or housework and tried to do some yoga in the evening. Really the only habit I had was to clean my teeth before bed.

I needed to find a way to make me feel happier about my day.

37 days ago I discovered the Hundred Days Calendar.  It is a very simple and amazingly affective way to train your brain. The link takes you to the site of the free printable.

I know that it is said you need to do something for 21 days before it will become a habit. I needed 30 days before I just did my 10 mins of yoga without thinking I had to do something else. Before then, each week we would go shopping in the morning and I skipped the yoga because I had to get ready or I just wandered into the kitchen and started breakfast without cleaning my teeth.

Why couldn't I just follow my plan of clean my teeth and do 10 mins of yoga before breakfast without ticking it off. I don't know. It was just too hard.
Knowing I had to tick off my calendar each day reminded me to do those things and also made me think that I would be disappointed if I didn't get to tick them off. It motivated me to get them done each morning.

There is room for three goals each day. I started with two. Clean my teeth and do 10 mins yoga before breakfast. Now I am comfortable with those I have added the morning shower. So regardless of what is planned for the day I am having my shower before breakfast. Just like I used to when I went out to work. If you are not retired you probably can't understand what I am talking about. Suddenly losing the daily routine is quite unsettling. I finally feel as if I am in control again.

This is why it is so important to set up routines with children. It makes them feel in control and safe.
Here is a cute routine I found at I Heart Organising blog.



My days are still pretty free form. I like to sew as soon as I get up so breakfast is still quite late and sometimes I like to sit in bed and play on the iPad but I always do my routine before breakfast.
If there is something that you would really like to include in your day then print out the Hundred Days Calendar and write it on each day. You will be surprised and pleased how well it works.

Happy Organising,
Val