I have always admired the best about Timothy Owens, my mate for life. One of his best kills has been the ability to harness routine in his life. And since I asked him to write a post about it several months ago, ( I apologize baby, I am very happy to now introduce it. Well, one of the things I haven’t told ya, is my husband is a journalist. He majored in writing in college, and I am here to inspire him to get back on track! 
Routine Defined
Webster defines the word routine as a” habitual or mechanical performance of an established procedure.” I tend to define routine as the following: A routine is a predetermined, intentional and patterned approach to accomplishing an outcome, through a prescribed set of organized individual behaviors that are often interrelated and/or interdependent. In other words routine is the process through which we bring intentional order to our lives. Without routine, managing the myriad of tasks, details, and information in our lives becomes a lot like trying to lead a large herd of cats. It is almost impossible to do without a great deal of stress, frustration, and unnecessary time, money, and energy expended in the process.
Many people fear routine because they believe it will lead to them getting into a rut. Ruts are not routines. A routine as you will discover going forward is a vibrant and dynamic set of processes that can be used as a powerful tool to accomplish the life goals and outcomes you desire. A rut is a static and lifeless set of mindless dysfunctional behaviors that tend to enslave and oppress us as rather than move us in the direction of our goals.
The Importance of Routine
Routine is universal. There is pattern and order to everything in the universe from the sub-atomic level to the universal level everything that has functionality in our world has order and routine. The challenge lies within our own ability to see and interact with that order. Just as our (IQ) denotes the degree to which we can use our cognitive ability to accomplish our goals, I believe that the degree to which we are able to see and work within the order of the universe to set and accomplish our goals is the degree to which we possess what I call Order Intelligence (OI).
Because as human beings we live and function within the universe we must utilize order and routine within our own lives in order to manage them effectively and foster success through accomplishment. Life management therefore becomes the process through which we effectively identify and apply routine in an attempt to produce order and balance in our lives. This applies to our personal lives, our professional lives and the life of our family.
Routine and order is to the family what your bones and skeletal system is to your body. It provides the foundation and structure necessary to support all of the other functions and systems needed to survive and thrive. Without routine and order within a family, there is no foundation upon which to build quality loving relationships that are solid, deep, enduring and mutually satisfying.
The Benefits of Routine
Great family relationships are built upon solid routine and order. Routines allow family members to feel safe and secure, and to be able to anticipate the behaviors of other family members. They allow for the development of identity and roles within the family so as to allow for increased functionality, effective communication, the accomplishment of shared goals, the unity of common culture, and the enjoyment of intentional community.
Routine done properly will tend to simplify one’s life or the life of a family. It makes details in life easier to manage and less cumbersome by establishing a specific order for each detail and a systematic process that allows for attention to each detail through a linear and uncomplicated course of action. Routine allows one to spend less mental energy focusing on each individual detail and consequently allows for greater focus and attention to be paid to the bigger picture as a whole. It allows one to focus less on what is urgent in the moment and more on what is most important over time.
The Dangers of the Misuse of Routine
It is a universal truth that anything and everything under the sun can and will be misused, and routine is by no means exempt. People sometimes misuse routine by fixating on it as the solution to every challenge they face. Routine can often be an important part of the solution, but it is almost never in and of itself the entire solution to any challenge. This unhealthy fixation on routine leads to rigidity and resistance to change. The only thing that is constant in our lives is change itself. Any approach to life that doesn’t take change into consideration is destined to fail.
Misuse of routine also produces an inability or unwillingness to see or think outside of one’s current perception of reality, and to see the possibilities that lie just over the horizon. Inability to imagine a reality that is different from what one currently perceives leads to the trap of falling into a rut. A rut in life is just a grave with the ends knocked out of it. The Bible says in Proverbs that without a vision for the future, the people will fail.
Finally, misuse of routine can lead to an addictive kind of dependence on it to produce feelings of safety, security, peace, and stability. While routine is a great resource that can help to produce those things in one’s life, it never has been nor will it ever be the actual source of safety, security, peace and stability in one’s life. It is simply a tool that can help you and your family toward those goals. ( Part 2 can be found here!)
Tim Owens has an M.S. degree in counseling is a certified personal trainer, counselor/therapist and works as a weight loss/behavior management coach for his clients in the Tulsa area. He can be reached at [email protected]
