By Kelsey Miner

There’s a lot to be said for creating a routine. Structure helps you move forward and stay focused, and when you’re starting a new job it tends to be the first thing you settle in to.

When I was a mere 30 days into my role, I noted the importance of finding your voice and keeping company goals in mind. With another 30 days under my belt, in the midst of all the chaos of learning and adapting, following my morning routine has often been the difference between an overwhelming day and a manageable workload.

Think about how you start each day in the office; what’s the first thing you do? For me, and probably many others, it has to do with coffee. Every morning I walk to our kitchen, brew a cup of Hazelnut Green Mountain, add a little milk, and walk back to my desk.

To be honest, I don’t love coffee, but what I do love is the consistency. The K Cups will always be in the same place, the milk will always be on the second shelf in the fridge, and I will always spill a little bit, no matter how slow I walk. The caffeine will always give me just enough energy that I want to check my emails. The coffee itself does not drive my morning; it is the process by which it occurs.

But what happens one morning if all the Hazelnut K cups are gone? What happens if I’m running late and have to go right into a meeting? The most important part of creating a routine is anticipating interruption, and knowing how to react. In a business like ours, things can change at a moment’s notice. Budgets get cut, minds are changed and suddenly you have to rearrange your schedule to accommodate someone else’s. It’s the one thing you can consistently count on happening.

So if you are like me, and you look forward to your routine, remember to get out of your comfort zone every once in a while. Try a new flavor, take a different route to the kitchen, heck, skip the coffee all together. Be prepared for the unexpected. Make it part of your routine to skip the routine.