The other day, I had a conversation with a so-called daily habit expert.

“Build a daily habit. Build your ideal lifestyle.” Yep. I can’t disagree with that. But then, I’m getting tired of the mantra.

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Daily habit my ass

Breaking down a big task into a small, manageable chunk makes sense. I’m sure Marcus Aurelius, Confucius, or anyone rocking a gorgeous beard has been saying this from the dawn of time. But because everyone is saying this, it sounds like a cheap sales talk. You know, “imagine you can have this amazing product for the price of a cup of coffee!”

Nowadays, everything is for everyday consumption. Exercise. Every day. Fasting. Every day. Writing something important. Every day. Build something that makes a difference. Every day. Do it every day and it will change your mindset and eventually, it will help you form a new and better identity. For sure.

But I don’t know.

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Recommended consumption schedule: Every day

What if there are things that are not meant for everyday consumption?

I mean, do you REALLY have to do all that you do every single day? Other than sleeping, I think I can go without everything else for a while. OK, some corrections. I need to drink water, and pee, and poo. But I don’t have to eat or do anything else in an extreme scenario. And even if you do want to do something, I have some important things that work well in a non-daily cycle.

Precisely speaking, I like doing things in 72-96 hours cycle. For example, I don’t write or design every day even though that is recommended by many successful professionals. Maybe that’s the rigor necessary to become the top dog of the industry but the daily habit regimen seems like a standard operating procedure of a cult organization that makes you give up everything else from your life to join the group.

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Sometimes, 24 hour is not enough for everything

I don’t follow the cult of daily habits. I’d rather follow my own faith by writing and designing in a much slower and sustainable cycle. My inspiration to write this article came to me a few days ago. Not today nor yesterday. I just took a memo a day after the conversation and slept on it. For 24-72 hours, I’ve been subconsciously pondering a question, “Why am I skeptical of the life-changing power of daily habit?” A day or two later, it occurred to me that some things are not meant to be done every single day. You might be wondering, “what if you forget it or lose motivation to write it?” Well, then, the topic wasn’t worth my time writing about it. That’s all there is to it.

Despite all the noise out there, it is my sole responsibility to fully own my cycle of life. If the daily habit works for you, fine, but I’m not you and you’re not me. Maybe I’m too lazy and I sleep too much. But if I need to do something well enough, I need to incorporate plenty of time for bathroom stops and pajama breaks. For that, I have to accept that I’m weak and undisciplined compared to other go-getters. But that is much better than working for long hours every day. I don’t want to force myself to do things I don’t feel like doing just because I want to become “successful.” I’d rather sleep successfully and peacefully, now, so that I can wake up with better ideas tomorrow, or a day after tomorrow.

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It is what it is.

Don’t feel like working? Drink Red Bulls! Still tired? Go to bed and recharge! They are all ready to conquer the world. Unfortunately, I now know that I can’t recharge my energy instantly nor in 24 hours. That’s right. For me, one night of sleep is not enough to recharge my body and soul. I used to think my mind is fresh and sharp again every morning after sleeping for enough hours. It’s been true for many things but for something creative and meaningful, it was not the case. Similar to sore muscles needing a few days to recover, my mind/brain needs a lot more than 24 hours to get back to its fully functional self.

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Defining my cycle of life

I suppose the cult of daily regimen fits nicely with our subscription-based attention-starved economy. “Everyone has 24 hours a day,” we say “and the winners make the best use of it.” True. But then, you’re already boxed in. You’re cornered into believing that you can and you should repeat the best practice every single day. I don’t think so. At least, that’s not for me. I wouldn’t let any marketer tell me how I should define my cycle of life. My life is slower and that’s how I want it.

Dear daily habits, I will not see you tomorrow.

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