I have been planning this exercise from the start... and simultaneously dreading it.
Because I'm a super anxious person with specific ways of doing all kinds of things, but I have NO structure on how I start and finish either my day or my work.
Because I kind of... don't ever stop? Which means I don't ever start either. I'm in this perpetual state of "I should sleep, but I should also get up, but I need to do work, but I am a human with basic survival and hygiene needs..."
I loved a quote I saw a while back that said "what most people call self-care is actually after-care." And I so live that. Showering is not self-care. Taking 15 solid minutes to not think about email is not self-care. It's the absolute bare minimum.
So you can use this exercise however you need to, but for me I'm going simple. I'm not telling myself that I'll get up and do an hour of yoga before prepping a week's meals and making my daughter a yogurt parfait to take to preschool. But at the absolute, bare minimum I WILL start to take care of myself and my needs within the predictability and accountability of a routine.
Personal vs. Professional: The example I'm using here is my personal day and night routine (starting now), but I'll also post the professional one I did for starting and finishing my work day. Because building routine around that means I'll actually be accountable for FINISHING my work day, in stead of basically just always being a little bit at work.
As always, if you're not comfortable drawing your own, you're welcome to download this template, print it out and glue it into your sketchbook. And this exercise is literally just about making lists, so if all you want to do is write straightforward lists, do that. The point is to use this in a way that feels good.
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