Hi friends,
How have you been? I wanted to start by saying thank you to those who shared their stories with me after my last letter where I talked about some grief I felt saying no to something I didn’t want. It’s always lovely to know you’re not alone, so truly, thank you. I also wanted to say hello to any new subscribers! I’m always surprised and delighted when people find this space, especially as I don’t advertise it much, so welcome.
For the last few weeks I’ve felt a little… stuck in a rut. I’m a creature of habit that loves routine, but even I feel the need for a shake-up now and then. This feeling, I’m sure, is partly because I haven’t taken much time off work this year and the sensation of eat, sleep, work, repeat is grinding. Thankfully I’m writing this at the start of a bank holiday weekend, and in a couple of weeks I have a full week off which I’m very excited for.
I’ve been thinking about ways I can shake myself out of this rut, and especially ways that don’t cost a lot of money… our financial situation has become uncertain lately (my partner, Dan, works in the games industry, and let’s just say the industry is going through a hell of a time) so as much as I’d love to splurge money on a holiday for a true shake-up, we need to be a little conservative with our spending until certainty (or at least some version of it) returns. I’m sure I’m not alone in this boat, so I thought I’d share some ideas I’ve been musing on to get myself out of this rut, without spending much money.
Going to a new coffee shop
Something Dan and I do pretty much every weekend is go out for coffee. In fact, I’m sipping on an iced mocha as I type. It gets us out of the flat and coffee shops are our happy place. So a small way we can gently nudge this routine into ‘newness’ is to explore different coffee shops (luckily, if there’s one thing Guildford has plenty of, it’s coffee shops). I’m particularly excited to try a new cafe, Art + Grind, that opened recently where you can hire easels and paint while you drink coffee.
New breakfasts and lunches
I’ve been eating the same breakfasts and lunches for…. too long. They’re easy, I know I like them and truthfully I hate cooking so always go for the lowest effort recipe possible. With dinners, we use Hello Fresh so get great variety there, but other meals are the same-old, same-old. Changing this up feels like a simple way to mix things up a bit. If anyone has any tips for low-effort, healthy-ish breakfasts and lunches, let me know!
Switching up downtime activities
My ultimate ‘I’ve-got-time-to-myself’ activity these days, is playing the Sims. And while I love it, I don’t love looking back at an entire weekend and realising that’s pretty much all I did. I recently got a paint-by-numbers kit and whiled away a Saturday afternoon doing this instead of the Sims, and it was lovely. For you it could be learning something new or finally starting that hobby you’ve always wanted to try.
Spring cleaning
Tidying/sorting may not be everyone’s ideal way to get out of a rut, but it personally gives me a little rush of dopamine to see a previously chaotic space become orderly. I’ve written up a list of all the problem areas I want to tackle and have been ticking the list off slowly when my schedule allows. So far I’ve sorted a chest of drawers and a ladder shelf. Next up are the drawers under the bed and a bag of ‘stuff’ that’s been sat by my wardrobe for months.
Day trips
This will depend on your budget, but even a day trip to a neighbouring town could give you an injection of newness. I’m going to spend a little time putting together a list of day trip ideas so we have a batch of ideas ready to go. Half the battle for us is deciding what to do, so if we have a list to work from, I think we’ll be more likely to go.
Watch/read/listen to new genres
I can be quite particular about the genres I like… Film and TV? Give me a medical drama or sci-fi. Books? Contemporary fiction or sci-fi. Music? Indie, folk or pop-punk please. It’s great to love what you love, but I think there can be magic to be found when we push ourselves out of our genre-shaped pigeon holes. I’ve even made a playlist called Palate cleanse to help me listen outside the box.
Have a pamper moment
I don’t ‘pamper’ myself super often, so any time I do, it feels like a break in routine. Whether it’s a cheap sheet-mask from Boots or taking the time to paint my nails, it’s a small moment that makes me feel renewed.
Wear different outfit combinations
Recently I wore a new outfit combination and loved it. It reminded me that we don’t always have to go shopping to feel a sense of newness, we can just look in our wardrobes and try something different. I know I’m not being revolutionary with this idea and ‘shopping your own wardrobe’ is a well-known concept, but hey - sometimes it’s helpful to have the reminder.
There we go, now the trick is to actually… do these things. Easier said than done, right? Having habits and routines is easy for our brains, trying new things takes effort and we can often avoid it.
How to get around this? I think I’m going to look at the next few weeks in my calendar and try to sprinkle these ideas in my schedule - if I plan it like this, I’m far more likely to do it. If I try to be spontaneous, it probably won’t happen! Let’s see. I’ll let you know how it goes.
I’d love to hear any other ideas from you - what helps you get out of a rut?
Until next time,
Kat