Many of us do the same things every day. We get up in the morning, take a shower, get dressed, eat breakfast, and start our day. Have you thought about how your daily habits and routines are a part of your prepping?

I didn’t always see daily habits and routines as part of my prepping. I didn’t use to have these habits and routines. Then I discovered Fly Lady and started to develop some routines. Then I had a few emergencies and discovered how nice it was to have these habits in place. I didn’t have to search for clothes to wear. My clothes were in a neat pile, ready to wear. My phone and keys were easy to find.

Lately, my nightly routine has been expanded. I make sure that by the time I go to bed, these things are happening:

1. The dishwasher is running.
2. The washer is running.
3. My clothes are laid out for the next day.
4. My phone is on the charger beside my bed.
5. All the lights are off.
6. The doors are locked.
7. The keys are beside my phone or in my jacket pocket.
8. My need-to-remember list is sitting next to my phone.
9. All eBay orders are packed and ready to go in my car bag.

Daily habits and routines can make or break your prepping. Having a daily routine is a good habit. Good habits will make your preparedness more successful. They can set you ahead and give you a reason to not worry about what isn’t done. If the power goes off during the night, you don’t have to worry about a stack of dirty dishes and a mountain of dirty clothes. That has been taken care of. If I have an emergency during the night, I can slip into my clothes right away. I am not having to look for my phone.

However, these habits did not happen overnight. I had to practice them over and over again. I had to learn a few lessons when they did not get done. I hate scrambling to get things done even though I am a procrastinator at heart. These daily habits keep me calm and give me less to worry about.

And isn’t that the core idea of prepping? Doing things now in order to not worry about them later? 

How do you develop these habits and routines? 

1. Write a list. Write 8-10 things you want to have done at night and in the morning. I have my morning list and my evening list. I use to keep these on my phone and my mirror so I could review them constantly. I have changed them over the years due to changing needs and more independent kids. I just make sure my list includes things I don’t want to worry about tomorrow.

2. Practice, practice, practice. Doing these habits and routines takes practice. Over and over again. You will out what is working and what is not working. I always want to get up early in the morning and get a lot done. That does not happen all the time so I have learned to do a lot more at night.

3. Your list may not be my list and that is okay. You have to do what works for you. I just know I am happier with these things taken care of at night. I don’t have to face these things in the morning and I am prepared to face whatever happens in the morning. My list makes me worry less. Your list should involve things that will make you worry less.

My daily routine keeps me sane and is just a good thing to have. What do you think?

Thanks for reading,
Erica

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