How do I fit all my practices into my daily routine?

Q - One of my biggest problems is there are so many practices I feel I should be doing each day that I have never gotten into a routine that fits them all in, so I end up doing hardly any. I am wondering if you have any suggestions or routines that you find have worked for you over the years? - Amber, Australia

Dana's response: I would definitely suggest starting with one thing at a time. For years I had an ideal of my perfect morning routine and was never able to accomplish it all. For me, it has been a gradual process of slowly adding things. I have journalled since I was 11, so that was easy. I eventually got into a work out routine I enjoyed. It took until I was nearly 36 to get into a daily 15 min meditation. I do all those things most mornings in between shower and breakfast, before I do anything else. At night before I go to sleep I give thanks for everything that happened that day and say some prayers for anyone I know who is going through something challenging. Life is always changing, and there are times when the routine doesn't happen due to location or other circumstance. It is important to be flexible with yourself and relaxed with the ideal of sticking to a routine. It's like the difference between creating a healthy lifestyle where you have the odd piece of chocolate cake, or rigorously dieting then getting angry with yourself just because you skipped a day and end up eating the whole cake out of frustration. Rigid rules imposed on the self will never work because the self loves freedom, so all your practices have to be ones you genuinely feel to do and want to do, not ones you feel you 'should' do. Pick one thing that you genuinely are really yearning to have as your daily routine and go from there.

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