Everyone has routines. What may initially sound boring or conventional also has its benefits. Routines help us move through life more calmly because we do not have to think too much about fixed points in the day.
Yet familiar patterns can sometimes become demanding. After breakfast, usually between six and seven, I have developed a habit of taking time for myself and my daily questions:
Who do I want to be today?
Who could I do something good for today?
How can I make today special?
What is today’s most important task in terms of my long-term goals?
What can I do to make my team more effective?
What would I like to do today to make my family happier?
What inspiration or information do I need today to improve my future?
Does today’s plan reflect how I want to live? Am I doing justice to my #lifeworktrailbalance?
Asking these questions every day and trying to find meaningful answers takes strength and endurance. Entrepreneur coach and bestselling author Stefan Merath’s “Unternehmersystem” inspired my eight personal questions. They help me keep sight of the bigger picture.
The answers I give myself, and write down, are about honestly identifying WHAT I really want to achieve today. I want to find the purpose behind it, rather than simply reduce it to a to-do list. The question “Who could I do something good for today?” alone has deeply influenced my actions in recent months. Answers include showing appreciation to a colleague. Sometimes the answer is “myself”…
…in which case the next answer is: “Go to the mountains, come home relaxed and then be fully present for your family.”
You might ask whether I am just creating more stress for myself. Perhaps. But those 15 or 20 minutes are among the most important of my day. They give me both structure and a vision. Initially, the hardest question was the last one: “Does today’s plan reflect how I want to live?” If you seriously ask it every day, the honest answer will often be NO, as it was and still is for me. You would be surprised how that little word stays with you all day. You end up trying to make lasting changes so that the next morning you can write a wholehearted YES.
One thing is clear to me: thinking more deeply about today is simply smarter.
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