“I’m down to a pack a day,” she brags, exhaling a long stream of smoke and a longer stream of hacking coughs that leave me feeling like I’m about to throw up.
Apologies, but that’s my first thought. Something to do with how the prompt is written. *shudder*
With that out of the way, however, I have one daily habit that seems to belong in the “something I’m doing right” column, and I’m told over and over again that this is so. Despite feeling like it’s what I do because it’s my only option, I’m going to share it with you because it may be helpful.
Every morning, I wake up between 4:30am and 5am, not because I’m a morning person and not because that’s my favorite time of day (especially in winter). I wake up at 4:30/5am every morning because it’s the only time my entire family is preoccupied and doesn’t need me and I can have time to myself, for myself. For ease we’re just going to say 5am going forward. Let’s dive in.
Getting up at 5am means I get a minimum of one hour to myself, possibly a little longer if I’m lucky. It means I have one hour every day to show up for myself and my work. I quietly get out of my warm bed, throw on a sweatshirt, and clamber onto the couch, putting my feet up on the ottoman so I have a lap for my laptop. I pull on a blanket, open the computer, and start typing. I write every day for a minimum of one hour or 1,000 words. That is my daily goal and I don’t get to do any of the other things I could be doing with a sleeping household until that 1,000 words is met.
Once they’re done, however, I can then have my coffee, play some Wordle and Spelling Bee, check out other people’s posts and read an ebook. I have so many incentives waiting for me to finish that 1,000 words that it doesn’t feel like a chore, but a gift. And something about still being semi-asleep helps keep my inner-critic from rearing her ugly head and the words tend to flow out smoothly.
They say, “You can’t edit a blank page,” so I try to give myself something I can work with every day. These 1,000 words don’t always end up in the book, sometimes they become a standalone essay or a blog post or a Patreon post, but they’re never wasted.
What’s your best daily habit? What’s your worst?
Sunday Dutro, Author - Official Site 
For several years (though it has lapsed recently), I used to write my “Three Positives” for each day. This made me reflect on the positive aspects of the day, which had significant benefits to my mental health and my overall outlook on life.
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that’s an excellent habit! I got into doing this at night before bed after my second miscarriage. Really helpful to stop and recognize gratitude ❤️
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