What does a daily routine mean to you and what status does it hold in your life?
Some of us consider a daily routine to be a vital element of our lives, while some may not. Though it does not have to be a complicated method where you force yourself to get up at four a.m. every single day when your body says no. Rather, it is a system exclusive to you that helps you achieve your goals and moves you closer to your larger life goal.
The way we spend our day is directly connected to our daily routine, and this statement can be seen from two interesting perspectives. One, the amount of time that we waste throughout the day on endless scrolling through social media or simply in procrastination affects our daily routine. Two, how we structure our daily routine affects how we spend the day. Fascinating, right?
Let’s dig a bit deeper into the first perspective. What does the weekly screen time notification of your phone look like? What activities during the day keep you distracted from your tasks? This does not imply that you are productive and attentive every minute of your day. It rather indicates that you don’t devote too much time and energy to either of the two extremes of productivity and relaxation.
This fine balance was brilliantly demonstrated by our beloved Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ). He devoted his time to various aspects of his life, such as Da’wah (preaching towards Islam), community service, family and his worship, and did not let any one aspect overlap the other. An example from the Prophetic routine is that he would spend his time in the morning after Fajr in communicating and teaching his congregation. After praying two units of the Duha prayer, he would return home, greet his family, and begin his day. He would also take a nap (Qayloolah) before the Dhuhr prayer.
The second point of view considers how our daily routine influences the rest of our day. Routines are incredibly beneficial to our bodies. We will get a sense of how our body and mind prefer to function as we build one. As a result, we can tailor the various things that we like to do like reading the Qur’an after Fajr, journaling, exercising and so on to meet our specific requirements.
A routine should feel like a safe framework that you can refer to. It should help you let go of unnecessary stress, and uplift and awaken positivity and spirituality within yourself. At the end of the day, all our efforts should make us closer to our ultimate goal of achieving Paradise and fulfilling the purpose in this life.