Three Things I’ve Been Doing Lately

This essay originally appeared in the Monday morning newsletter on 12/12/22.

I wholeheartedly believe that the small things we do consistently have some of the biggest impacts.

Recently, there’s three things I’ve started doing daily. All three things are tiny, and none of them are groundbreaking. But they’ve all had a pleasant effect on my day and how I’m spending my time.

So much so that I wanted to share with you this morning in case it prompts you to think about the little things you do every day. Is there anything you want to add, subtract or tweak for a more enjoyable overall experience? Let me know! I’d love to hear about it. 

Here are the three little things I’ve been doing: 

1. Sitting with my coffee for a few minutes in the morning. Coffee is what drives me out of bed in the morning. I love it all – the aroma as it’s brewing, the feeling of holding a warm mug on a cold morning, the first sip. But last month I was reading Ashley Whillans’ book TimeSmart and I had a major coffee-related epiphany.

In one of the chapters, Whillans includes a sample time log as one of the activities she encourages is to write down the activities you complete (and the experience you have) to get a better understanding on how you typically spend your time.

The first activity in the example time log read like this: “The first thing I do after I wake up is put on my favorite music, sit with my partner’s cat in our office (Ollie likes looking at the cars below), and drink a cup of dark roast coffee.”

All the sudden, I had this realization – I say that the first cup of coffee is one of my favorite parts of my day, but why I have never just sat with my coffee and enjoyed it? I’m always taking that first sip in transition to something else… like opening my book to read or turning  the page in my journal or powering up my laptop. But it feels like with a little tweak, this everyday thing could feel more like a ritual vs. a routine, bringing some mindfulness and intentionally into my day, easily. 

So, that’s one of the mini activities I’ve been adding to my day. Now, after my coffee is ready, I just sit with it for a few minutes and enjoy it. Right now, this usually happens in front of my Christmas tree with a cozy blanket. Delightful!

I only do it for a few minutes (not for the full cup), but during this season of busyness it is amazing how much calmer I feel after doing this. I’m starting my days with something that feels mindful and special to me, and that feels really great.

2. Using noise-cancelling earphones to get in the zone during the workday. OKAY another mini activity I’ve been really loving. Especially during this time of year, it can feel really hard to get actual deep-thinking work done. After ping ponging between video calls and quick responses to emails and Teams instant messages, when I do get a 30- or 60-minute block of time to do one of the higher-level things on my to-do list, I struggle with concentration and getting “in the zone.”

I’m a morning person, so in my ideal world, my mornings would be filled with nothing but deep work time – no meetings, no emails, no pings. Then, I’d take a break for lunch and use the rest of the workday to do the more logistical tasks like handling those emails, participating in meetings, coordinating and scheduling, etc.  

But that’s not reality  and that’s okay! Instead, I’ve been looking for ways to help myself tap into that “deep work mode” on command, and I’ve really enjoyed what I’ve been doing lately.

I recently bought these noise-cancelling headphones and have been proactively designated blocks of time on my calendar to do deep work. When that time comes, I close out of email, silent my cell phone and put on my special headphones (listening to either a playlist like this, or for a little festive flair this month, this). 

The “cue” of putting on these headphones is really helping me get into that focused work state! It’s been great!  

3. Doing (and recording!) one festive activity a day in December. The last little thing I’ve been doing  is something I actually did last December too. As I wrote about previously, when things get full and crazy this time of year, I can have a tendency to just put my head down and focus on getting to Christmas. Then Dec. 25 comes and goes in a blink of an eye and that magical season is gone until next year. 

But last year I challenged myself to do at least one festive thing a day in December, and importantly, write it down. When December started to come to a close and I started to feel sad, I looked back at my list and reminded myself of how many fun festive things I did do. It really helped.

The daily festive activity can really be anything – as small as listening to Christmas music as I cook dinner or taking a moment to appreciate the decorations on my street or as big as going to see the tree downtown and having fun at a holiday party. But doing something daily ensures an ongoing feeling of festivity and encourages me to seek out those types of experiences. It’s working for me!