How to make your routine life interesting?

Ever have the feeling that you've been switched to autopilot? Maybe you're coasting through a too-familiar routine: shower, coffee, work, sandwich, work, gym, home, dinner, TV, sleep. "Habits and patterns of behavior make us feel comfortable".

While comfort is fine, straying off your well-worn path can give you a boost -- and bring more color and spirit into your life in the long term. "Once you stop numbing out and become more aware of whether you're happy or unhappy, comfortable or uncomfortable in specific situations, you'll stop going with the flow - and start dictating the flow of your life." Consider if you're experiencing any of these rut symptoms:

▼Your eating, exercise and work routines are carved in stone. Always run the same route? Eat the same salad for lunch most days of the week? I offer some motivation for mixing up your routine: "Any little thing that disrupts your pattern provides a wake-up call and helps you be more present in your life."

Little shifts can work like a battery pack to energize your life. Hit the gym at a different time of day, get a slightly different haircut every time you visit the salon, or move your bed across the room so you wake up with a new perspective. "Even just making a special breakfast on a weekday instead of Sunday will help you tune into the choices you usually make without thinking."