Routine.
I've been pondering how to get a daily routine for myself. Since starting Jamie House Design a little over a year ago I've been winging it. I work from my home studio so my work is always there. I'm always working or thinking about projects. It's exhausting.
Today is the start to my daily rituals. My creative habits. My work routine.
Here's how the schedule is going to go down... Get up and work out, shower and get ready for the day, breakfast and coffee, blog, make a priority list, get working for the day and end at 7ish (no later than 8 for sure).
I inherently rebel against such structure so I'll be checking in with you guys on this new routine till I don't think about it anymore.
“Routine in an intelligent man, is a sign of ambition.”
In preparation of the newfound daily routine I picked up a cute little book called Daily Rituals: How Artists Work. I've been reading a few rituals a night to see how other creatives worked out their day. It's fascinating to see how each varies so dramatically.
I've been highlighting and marking pages of my favorite passages. I've developed a new idea cataloging system that I'll talk about later using index cards. It's proven very handy. Plus I get to use my vintage brass index box. :)
Here's an interesting snippet about Frank Lloyd Wright...
"A friend of Wright's once observed that as long as she had known him, the architect seemed to spend the entire day doing everything but actually working on his building designs. He held meetings, took phone calls, answered letters, supervised students- but was rarely seen at the drafting table. The friend wanted to know: When did Wright conceive his ideas and make the sketches for his buildings? 'Between 4 and 7 o'clock in the morning,' he told her. 'I go to sleep promptly when I go to bed. Then I wake up around 4 and can't sleep. But my mind's clear, so I get up and work for three or four hours. Then I go to bed for another nap.' During the afternoon he would often take an additional nap, lying down on a thinly padded bench or even a concrete ledge; the uncomfortable perch, he said, prevented him from oversleeping."
I love hearing about how each artist made down time for themselves. It's so important! Even throughout the day I find that I have to step away from work for a bit to recharge myself.
This quote from William James illustrates what I'm searching for with this newfound routine:
"The more of the details of our daily life we can hand over to the effortless custody of automatism, the more our higher powers of mind will be set free for their own proper work. There is no more miserable human being than one in whom nothing is habitual but indecision, and for whom the lighting of every cigar, the drinking of every cup, the rising and going to bed every day, and the beginning of every bit of work, are subjects of express volitional deliberation."
It really is about simplifying my life to make room for more creative. The creative must be the priority in order for me to remain sane.
“Inspiration is for amateurs, the rest of us just show up and get to work”
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