In a time when for many of us our professional and personal lives co-exist (dress shirt on the top, sweatpants on the bottom anyone?) it’s easy to let one day carry on into another.
Our work days carry on into our rest days until they all blur together—weeks seemingly no longer end and all days become just another day of the week.
When every day feels the same, we can lose our sense of rhythm that relates to forward movement.
A simple way you can help restore (or instill) that sense of rhythm is to create a habit or ritual to put down your day—whether that’s your work day or the actual day—so that you don’t keep carrying it on. A simple habit or ritual can help to create boundaries and edges that better delineate one day from the next.
A friend of mine “puts his office to bed” at the end of his work day, covering his desk with a sheet.
Another friend makes a cup of hot chocolate—something he has enjoyed since he was a child—and enjoys it while recording in his journal something he learned that day.
Another friend “commutes home” after their work day, taking their dog for a walk around their neighborhood.
As for me, I put down my work day by writing for 15 minutes to get my thoughts out of my head and then turn off my computer until the next work day.
At the end of the day, how are you bringing your day to an end? What small habit or ritual might help you put down your day so you can better enjoy the rhythm of forward movement?
