In the throes of a twenty-year affair with coffee, I wanted to make a change. A morning half-pot habit left me feeling jittery, dehydrated, and somewhat bombastic, as my coworkers can attest. I wanted to make a change, wanted to start my day with less coffee (which is not to say no coffee) and more water.

I decided I’d decouple my coffee habit from waking. Instead, I’d create a new first-thing morning routine, one which included water. And to do it, I’d pair hydration with something I enjoy, something ritualistic. I’d create a new drinking experience, one I enjoyed.

For over a month, my morning routine has been solid and steady as granite:

5:00 a.m. alarm;
walk the dogs (unless Amber’s beat me to the punch);
fill a glass with water and drop in a Nuun hydration tablet;
sit in the chair and open the computer to write;
sip water while the tablet dissolves and write.

After drinking the cup of water and finishing my daily writing, I’m free to turn to coffee and spiritual reading. By removing coffee from the first-thing menu and replacing it with a routine I enjoy, drinking less coffee has required no willpower. As I suggested last Friday, removing something from my early morning habits—coffee—created space for something better.

If you’re like so many of us participating in a Dry January, change up your routines. If there’s a time you’re prone to indulge in booze (or pills, or over-eating, or whatever), create a routine for that particular time. Fill the time with something you love, something ritualistic, something better than the vice you’d rather kill. Work that routine day after day for the next week and see if it doesn’t lock into place. See if it doesn’t create something like a more healthy habit.

***TODAY’S TASK: ORDER AND FORWARD***

THE BOOK OF WAKING UP —a book on addiction, attachment, and the Divine Love—launches in just ONE DAY and IT’S TIME TO ORDER YOUR COPY. Today:

1. Order a copy or ten at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Bookish (my favorite independent bookseller); and,

2. Forward this post to a friend and ask them to read along.