Creating Your "Ideal Typical Day"
There's an old riddle that goes like this:
How do you eat an elephant?
Answer: One bite at a time.
That can also be true for redesigning a life. Much of our lives
are made up of the routines we have developed that become the
framework for a typical day in our life. Granted, many people
have a fair amount of variety in a lot of their days, still most
of us can learn a lot about our lives by looking at the patterns
we have adopted over time.
That is the purpose of the following 2 part exercise. First, to
get a clearer picture of what your "Current Typical Day" looks
like and then to explore what your "Ideal Typical Day" could be.
Between these two pictures, between the current picture and the
picture of your ideal day, there is likely to be a gap.
Sometimes the gap is large, sometimes not so large. In either
case, once you have a clear view of both of these type days, you
can begin the process of closing the gap by taking conscious
steps towards bringing your Ideal Typical Day into reality.
For example, when I first committed to living a life of service,
simplicity, and spiritual serenity, I was working many more
hours than I wanted to be. Those hours were consistent with my
Inherited Purpose of needing to work really, really hard so I
could get ahead, so I wouldn't be poor and so people wouldn't
leave me. But, when I started to look at what I ideally wanted
my day to look like, I began the process of redesigning my days
to include less work hours and more time for my family and for
fun outside of work.
Today, I love my 'typical days' as well as those that are a
little less than typical. But this is not about my days, it is
about yours, so let's get started.
Part 1: Getting a Clear Picture of your Current Typical Day
Take yourself step by step, segment by segment, through what is
a typical day for you. Start with when you normally wake up and
how (alarm, child shaking you, or naturally awakening on your
own), and also what is your mood upon awakening. Then proceed to
what happens next as well as how you feel as you progress
through the day.
Be honest with yourself. This is about telling yourself the
truth. If there are parts of the day that might vary, then make
note of the variety. For example, Tuesday through Thursday much
of my typical day is spent on the phone with coaching clients
while Monday and Friday is when I am in my office. I am mostly
working on my business rather than delivering my services.
Take yourself all the way through your typical day until you
finally put your head once more on your pillow. What time do you
typically go to bed? How do you feel at that point? How long
does it take for you to fall asleep? Do you first fall asleep
somewhere else like on the sofa in front of the TV, and then
have to get up and go to bed? Make note of anything you feel is
relevant, including if you tend to awaken during the night. If
you do, how do you feel, and how long does it take you to fall
back asleep?
Part 2: Painting a Picture of Your Ideal Typical Day
This may be the more challenging part of the exercise, but it
can also be the most fun, invigorating and at least as insight
filled as the first half.
Begin to paint a picture of what your ideal or perfect typical
day would be. Keep it in balance between allowing yourself to
dream and stretch a bit while also anchoring it some in reality.
For this part of the exercise, it may prove useful to set
yourself a timeframe as to by when your Ideal Typical Day could
realistically become your real typical day. This might be 6
months out, 1 year, or more. Again, be sure to paint a vivid
picture including what you will be doing and what you will be
experiencing. Have fun with this.
What to Do with the Results
After completing both parts of the exercise, take a day or two
to note any insights you can glean from the process, and write
those insights down.
Make notes of any of the insights you would be particularly
interested in taking action on and if you know what those
actions might be, write those down as well.
If you are working with a coach, I encourage you to send the
information you have gleaned from this process to your coach.
Not working with a coach? Why NOT?