Starting from Scratch

Part One: Defining My Ideal Day

This may end up being a series of posts/rants, but after a rough few weeks, let’s call it a month, I’m realizing that although I love my life, there is a lot of unnecessary “stuff” lying around — physical, emotional, and mental — that I can get rid of. Time to start from scratch, so to speak. Job #1 is contemplating what I really want out of life. A great place to start is my ideal day.

My Ideal Day, In Point Form.

Waking Up Early

As an introvert, I really enjoy time where there are no external claims on my attention. For me, this means getting out of bed early. Probably around 04:30. Currently, I get up between 05:10 and 05:45. Wife and kid are generally up between 06:00 and 07:00, so that doesn’t give me much alone time. Due to this fact, I want to be out of bed, showered, and have my day under way before my favourites wake up. This will help me achieve at least one of my overall goals (exercise daily).

• 04:30 — Get out of bed.
• 04:35 — Get out onto the deck (or sit at the breakfast bar) with a coffee and write out five ideas.
• 05:35 — Review the plan and calendar for the day.
• 05:45 — Meditate.
• 06:00 — Exercise (walk, bike, weights) stretch, shower.

Balancing Work and Family in the Workday

I love working from home, because I get to spend time with my family when I’m not actively engaged. Getting in some time to play in the morning with the wife and little guy is essential before work. During the day I am often busy, but on my breaks I come up for some cuddles before getting back to the grind. This is where I act out my day’s plan (as best I can).

• 07:00 — Play with the wife and kid.
• 07:30 — Head down to the office to start work.
• 09:00 — Breakfast with the fam.
• 10:00 — Work.
• 12:00 — Lunch with the fam (or with clients)
• 13:30 — Work.
• 16:30 — Head up to spend time with the fam and help with dinner.
• 17:30 — Dinner with the fam.
• 18:00 — Put baby to bed.

Wind Down, Side Projects, and Bed Time

This is where I get to free-form my evening and then go to bed. Here I might watch some TV with the wife, read, write some code, or maybe work on the next post.

• 19:00 — Time to do what I please.
• 21:30 — In bed. Read a bit.
• 22:00 — Out.

Why Build my Ideal Day?

Ultimately, once I know how I want my days to look, I can start selling, donating, gifting the things that don’t meet the standards of my ideal day. For now I need to get to bed so I can keep work on getting up at 04:30, or at least before 05:30. Until next time…