Routine is comfortable, but is it making your life forgettable?

You wake up on a Monday morning, check your phone, spend 20 minutes scrolling. 
Make the coffee. Drink the coffee. Brush your teeth.
Open the laptop. Work. Eat. Scroll. Sleep.

And then you do it again Tuesday. And Wednesday. And Thursday. And Friday.
 
Soon enough the days start to blur. You find yourself wondering, “wait, what did I even do last week?” Or “how is it already Friday again?”

You’re not unhappy, exactly. But something feels like it’s missing, and you can’t quite put your finger on it. 

It’s not burnout. It’s this sense that your life is travelling on autopilot. That time is moving fast, but somehow, you’re not really in it – not really experiencing time. 

It’s incredibly easy to slip into an auto-pilot life. In fact, it’s rewarded. We’re praised for being consistent, efficient and on top of everything. 

And yes, routine can be good. It makes life manageable, predictable and safe. It makes us feel like we have a sense of agency over our days. 

But it can also make time disappear.

When every day looks and feels the same, your brain stops making new memories. There are no markers and no standout moments to pin time to. Weeks pass and you can’t remember what filled them. Life starts to feel like it’s constantly speeding up, but when you try to figure out where all the time’s gone, your mind is blank. 

When you’re stuck in routine, you stop noticing the sunrises that used to take your breath away. You stop appreciating how good it is to bite into a sweet, crunchy apple, the juices dripping down your chin. You forget what it feels like to laugh until your stomach hurts for no reason at all.

We’re not saying you need to throw routine out the window and move to a cabin in the woods (unless you want to then you absolutely should). We’re just saying that maybe it’s time to shake things up just enough so you can feel present in your life again. 

Go for a morning walk without your phone. Have a proper chat with your barista (if you don’t know their name, now’s the time to learn it). Ring your friend instead of texting them. Take yourself out on a date. Say yes to the thing you’d normally say no to.  

Don’t change your life in one big swoop – just interrupt the pattern. We promise, it’s easier than you think.

With love,
Nakie HQ