7 Things to Do Everyday

I am a list person. At the beginning of each week I meet up with my team members and discuss the goals for the week. Cancelling items off my checklist is a productive feeling. Kiander (2015) in his book: Work Smarter not Harder endorses this as well. There are several tools online that also help with keeping checklists that once used a notebook and a pen. Airtable is one such application that helps ‘list people’ like me to keep up with their work and deadlines.

However exemplary it may seem, there are seven things that I do every day to keep this routine up and running at the start of each week.

I have never shared this list with anyone until now.

1) At the start of each workday, breathing exercises help me clear my thoughts. Breathing practices known as Pranayama help feel energized and refreshed in the morning according to Vedic educator, Rachelle Williams.

2) A short chat with a fellow incubator helps me get into my creative shoes. I got this idea from Google’s strategy of ‘creative collision’. Each workspace at Google is designed to stimulate creativity and ultimately encourage social interaction with members from structurally separate teams – someone who an employee wouldn’t normally network with. This includes (believe it or not) a number of notoriously slow elevators forcing workers to use corridors and staircases to make employees engage in unexpected conversations, and generate new, inspiring ideas.

3) Read something related to mental health – the sector that ReliveNow works in to get updates about the mental health sector in Pakistan and across the world.

4) Read something related to business startups. Mark Zuckerberg has always been an advocate of reading and even started an online book club in 2015.

5) Check up on my team members regarding their progress. Engaged team leaders help develop productive employees.

6) Review the goals of my company for the year (I have it enlarged on my desk) which reminds me to align my activities and plans discussed in team meetings according to my goal. At times, the aim to think out of the box too drives one away from their goal. The essence is to think out of the box within the parameters of the goals that we aim to achieve.

7) Take 5 whole minutes to appreciate what I have and how far I have come. Jantsch (2019) states in his book: The Self-Reliant Entrepreneur, gratitude in all things helps view challenges as opportunities to learn, and replace selfishness with grace.

Even though the list could have been longer, BUT, I believe that persistence is key. It is better that I get these all done in a day rather than being overambitious. Each person has a daily routine list weather in their head or written. It is routine that even the most spontaneous person needs to keep one going. This routine does not restrict me to be spontaneous, but it helps me adhere to my goals that I know can only be achieved through persistence.