We initially planned a six-month stay in Mexico that got interrupted as we returned to Europe for three weeks. However, before we left, we had a great routine, and we were entirely in our working rhythm. We had a solid morning routine; we produced content every day, planned our weekly content, published it, and made excellent progress with our daily tasks and OKRs that we set for the last quarter of the year. In short we were productive.
Let's say everything was aligned, and we were super excited to do how things were developing. It took us quite a long time to get into this mode, but unfortunately, it didn't take so long to fall out of it. But I guess this is quite normal; it's easier to get out from the routines than get in.
The three weeks that we were in Europe were emotionally hard. So we didn't do any of our routines during this time, just the basic ones, like Duolingo (both) and meditation (Leo only), where we had a streak of several days, so we don't want to break that anymore. We worked on tasks but without a real structure or planning.
We came back to Mexico half sick, so this didn't help us jump right into everything. Now it's week 3 of being back, and we are finally (slowly) got back to our regular schedule.
It's fascinating how difficult it is sometimes to do the things that you like to do, and you know that will bring you forward. It's so easy to forget and avoid the routine you were building and keep you on top of your professional and personal life.
Well, I guess this is very typical behavior when trying to make fundamental changes in your life. It's not easy to build good habits; the bad ones stick easier. 🙂 I think if we didn't have such a robust setup as we have at the moment, being away from distractions, our strong morning routine, and the challenge to write 500 words before noon or lunchtime, we would still be wandering in the dark. I think these are great foundations to build on top of.
It helps that we are both doing a similar thing, and we encourage each other to achieve our daily goals. We are staying accountable to each other. And none of us want to be black sheep.
At the moment, our progress is very fragile, and too many distractions can negatively influence it. When this happens, when I'm out of routine, I don't feel good about it; I'm stressed, feeling anxious, and just out of place. So yes, having routines, habits, and daily goals - planning in general, makes me feel more free and happy.
I'm looking forward to reaching the point where all this will be my solid foundation and a priority that will not be quickly interrupted when any distraction comes my way. But, until then, I have to be aware (daily!) of all the positive benefits that this behavior and structure brings to my life and why I am doing this.
That said, we are looking forward to using this time in Mexico to start some fundamental changes and get fully into digital nomad life before we return to Europe in springtime.
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