Do you use routines in your daily life? If you feel your home and life are disorganized and it’s a constant struggle to keep up with the day to day routines, home routines may be the solution for you. Home routines are simple systems that you design that will help your home run smoothly and let your family know when and how things should be done in your home.
Maybe you have home routines, but you are not using them effectively. Or maybe, you have never set-up home routine. Daily routines help make home life easier and more organized. When set-up correctly, home routines could also be called home systems.
Why You Need Daily Home Routines
Home Routines Are a Process We Systematize
We all have routines we follow each day. Some of our routines are successful (like when we get up on time every day and are ready to leave early), and some of them are not successful (like when you hit the snooze button 3X every morning and then you are late getting your kids to school).
As we make routines a daily part of our lives, we want to be sure they are systems that work. You want to create a process that is repeatable and will work every day and that you and your family members.
Home Routines Keep Your Day Organized
When you have home routines, you know what you are supposed to do in the morning, in the evening, and how to plan your day effectively. A home system can reduce your stress since you will be following a simple process to complete your daily routines.
Home routines also save time. For example, if you use a meal-planning system, you will always know what you have planned for dinner and will save time (and money) preparing meals.
Take a few minutes and write down the types of home systems you think would help improve your home and reduce your stress. Here are a few ideas:
- Morning system
- Evening system (include planning for the next day)
- Chore system
- Home cleaning system
- Meal Planning system
- Homework system
These are just a few ideas. You can add more systems that fit your families needs. When everyone knows the system at home, everyone knows what is expected of them. By having clear expectations, everyone knows what they need to do and when it needs to be done (this does not mean your kids will actually do it, but you will have a process to help get things done).
How to Create Home Routines that Work
Define What Home Routines You Need
As you think through your day, you need to define what systems can you add to your day that will make your day run smoothly. For me, my systems include:
- Morning system
- Evening system
- Chore/Home cleaning system
- Homework system
All my systems work together. The evening system involves planning and preparation so the morning will be successful. We pick clothes to wear to work and school the night before, we make lunches for school, we pack backpacks and things we need for the next day. The morning system means getting up at the right time (no snooze buttons), completing my morning tasks, getting the kids up for school, getting everyone ready to go.
If you don’t have any home systems, I suggest choosing 3 systems to start. Then, you can gradually add more systems to fit your priorities.
Design a Plan for Each Routine
Now, that you have your 3 routines, it’s time to design your system. What do you want to complete with your system? Your morning and evening routines might be completely different than my morning and evening routines.
As you set-up your systems, determine why you need this system and what will you do as part of the system to make your home and family life easier.
Once you have defined what you need in your system, set-up a plan (in steps) for how it will be completed. Here’s a sample evening routine:
6:00 pm – 7:00 pm – make dinner/eat dinner/clean-up kitchen
6:45 pm – 7:15 pm – kids get baths while I finish kitchen clean-up
7:00 – 8:30 – complete all homework, repack backpacks, quiet and wind-down for bed/bedtime
8:30-9:30 – mom’s prep time for next day/evening relaxation
What systems will you set-up?
You might also like: How to Complete Your Priority Task List Every Day
Commit to Your Routines
Once you have you have chosen and designed your systems, the last step is to commit to following your system. A system is just a plan, but with no action it’s a just a plan and a wish. Your systems will not help you if you don’t commit to following them and fully implementing them.
Once you have worked your systems for about a month, review your processes and see what works and what doesn’t work. If you see things that don’t work as well as you would like, make some adjustments until you have the perfect home systems that work for you.
You can do this.
Start Your Day with the Right Routine
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Your turn…
What home systems do you use? What home system helps you be more organized?
Angela @ Setting My Intention says
This is a really helpful post! I’m still working out my systems but I know that the bundle is going to help me A LOT!
Rachel says
Hi Angela, home systems and routines make a difference in keeping your day and home organized.