Do Intuitives have trouble sticking to routines?

[Jackitty]

This continues to be an issue for me, as an INFJ, but I don't know if it is just me or not. I just can't seem to be able to get myself to get fixed to a routine. It could have more to do with my personality than it does to being INFJ, but I'm curious to see if it generally is true that other Ni-doms find it hard to stick to a routine, day after day, than say Sensing types... I've read stories of people who have superhuman discipline to get up at a certain time each day and do a certain task at a certain time for a specific number of hours... I long to be able to do that. I read a book about the daily rituals that artists and other creative people have had, and there were many writers and philosophers who were able to stick to a rigid schedule without too great discomfort. So that might say that it's particular to me and not to all Intuitives. What do you think?

 

[highlander]

I definitely have routines. I think we all do. It adds stability to our lives.

One example is that I sleep in on Saturdays and Sundays. I also make it a point to not work on the weekends, which I'm successful with 95% of the time. When I'm working out of town, I have a large bowl of fruit, yogurt and orange juice for breakfast every morning. Every morning, I have a cup of tea to wake myself up. I have my favorite radio stations in the car. I have my favorite restaurant that I like to go to. I check the Forum at the end of the day every day (almost).

On the other hand, on the non-routine side, I don't ever get up at the same time every day and if you ask me to stick to that kind of routine it is seemingly impossible for me to do (though I would still like to). I might work out in the evenings X number of times a week but but sometimes it might be at 7, sometimes 8 and sometimes 8:30. I don't eat lunch at the same time every day nor dinner. Sometimes I'll semi-skip lunch or dinner. I don't ever do the same thing at the same time on a day to day basis.

 

[Phantonym]

Are you talking about work routine where you get up at the same time every morning, work all day, and finish at the same time? Or do you just want to get into a routine where you'd get things done and be more productive every day?

Can't speak for all intuitives, but I absolutely hate routine that I feel is imposed on me. Even when I'm putting pressure on myself to follow a strict daily routine to get something done, it does not feel natural to me. Doing the same thing day in, day out...when I feel that I'm not in control of setting said routine...then that is something I can't keep up for very long.

However, when I do feel in control, when it feels good to get things done...then that's fantastic. Usually I make weekly to-do-lists, and that really helps me to keep going. It's not a rigid time-frame, I can choose what I feel like doing at a particular moment, I can even postpone things that are not urgent, I can switch things around and work all night and sleep all day, but as long as I feel that I'm doing something on that list and progressing towards completion...that's great.

I don't ever do the same thing at the same time on a day to day basis.

Well said, I completely agree.

 

[Coriolis]

I do certain things the same way every time I do them (established habits), but don't stick to a repeatable time schedule.

 

[cafe]

I'm not good with time schedules, even though I like them and I often feel better when I have them externally enforced via work or school, etc. When my kids were little I sometimes used PBS children's programming to give some structure to our day. Now I sleep when my husband sleeps most days unless I've got something going on during the day, then I pick the kids up from school and come home and cook. After that I putter until I get sleepy. Friday is date and grocery shopping day. That's mostly it. It's not a very good routine. I'd do better with a little more structure, I think.

 

[Evo]

This continues to be an issue for me, as an INFJ, but I don't know if it is just me or not. I just can't seem to be able to get myself to get fixed to a routine. It could have more to do with my personality than it does to being INFJ, but I'm curious to see if it generally is true that other Ni-doms find it hard to stick to a routine, day after day, than say Sensing types... I've read stories of people who have superhuman discipline to get up at a certain time each day and do a certain task at a certain time for a specific number of hours... I long to be able to do that. I read a book about the daily rituals that artists and other creative people have had, and there were many writers and philosophers who were able to stick to a rigid schedule without too great discomfort. So that might say that it's particular to me and not to all Intuitives. What do you think?

Yes, I have trouble, I need an assistant to implement those things in my life. I have no use for crap like that and then I pay the price when life hits me in the face. Normally I have the most problems with caring about Si crap.

I like to clean and I can keep things neat, but I usually can't force myself to pick my stuff up immediately or follow through immediately. I just clean when I can. Or I call a person back when I have made a plan to. I don't do stuff out of habit like that though. I wish I did.

For me, crap like routines is all about momentum. I forget to eat sometimes cause I am so focused on whatever I'm doing.

It's been affecting me more lately than ever though, so if you find out how to impliment some routine let me know!

 

[FDG]

Mmm. I usually "like" routines because they allow me to be "tranquil" and know how my day will pan out and thus other people will also be able to rely on me about being there at X or Y time of the day. That said, I only stick to them when my outside world is sufficiently predictable, otherwise they're useless.

Usually, if possible, I start working early (especially during the summer with longer days), then have a very quick lunch, go to the gym or do outside sports at midday, then back to working until 5.30-6, then grocery shopping and dinner.

 

[MacabreCharade]

Everyone has habits, although they tend to be less fixed in case of intuitives.

Put them in a rigid corporate setting and they usually have a permanent itch.

 

[Cellmold]

To echo what [MENTION=8936]highlander[/MENTION] said, I do have some areas of my day to day life that could be considered routine, but it's usually a work element that demands it.

As a rule I am generally bad with schedule and specific routine. I can do similar things for a while, but they always eventually taper off.

I don't really enjoy or see the point in a rigidly structured life, it seems constricting and removes the beautiful vitality I experience in going with the flow.

 

[Chad of the OttomanEmpire]

Well, I sure have trouble, but I am the stereotype of the Ne-using Perceiver.

About the only rituals I have are showering and brushing my teeth, and if you give me a day without an external structure, I'm liable to spend it drifting through ether.

I would hesitate to speculate on all other Ntuitives, though.

 

[RaptorWizard]

My life revolves around routines; when I'm taken out of my routines, it's quite annoying and difficult to adapt to the new flux - I pretty much suck at improvising with new situations and acting well within them.

Routines seem to make things more orderly, can help to refine old skills and maximize productions within the zones of focus.

Of course, it has its weaknesses, as outlined in the first sentence of my post.

 

[skylights]

I struggle very much to stick to a self-imposed schedule. I have very little internal discipline in that way. There essentially must be an external impetus to schedule my life. But, hey, Ne-dom and sp-last. I'm screwed in that category.

I think my ISFJ sp-first is better at self-regulation, but he too procrastinates, occasionally ditches his work, and enjoys his free time. He's better about regularly adhering to a steady morning routine before work than me. I use his routine as a way of shaping my own (this is why I love relationships with Js). Thinking about my family... ESFJ, INTP, ISTP... both IxTPs have specialized personal routines they stick to but the times they engage them might change, while the ESFJ is the most productive but I don't know that she actually actively schedules so much as she just happens to prefer being very productive and moving quickly from task to task. The only person I know who self-schedules fairly rigidly is an ENTJ.

I don't really think it's a S-N difference, in any case. I do think that Ss and Js are more likely to be time-aware, which may have an impact, but I don't know that they're always more motivated to self-schedule.

 

[Jaguar]

Routine=prison. I prefer to play it by ear.

 

[prplchknz]

I do if it's a routine done by someone else. but at the same time I plan out my day, and if anything veres off course I give up and do nothing. I don't like when my plans don't work out.

 

[Glycerine]

I don't do routines. It's more like a flexible timeline of what I want to do. I am clearly ENJ but highly structured routines and schedules stress me out.

 

[Randomnity]

I'm a non-intuitive who's horrible with routines, FWIW. The only routines I have are a couple that I've tried extremely hard to make into a habit, because otherwise I'd forget to do them entirely (like showering and brushing teeth).

I think this is more person-to-person variance than S-N. Or perhaps J-P plays a role, looking at the answers so far.

 

[five sounds]

I need to have flexibility, but without an external routine I'm a hopeless wanderer. A rigid routine will send me running for the hills lickety split.

Also, changing routines is helpful for me. I alternate lunch times every other day. I'll do things one way for a while and then re-create another way after a few weeks. Too long in even a flexible routine grates on me.

 

[the state i am in]

yeah, i don't know about intuitives per se.

head types don't like to be stuck in routines and have trouble following them, because they go so against the grain of their experience, which is sometimes so far away from the ground, that's for sure. body types like to have autonomy to make decisions. heart types want to feel like what they're doing is valuable, and they have an easier time when they are positively connected to others.

i don't think anyone likes routine to the point where it impinges on their desires without offering something more valuable in return. head types like learning, heart types like connecting, body types like deciding/acting.

intuitives might have more resistance to routines that promote intense cognitive dissonance. it's harder for them to stay in one one context, so they might be quicker to feel out of place, when those others contexts show this one in a way that simply no longer makes any fucking sense. S types rebel too, for sure, but it at its source is usually drawn from more local resources.

 

[brainheart]

heart types want to feel like what they're doing is valuable, and they have an easier time when they are positively connected to others.

I'd change valuable to meaningful, and I have an easier time when I'm feeling positively connected to what I'm doing, when it feels 'true' to me. But I'm also a Fi dom and a four.

I hate routine and suck at it. This isn't to say I don't have my things I do most days, but it depends entirely on how I feel day to day. It helps if I have an outwardly imposed goal to motivate me, but one where I can do whatever I feel like doing to achieve it. For example, a writing submission deadline or an impending art show. My time management skills are abysmal. I never pay attention to what time it is, which is kind of funny because I grew up in a house with multiple clocks in every room. Yes, my dad is an ISTJ. I think they (and ESTJs) are the most consistent type when it comes to time management and routine. ISFJs can be like that too.

 

[Totenkindly]

As a strong Ne, I have a lot of problem with routines -- I keep adjusting / adapting to the current situation rather than establishing hard lines.

It's something I am actually trying to work on, as it would help me be more productive as well as physically healthier if I can draw some harder lines for myself and not flex as much.

I find people who actually like routine naturally tend to feel more secure with them -- they actually have impetus to establish them and follow them. To me, they're not my preference and so I have to invest much more energy and commitment to get them in place.