The Risks and Rewards of Routines

As the saying goes, we are all creatures of habit. That includes, by the way, both good habits and less than helpful ones.

So, is it as simple as distinguishing between good habits and routines and harmful ones in our professional lives and then, just putting a "fix" on the bad ones? Maybe not.

And while we're here, is a 'routine' different from a 'habit'? Yes, and here is how:

Habits are what I do on a consistent basis. Routines are the "how" or the "ways" that I do what I do. Both are consciously formed and both are highly personal. A quick example:

You are in the habit of going to the gym every morning before work; 5 days a week for 90 minutes. What you do each day during those 90 minutes, covering specific exercises like cardio or weights is your routine.

And what makes habits and routines so personal is that our behaviors mostly and eventually become automatic; they are literally etched by our brain's neural pathways. (English translation: our brains lay down or create pathways for us to make it easy to repeat behavior. The human brain recognizes patterns.

Is maximizing the regular use of your various systems, software or tools at work a routine or a habit? How about conducting Monday meetings every Monday or morning roll call each day at 8a? Routine or Habit? The ways and manners in which I go about adding new people to my team; routine or habit? Allowing the same people who are negative forces in my personal or professional life to remain there; routine or habit? Challenging myself daily to do more and do it better; routine or habit?

In the examples above, the real question is this: has the habit and the routine become comforting or constricting? Is it a firm scaffolding that gives you a toehold to go even higher or is it a barrier that is literally stopping you from vacating your old ways and re-thinking what you want to be or become?

Routines as 'scaffolding' could also be translated as a set of tools that free up your creativity by putting some things that must be done on autopilot. That is, I get my "work" done" so I can then think and learn at a higher level. Thinking and learning are good. Routines can bring order and predictability to your life and your team so that they too can learn and grow.

Yet, here's the real irony about habits and routines: their very nature encourages us to leave them alone! That means it will always be easier to just not think about them!

In fact, long tenure in our professional roles often leads to potentially high levels of "... just leave it alone..."

But you say, "...I like the way I hire people. I like the way that I train my Team in my specific ways. I like the time I spend with Customers on the same Mon-Wed-Fri travel schedule of every week..."

"...I like the people and things that I like and I don't like the ones that I don't..."

"... And, I like that I've decided what I need to know and what I don't!

Do we see that even good, healthy habits and routines can become barriers if we don't challenge them or re-form them from time to time? Let's ask a few questions:

A. Have we possibly forgotten the values and goals that originally were the foundations for our routines?

B. Do those values and goals still apply?

C. Do we ever catch ourselves with our mind closing down or closing off to new ways of thinking or perspectives as a first, and perhaps subconscious response?

C. Are new tools or ideas greeted openly or dismissed outright as too much trouble or a view that they are just plain wrong?

Here is a simple exercise called "The Fours" (because it has 4 parts and does things in groups of 4):

1. Make a list of the (4) four most prominent routines that you follow at work. Don't over think this; the first 4 that come to mind should only take a moment.
2. For each of the four, write down what makes them 'scaffolding' - i.e they provide structure in your day or your week.
3. Now for each of the same four, write down what [could] be making them a barrier (go back a read that paragraph if needed). Be honest and open about this step and you may find a potential 'barrier' residing in each 'scaffold'.
4. Write ONE new specific habit that could undertake for each of the 4 routines for at least 1 month that could enrich or expand them beyond their current limits.

That simple, last step will provide new possibilities and options for better professional underpinnings for you and your Team. Try it just once and see what happens (by the way, it works great as a Group Exercise).

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

When things are pretty good we tend to just leave well enough alone. Understood. Can 'things' and 'we' be better? Of course the 'correct' answer is 'yes'. But if that's too easy, think about this: Last I checked, there are still competitors out there who want our business, our Customers or our People. And by the way, those Customers and People are independent thinkers as well who, absolutely, positively will choose between "us" and "them". Our habits and routines can either assist in making their choices easy when we are seen as open, engaging, innovative and forward thinking (or) we can be perceived as just the "same old same old". Today, no one can afford to be in that position!