Cruise Control

Routine. We all have one. It’s an order of operations that we’ve found works for all of us individually and we are most comfortable when we are surrounded by certain controllable variables. A successful day is when we can put our heads down and coast through while everything goes exactly like it always has. Humans are creatures of habit. We find ourselves doing things for no other reason than that’s how we’ve always done it. Having a physical routine is essential to completing tasks throughout our day.

Mental cruise control, however, will greatly impact our interaction with others. Recently challenged about my routine, I realized that I become so focused on completing my tasks that I miss opportunities to reach out to others. Throughout the day we move in and out of different interactions as a part of our culture without a second thought. But we cannot be sensitive to the needs of others when we are self-absorbed in our schedule. We need to take a step back and be aware of our surroundings so we can move through life with eyes wide open, looking for opportunity to reach out to others.

A few simple ideas to get you started:

    - take a different route on your way to work or school

    - order something new off the menu

    - change the order of your morning routine


Source: Serving With Eyes Wide Open, David A. Livermore