Change the routine, change the outcome a.k.a 'The domino effect'

Like these stones. Habits pile up.

We spend a good proportion of our lives doing mundane things on autopilot. If we didn't chances are we'd probably go mad having to make conscious decisions about absolutely everything. However, it's these unconscious decisions that cause us to form habits. We do things well just because we do things! It's simply what we do. Whether this is getting to work and automatically going to the staff kitchen to make a coffee, and adding milk and two sugars (because that's what you 'do') or going for a jog before breakfast, because that's what you do, it's all simply habit.

What do you do first in a morning? Do you always come downstairs, make the same hot drink, and drink it in the same place? I tend to come down, make a cup of tea, and take it back to bed, where I drink it snuggled under the covers and read a few pages of my book, check my Facebook and Twitter on my phone, just in case I've missed something important overnight (I rarely have, but I have to just check, in case today is somehow different!). I then normally go in the shower, quickly before anyone else gets up, and then wake the rest of the family up. Breakfast is less of a habit, some days I confess I have breakfast, other days I skip out of the house without having any, depending on my mood, what's available and what I fancy. I often make a conscious decision to have a bacon butty, and a pot of proper fresh coffee, but if I do it's generally after the children have gone to school and before I settle down to my computer and start writing.

I enjoy having a tidy and clean home, although am not always very conducive to this kind of environment, having the habit of taking my clothes off on an evening and dropping everything on the floor, when only a couple of seconds extra time could see me putting the dirty things in the laundry pile and the clean enough to wear another day things to go on a hanger and be hung up. All habits, but what a difference each option would make. I find that one habit leads to another. Hanging things up and putting things away makes it easier to find things again in the morning, make it more likely to be washed if it's dirty. Having a clear floor means that it's easier to vacuum, I can simply go in their with the vacuum and clean rather than having to tidy first and then clean. If I put shampoo bottles back in the cupboard when I've finished my shower, I can give the surfaces in the bathroom a quick wipe over rather than having to move anything before I start. If I do the washing up straight after a meal, I can come down in the morning and have a clear space to work, and am more likely to be able to cook something from scratch the next day. If the pots have been cleared from the coffee table and the cushions tidied and straightened before I go to bed, I can feel confident that whenever someone comes to the door I could, should I wish, invite them in for a coffee. One simple change is often enough to make the rest of the things you do click into place. It's like a domino effect.

Simple things you can do to make a big difference include hanging up your coat or blazer as you come in from work/school, putting shoes where you can find them again in the morning. Have specific places for keys and bags and wallets. Have a dedicated place to sort mail, pay bills etc. Have an ongoing shopping list so you know what to order from the online supermarket. Spend a few minutes before bed making the main living room look presentable, it doesn't need a thorough clean, just enough to make it look habitable. A quick squirt of bleach down the loo, a quick wipe of the sink and bath, washing the pots and wiping the work top makes such a difference to everything else. Taking note of what you spend, making meal plans, knowing what you're hoping to spend each day before you go and spend it, also makes a huge difference. Working with cash can also help, because then you have hard evidence of how much money you have available to you. Having a calendar where you note down your appointments and which you check regularly can also help a great deal. Putting your bills and in comings onto an online calendar with repeating events can help you keep track of what payments need to be made and when they need to be paid, so you can see more easily what you've got available to you at any given point.