Is routine and consistency a good thing?

If you follow me on any kind of social media, you’ll know by now that last week I got a puppy. I’ve wanted one for a long time and chose carefully, then waited for months for the right breeder and the right litter. Patience isn’t my strongest trait, so by the time I actually collected Tilly from Gloucestershire (some three hours away…six if you break down on a busy dual carriage way on the way back like I did), in my mind everything was perfect and she was the perfect puppy.

The thing you conveniently forget about having puppies (and what you probably never realise when you last had puppies when you were seven and your mum did most of the hard work), is that they completely turn your life upside down.

I’m freakishly organised most of the time. It made me great at my job when I worked in Operations and generally helps my life run smoothly. I’d got in to a nice little routine with my morning yoga and cappuccino before starting work. Puppies change that.

Puppies demand you look after them first, before getting on your yoga mat, otherwise you come back to lots of little presents / accidents. They also don’t seem to get the concept of ‘quiet time’, so meditation seems to happen now when she falls asleep after chasing me around all day.

Everything I know and have read about training puppies tells me that I have to be consistent and create routine. I thought I had that part down. Turns out, I had MY routine and MY consistency down. Throwing somebody else into the mix changes everything.

So what does this all have to do with you? You might not even like puppies.

What this week has made me realise is that routine is great. Consistency is great. Inflexibility is NOT great. Inflexibility leads to ANXIETY. Remember that one?! There’s a fine line between creating a routine that works for you and your life and creating a virtual prison for yourself where, if something needs to change, it throws you completely.

Have a look at your life and see where you have structure and where it’s missing. If you’re life seems to rigid, thrown in some spontaneity and see what happens. Treat it as a training exercise!

I’m Emma Brooke. I work with beautiful, intelligent, compassionate and spiritual ladies who have somehow stepped away from their true selves and aren’t entirely sure how to get themselves back again. In my signature program, I take you step by step over an eight week period from overwhelm and emotional numbness to self-assured and guilt-free – knowing what you want, what you need and how you can make yourself and those you love feel fulfilled and complete. Find out more about what I offer.