how to improve your daily routine: 7 tips for a more productive life

I asked a friend the other day how Type A she thinks I am. She said about 60%. Which, to be honest, she nailed it. Around 40% of my life is unplanned, unproductive, and a little bit all over the place. The other 60%? Well, it’s the part of me that loves a good plan and the satisfaction that comes with feeling productive.

In our fast-paced world, a well-structured daily routine can make a huge difference in reaching your goals, boosting productivity, and simply making life a bit easier. Whether you’re looking to get more done, improve your mental health, or just use your time better, refining your daily routine can have a huge impact. Here are my top tips for staying productive and getting the most out of your daily schedule—something I feel passionate about (60% of the time).

Why you need a daily routine

A daily routine offers several benefits:

• Increased Productivity: A structured day helps you prioritize tasks and manage time more efficiently.
• Reduced Stress: Knowing what to expect throughout the day can ease anxiety.
• Better Time Management: Routines encourage you to allocate time wisely and avoid procrastination.
• Improved Well-Being: Consistent habits, like exercise and self-care, boost both physical and mental health.

While I find these benefits to be true, I also believe that a little spontaneity adds flavor to life that you just can’t replicate with a set schedule.

So, how do you create a daily routine that helps you feel productive but doesn’t make you feel totally pinned down? Here’s my 7-step guide:

Step 1: Assess Your Current Routine

Before making changes, it’s crucial to assess your current daily routine. Take a week to jot down how you spend your time, noting when you feel most productive and when you feel drained. This assessment will serve as the foundation for your improvements.

Tips for Assessment:

• Use a Journal or App: Track your activities for a week. I use the Notes app on my iPhone as my “second brain” and I don’t know what I would do without it. But use whatever you know will work for you!
• Identify Time Wasters: Look for patterns where you may be losing time, like excessive social media or unproductive downtime. Downtime is super important but for the sake of creating a schedule that works for you, it’s important to analyze how much downtime you’re taking and what you’re doing with it.

Alright, so once you’ve faced the hard truth of where your time is going, let’s move on to setting goals. Yes, actual goals—ones that feel achievable and won’t have you pulling your hair out by Friday.

Step 2: Set Clear Goals

Once you’ve assessed your current routine, you need to set specific, measurable goals. What do you want to achieve by improving your routine? Goals can range from increasing productivity at work or in life to dedicating more time to personal hobbies.

I love the SMART Goals Framework (for the type A freak…skip on by if you’re type B):

• Specific: Define exactly what you want to achieve.
• Measurable: Identify how you will track progress.
• Achievable: Ensure your goals are realistic.
• Relevant: Align your goals with your long-term objectives.
• Time-Bound: Set deadlines for your goals.

Type B? Make a list of goals you’d like to achieve (write them down!) and set a deadline for your goal. “A goal without a plan is just a dream.”

Step 3: Prioritize Key Activities

With your goals in mind, prioritize the activities that will help you achieve them. Create a list of tasks that align with your goals and rank them based on importance and urgency. The Eisenhower Matrix (yes, I looked up the name for this!) is a useful tool for this purpose:

1. Urgent and Important: Do these tasks first.
2. Important but Not Urgent: Schedule these tasks.
3. Urgent but Not Important: Delegate these tasks if possible.
4. Neither Urgent nor Important: Eliminate these tasks.

Do, Schedule, Delegate, Eliminate. Once you’ve nailed down what’s truly important, let’s talk about getting a solid structure in place!

Step 4: Create a Structured Schedule

A well-structured schedule is essential for a productive daily routine. I like to break mine up into 3 parts:

1. Morning Routine Start your day with a consistent morning routine to set a positive tone. Your morning routine might include:

• Waking Up Early: Aim for a consistent wake-up time most days of the week. Try to avoid sleeping in late…nobody feels good when they sleep in consistently. Every once in a while, yes! Not every day though.
• Hydration: Start with a glass of water to kickstart your metabolism. I love to add electrolytes! This is also when I take my supplements. I also drink green tea almost every morning and have a piece of chocolate. I usually take that outside for 5-10 minutes without my phone so I can get that good morning light.
• Exercise: Get some movement in to boost energy. Jake and I go to the gym twice a week at 6:15 am and I walk most other days. My favorite time to walk is in the morning but sometimes it gets pushed to the afternoon.
• Healthy Breakfast: Fuel your body with something nutritious. Eggs & toast, apple w/PB, or a protein shake are my current go-to’s.
• Mindfulness or Meditation: Spend some time centering your mind. This is when I read my bible, meditate, and journal. A MUST for keeping myself emotionally and mentally healthy and sane.

I tried the whole “waking up at 5 AM” thing for a while… and quickly decided that 6:30-7:30 is just as powerful for productivity. I’m a firm believer in getting as much sleep as you need and this will look different for everybody so do what you gotta do.

2. Time Blocking Divide your workday into focused blocks. Use techniques like the Pomodoro Technique, where you work for 25 minutes, followed by a 5-minute break. This approach maximizes concentration and minimizes burnout.

Next up is time blocking! This is where I add my list of daily to-do’s to my physical planner. I am obsessed with The Dailee and I love that each day already has an area to time block and a notes section to add your to-do’s. But again, figure out what system works best for you. I keep my list of to-do’s in my Notes app and also in my planner. I consult both when mapping out my day each morning.

3. Evening Routine Establish a calming evening routine to wind down. This could involve:

• Reviewing the Day: Reflect on accomplishments and areas for improvement.
• Planning for Tomorrow: Prepare your to-do list for the next day. Sometimes this falls into the next morning for me. But I do love to do it the night before if I can.
• Limiting Screen Time: Reduce blue light exposure an hour before bed. If I am scrolling or reading, I use the red light feature on my phone to help with blue light exposure. LOVE that setting!
• Reading or Journaling: Engage in relaxing activities for better sleep. This is when I read guilt-free. The only problem is if I’m totally sucked into a good book and stay up way too late!
• Self-Care Routine: I do the same 3 things every single night before bed and I stick to this routine 95% of the time. It calms me down, gets me ready for bed, and mentally helps me prepare to go to bed. This is one of my favorite parts of the day.

Step 5: Incorporate Healthy Habits

Healthy habits are the backbone of a successful daily routine. Here are some key areas to focus on:

Nutrition

• Meal Prep: Plan and prepare meals to save time and eat healthier. I love to eat the same few things for breakfast and lunch so I don’t have to think too hard about it. 
• Healthy Snacking: Choose nutritious snacks to maintain energy. Nuts, cut-up veggies and hummus, and sliced cheese are my favorites.

Physical Activity

• Incorporate Movement: Aim for at least 30 minutes of exercise daily. THIS IS A NON-NEGOTIABLE. Absolutely every part of you will be grateful for prioritizing this.
• Take Breaks: Stand up and stretch during long periods of sitting. Or do as I said above and Pomodoro it up. I swear by this one!

Mental Health

• Mindfulness Practices: Try meditation, deep breathing, or journaling. Again, I make this a part of my morning routine and feel a huge difference if I don’t do it.
• Set Boundaries: Learn to say no to tasks that don’t align with your goals. This one is hard. It means you have to have a clear idea in mind of what your goals are and what things are time wasters that inhibit you from reaching said goals. This takes practice. I’m not the best at it!

Step 6: Leverage Technology

Technology can be a powerful ally in improving your daily routine. Admittedly, this is not my strong suit. But many people swear by technology to help them get things done. Consider using apps and tools to enhance your productivity:

• Task Management Apps: Tools like Trello, Todoist, or Asana can help you organize tasks, set deadlines, and track progress. I don’t use these but they are popular for a reason so if this is a method that works for you, try them out and pick the one you love.
• Calendar Apps: Utilize Google Calendar or Outlook to schedule your day and set reminders. This is more my jam. I’m an avid Google calendar user and use it to time block my day with reminders for things I do consistently. I get reminders throughout the day that pop up on my phone.
• Habit-Tracking Apps: Apps like Habitica or Streaks can help you maintain healthy habits by tracking progress. Again, I can’t review these but you could do a quick search to see if either of them would work for you. I hear Habitica gamifies habit tracking and Streaks focuses on building streaks for habits and tasks which is kind of fun.

Step 7: Review and Adjust

Your routine should be a living document, evolving as your needs and circumstances change. Regularly review your routine to assess its effectiveness and don’t give up! If it’s not working, adjust. Eventually, you will come up with a system that works for YOU!

Questions to Consider:

• What’s Working? Identify the elements that boost your productivity.
• What’s Not Working? Recognize tasks or habits that hinder progress.
• What Needs Adjusting? Be flexible and willing to change your routine as needed.

So in conclusion…

Improving your daily routine is a continuous process that requires assessment, goal-setting, and adaptation. Don’t be hard on yourself! If you struggle to maintain a routine that’s ok! But if you would like to be a little more productive, start by implementing the strategies outlined here.  Remember, the key to success lies in consistency and a willingness to adjust. Start small, stay committed, and watch how your daily routine transforms your life for the better (at least 60% of the time 😉).

I would love to hear from you

Let me know how these tips are working for you! What do you do to lead a productive and happy life? I’m constantly tweaking and learning so I love all the feedback and ideas I can get!

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