6 Awesome Daily Habits I've Adopted

We're currently in the prime season for trying to adopt new habits and making a fresh start. And much like everyone else, I've got a list of new things that I want to try but I've also been trying to add some new habits into my life that are long term and they've been having an awesome effect on my life. Some of them are only small things and some are a little bigger but I thought it might be fun to share them with you today in case you've been looking for some new things to do too.

GOING TO BED EARLY

If you read this post about sleep I wrote recently then you will know that I was struggling to get a good amount of sleep in a few months ago. So I made a really conscious effort to make it a priority as waking up exhausted and trying to plough through work is horrible. I think I might have finally found a routine that works for me after trying a few different things. And as of right now I'm typically going to bed at around 9pm, which I know is very early to some people and I aim to be asleep before 10. I get up without fail at 6am so this means I'm getting a solid 8 hours of sleep in which is exactly what I need to function well. In a lot of ways, I feel like I should be almost embarrassed that at 26 I'm going to bed at 9pm but it's been making me so happy and I'm sure no-one really cares that much that I'm going to bed early.

HEADING OUT IN THE MORNING AND LISTENING TO A PODCAST

As I go to bed early and start my work day at typically at around 7am by around 10am I'm ready to step away from my laptop for a little bit and head out for an hour or so. As I live right next to a beautiful country path I've been enjoying going for a walk with a podcast to keep me company and it's been doing wonders for my mind. Because it gives me that little break in my work day it means that my brain has time to refresh and prepare for the rest of my work day. Obviously, I can't do this every day but any day that I can then I'm making the most out of it as it really does make a huge difference. The podcasts I've been enjoying at the moment are The Lively Show, Ctrl Alt Delete and Ladies That Lunch, I'd totally recommend giving them all a listen.

ALWAYS WRITING MY TO-DO LIST THE NIGHT BEFORE

This isn't something that's all that new in my life or my routine but I've been making a real conscious effort about writing my to-do list the night before and not leaving it too late in the evening to do it. There is something so cathartic to me about sitting at my desk and getting all the things written down that need to be done tomorrow and I find it helps me feel calm and prepared for the next work day. I know for some they think to do lists are a waste of time but they aid my work day so much and without them, I feel rushed and panicked and never get everything I need to get done actually finished. My new planner which I wrote all about here has been helping me do this easily.

E-MAILS

I have a love-hate relationship with my inbox as it brings so many awesome things into my life but I also find myself getting lost for way too long in it. And I find it way too easy to tell myself 'Oh, I'll just do my e-mails later' when I should just do them then and there and stop procrastinating. I'm trying really hard to get into the habit of getting to Inbox 0 at the end of every day and not letting them mount up when they are a big part of my job so deserve all the attention that I give to my content.

STRETCHING/FOAM ROLLING

As a regular exerciser, you would think that I'm good at making sure I stretch or roll my legs and I'm by no means awful at it but it's something that I need to do a lot more. My joints aren't in the best condition anyway so it's even more integral that I'm making sure that I'm either stretching or rolling at some point. And it doesn't matter whether I've been exercising or not when I'm sat at my desk all day I should be kinder to my joints. As it's not the most exciting thing to be doing I try to do it whilst watching a YouTube video or something so I'm not focusing on how long I'm spending doing it and watching the video instead. I watched this YouTube video to help me know how to stretch properly too as even though it seems simple it's really easy to do it wrong.

APPRECIATING WHERE I LIVE

When I moved home after university and being dotted around in the South of England for a long time I started to really hate my hometown. And I think that's something that a lot of people can relate to and we all get the urge to escape where we grew up at some point. But since I moved home [and got over myself] I really started to appreciate where I live, I love living in the countryside but also so close to the city. There are so many things around me that people travel from all over the world to see and I take them for granted. In summer it's a lot easier to get out and about but when it's not raining and you're wrapped up warm it's awesome to get out and explore in the Winter. As my boyfriend is home right now we're trying to get out as much as we can so we're getting to do things together too. I'm thinking of maybe putting together a list of some of my favourite things to do where I live as I know plenty of people from my surrounding area are readers of my blog too.