Another Stab At A Good Start

For the last while, I have not been running at 100 percent. I have at times felt unwell, and at the best of times I have let my standards of discipline and organization slip. It all begins with how I start my day. When I get up at the hour I mean to, that's good. When I blow past that by an hour or two, that's obviously no good. Too often I have been doing the latter, and the blame lies on my consistent failure to get to bed at a decent hour.

Once up, I have not been doing the things that I should. Showers are difficult for me. The time and trouble involved remains a deterrent, and once I'm up and at 'em, it's easy for me to put the shower off until some indeterminate time (which either becomes right before I go out or never). Everything is worse without a shower, but better with one. I must always remind myself of how critical it is that I shower before I have seen or heard anything that might grab my attention. It must be the first thing out of bed!

Let's suppose that I've gotten an ideal start of waking up at 9 in the morning (remembering that I'm a creative type) and rushed into the shower. It's then that it works out to start the process of coffee (or lately tea). Too often this has come first, and that's no good. No good also has been getting to this step very late and feeling unable to have a proper breakfast. I wind up not eating until enough time has passed that lunch is suitable, and this often turns out to be mid-afternoon.

It's a simple process, this matter of getting out of bed, showering, dressing and eating breakfast, but it is hard. It's worth doing though, as it sets the tone for the day. Everything, as I said, goes better when it happens correctly. I'm struggling uphill all day when it does not happen correctly. I feel worse and I am less productive. To avoid that outcome, I must focus more than ever on getting it right once, and a second time, until it becomes an unshakable habit driven by momentum. Then I shall be successful.