Pre-work rituals

I’ve had a guest at my job this week and it’s been kind of stressful. This person is there to help, but things have just seemed kind of out of balance.

She’s the type of person that doesn’t let you “land” when you come in the office. As soon as my key is in the door, she’s asking me about something or just starts talking.

It wasn’t until I read this article at Web Worker Daily that I realized she’s messing with my pre-work rituals:

Whether it’s vacuuming your keyboard, taking a long walk, or making a pot of coffee, you probably have a routine that you do before you get started with work. This routine seems so mundane and simple, yet, without it, you can’t get started.

I’ve got a few things I do to get in the work frame of mind and not being able to do them has made things “off” all week.

Reading back over that, it sounds like I’m a touch OCD. That’s not quite what I mean.

To get settled in to work, I usually take just a few minutes of quiet time to skim the news, get some coffee, go over my to-do list, etc. and I didn’t realize it until I read this article, that those things are an important part of the rhythm of the day.

She’s coming in late tomorrow, so I’m going to take back my routine.