Embracing Routine Keeps Your Home from Falling Apart: 4 Tips To Get People On Board

Embracing-Routine

When you think of “routine,” you might picture yourself becoming bored from performing repetitive tasks you could do with your eyes closed. Most people would agree that routines can make life boring, but only when they’re mundane. Routines also have the power to keep your household clean and orderly.

You’ve already mastered creating a safe home environment for your kids. Now it’s time to create some order.

Whether you’re implementing a routine for the first time, or you’re struggling to get your household to embrace an existing routine, these tips will help you to get everyone on board.

  1. Create structure within your home

 bedtimeAt first glance, structure sounds mundane, but it’s the foundation of productivity and happiness. Children need structure to thrive. Most kids resist certain types of structure like having a curfew and a bedtime, but not all structure gets rejected. For example, family routines are a fun way to implement structure in disguise.

Structure leads to emotional health

According to Reuters, research shows children who participate in family routines are 47% more likely to have high social-emotional health. Family routines can include a child singing, telling stories, eating dinner with family, or having regular outings planned for a certain day of the week. Pediatrician Dr. Elisa Muniz told Reuters social-emotional health makes it possible for kids to express their feelings, empathize with other people’s emotions, and develop healthy relationships with their peers and adults. It’s clear that structure is integral to child development.

  1. Minimal chore structure creates serenity and security 

Minimal chore structure

Set the minimal amount of structure necessary to run your household to create serenity and security for all. The idea is to set a framework that people can move freely within, not to dictate when and how everyone must accomplish assigned tasks. Micromanaging doesn’t support anyone.

It’s crucial to create routines that allow your family members to maintain their autonomy and freedom. That’s what makes people play by the rules. For example, if you decide to dedicate an hour each day to silent meditation, and schedules conflict, allow people to take their hour of silence when they choose. 

  1. Generate agreement from your family members for all routines 

Whether you’re introducing a new healthy eating routine, or an upgraded chore routine, you need to garner agreement from everyone you expect to participate.

For instance, if you give your children a list of chores they must do, they’re probably going to resent you to some degree, and they might never tell you. Kids who harbor resent toward their parents become less willing to pitch in, and some even withdraw from fun family activities out of spite. The solution is to get them to choose their chores.

Getting your kids to choose their chores doesn’t mean asking them open-endedly, “what chores do you want to do?” and then letting them decide what they’ll do. If you want your child to take out the trash, period, the idea is to have them choose taking ownership of their inescapable duty. You do that by having a conversation with them.

Explain to your child that the household runs on collaboration between everyone, and their assigned duty is equally important to fulfill. If they fall behind, it will affect everyone else. Explain the consequences of falling behind or ignoring their duty, including the burden it will place on other family members. At the same time, inflate their respect for people who follow through with their commitments. Remind them that this isn’t just about chores, it’s about being their word and showing up as reliable to the rest of the family. It’s about letting people know they can be trusted and counted on.

The idea is to make them want to perform their assigned chore out of a sense of duty to their family. A person with a commitment to duty will honor their commitments when they dislike the task. It’s crucial to get them to acknowledge a commitment to their tasks.

Use rewards for younger kids; praise them when they willingly engage in their chores, and praise them when they’re complete.

  1. Make routines adjustable based on family member input 

Embracing-Routine

Don’t dictate rigid routines. Make your routines adjustable based on family member input. There are infinite ways to configure routines. It takes time to create any system to perfection, and most systems remain a work in progress. There’s always room for improvement when you stay open to feedback.

Listen to your family members when they tell you something isn’t working for them. Be willing to come up with solutions together. When people feel like their voice matters, they’ll be more willing to participate.

Article Submitted By Community Writer

Today's Top Articles:

Scroll to Top