Every morning, my alarm goes off. I get up out of bed and get dressed to go to the gym to work out. I go to the gym and follow the workout on my phone. I finish my workout between 7:30 and 7:35. Afterwards I shower, sometimes shave, get dressed, and go to work. I take the same route to work every day.

When I get to work, I make myself coffee. While my coffee is brewing, I finish my breakfast of two hard boiled eggs, a sliced apple with almond butter, and a banana.

At this point, I have made no decisions nor have I had to apply myself. I have followed the road I laid out for myself, relied on the habits I have and the planning I already put into place. I have spent no mental energy to get to where I am by 8:30 every morning.

My outfit is pretty standard and unremarkable.

My breakfast is the same.

My workout is preplanned.

As mundane as this sounds, it is incredibly freeing. I am set free to execute predetermined systems and processes while I pay attention to the things that really matter to me. I stew on the ideas of the podcasts I am listening to while I work out. I am pondering the items on my schedule while I “pump iron”.

Even when I get to work, putting together my coffee and eating my breakfast is as much a part of my mental boot up process as it is a habit.

Oh, and did I mention I am significantly physically healthier now than I was 2 years ago?

My entire process has freed me to make more decisions about things that matter while I have systematized the mundane. The mundane no longer has the power to steal from me while I pour my energy into what really matters to me.

Where are you spending energy making mundane decisions? How can you better systematize these mundane decisions? What can you make more reflex based than decision based so you can focus on what really matters?

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I have had a routine I have developed naturally. I did not do it intentionally, I wish I was smart enough to start it on purpose, but alas, I was not. However, my routine is incredibly important and I can attribute quite a bit of success to what my routine. My routine is part of each evening. It is the last thing I do each day.

At the end of every day, I prep for the next day. It takes me maybe twenty minutes or less but it makes all the difference in setting myself up for success. I get my clothes to wear at the gym ready, I prep my bag to take to work, I pack my breakfast, pack my lunch, and I pack my gym bag with clothes to wear to work. My routine is moderately mundane, but it is also a decision I make every night. Every night I decide how the next day will start.

Every day I decide how the next day is going to start. It does not take anything extra from me. I am out of function for the most part. I am in routine, almost automated, setting the next day up for success.

Making this decision every night allows me to wake up and not even think about starting the next day. I roll out of bed, put the clothes on I set aside. pick up my gym bag, backpack, and food. Then I roll out to start the day.

At this point, I have done nothing but ride the rails I laid the night before. I am more successful for it. I have been able to stay disciplined and productive each morning. I have reaped from this forethought for months, if not more than a year now.

Succeeding today started last night and succeeding tomorrow starts tonight. Laying these tracks each night before bed has allowed me to start every morning coasting into discipline and progress towards my goals. Coasting on these tracks every morning sets the tone for every day.

What tracks do you need to lay today to coast on tomorrow? How can you better set the tone for each day?

Coasting,

–JT

Mundane

Tomorrow