Do you remember when you got your first job, or launched a new career? Your carefree days of sleeping till noon, or hanging out till all hours of the night with your friends came to an abrupt halt. You suddenly realized that you had to change your way of life to balance work and play.

If you’re like most, you would set up a daily routine that went something like this:

Set the alarm for 7 am. Shower and dress (20 minutes). Grab a cup of coffee, and eat a light breakfast. Then you would catch a train or bus and arrive at your job just in time. The next eight hours of your day would be devoted entirely to your boss and colleagues.

After you finished work you would reverse your routine, catching that train or bus and head back home. You would undress, make dinner and settle down to a nice quiet evening doing what you enjoyed. Finally, it was time to set the alarm and go to sleep for the rest of the night.

Am I right?  For most of you, this was pretty close to the way I described it.

But today we find ourselves not only in a world turned upside down by a pandemic, but retired with endless time on our hands.  Yet if we are asked what our days are like, we immediately answer with one word….crazy!

You may ask how is this possible? Simple, you need to set up a daily routine. By setting up a routine you can actually plan out your day like you did when you first started working.

An example would be setting time limits (or slots) for each task that you plan for the day.

Set an alarm to wake you at a time you would normally be going to work. Next, plan time to have breakfast, clean up the house and any other chores that you would take care of on any given day.

Activities that require more time later in the day (i.e., gardening, balancing your household budget).

Set a time for leisure (reading, watching reruns on TV or calling family and friends).

Plan a menu for dinner and serve the meal at an agreed upon time.

Following a routine that works for you and your family should take the drudgery of crazy, chaotic days to fulfilling days as they were when you first started working.  A daily routine will also help remove a lot of stress from your life.

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By PAM BERGLUND, FAIR LAWN SENIOR COLUMNIST