What's My Daily Reset Routine?
No need to wait till Sunday, and you don't even have to do them all in 1 day, so no pressure there!
I know so many of us on here write about Sunday resets but seeing this made me wonder: Why do we only wait till Sunday to do this?
As a parent, like all parents, I know that not every day has a set routine—and yes, that means even Sundays. It’s never planned, but suddenly, someone can get sick at 3am on a Saturday night and you find yourself at the hospital observation ward till 7am the next morning. Or, your partner may have an annual sports tournament he’s got to get to at 10am. Or, there’s a birthday party invite from 11am-2pm this coming Sunday.
This Sunday turns to next Sunday. Then it becomes 2, 3 Sundays in a row that you’ve not followed any family routine. Then it becomes months and now, Sundays just don’t have a set rule anymore.
But that’s life, so we do what we can when we can!
Since it’s not always easiest to do a back-to-base on a set day of the week every week, I’ve taken to doing mini resets during the weekday when I truly feel the need to. It’s the best way, because my children are in school Mondays to Fridays for a full day, and I work with a remote-hybrid schedule.
On the days that I work from home, it’s convenient for me to insert little pauses during my day to help me regain my footing. At this point, I feel it’s a must to add a disclaimer or I’d be doing you a disservice: I don’t carry all of these out on any single day that I do a reset. I only do what is best for the time of the day, because it just makes sense. Also, the timings I provide below are rough ranges of time, within which I do what I say I do.
That said, here’s my quick reset routine based on timing:
7.30am-8am: Either my kids wake me up, or I do. Then, the first thing is to drink a cup of lemon water to detox and start the day with a clean, healthy, slate. This, I do every day without fail.
8am-9am: Breakfast. Best is when I can do this with my children before they leave for school.
9am-9.30am: Washing up, skincare, getting dressed in “outside clothes” even when I’m staying home for the day. Wearing something fresh for the day really helps set the tone for everything else that follows, so I recommend doing this if you find yourself not in the mood to get down to business, or just overall demotivated.
9.30am-10am (only on slower days, or my off day, when I have the time for this): Journal. I write either in my personal journal, where I pen all my thoughts down, or jot in my Everyday Magic Gratitude Journal. Journaling is so cathartic and also helps me organise my thoughts (I tend to overthink a lot about life), so on days when my mind feels very overwhelmed, I write.
1pm-2pm: Lunch. I’ll admit, sometimes I watch an episode of Queer Eye (my absolute favourite reality series) while munching on some homemade leftovers. Helps that each episode fits within my lunch break!
Any time in the afternoon: When I really need to, though not often, a quick shower in the middle of the day really helps me to reset. Out of everything in this reset routine, this is the one thing I do that works the best to just cleanse everything (literally and figuratively) and have me emerge feeling like a new person. I no longer feel icky (days-old hair, anyone?), and that’s just great! Alternatively, I sometimes get myself an açai bowl and lounge by the pool.
7pm-8pm: Dinner with the family. We always have dinner together as much as possible, and it’s one of the most immediate ways to switch my mind from work to home.
8pm-any time before bed: Bedtime tisane! I love this part of my daily reset routine because this signals to me that now it’s time to really slow down and just live. I like a good chamomile, but anything caffeine-free works, depending on what I’m up for.
Some things I don’t currently have in my routine are candles (dangerous with children around), television time (again, children), snacks (I do snack now and then, but I don’t consider them a part of my routine) and reading (it’s a hobby, not a routine activity).
What’s your favourite thing to do when you need to reset?