On Routines

Just a quick piece of advice for you today, as I'm writing this shortly before I head out the door for the holiday weekend.

Most days when I wake up I go through the first hour or so of my day in the same manner. After I feed the cat and do the standard hygiene stuff I spend some time on my computer while I eat breakfast. It's a very basic routine but I've done it nearly every day for years now.

Today I had to rush out the door for a meeting without my normal half hour breakfast and grabbed a bite on the road. It made the whole day feel somewhat off. I'm sure many of you who are on the road for the holidays feel the same way about missing your own individual routines.

For some of you it may not be breakfast at the computer. It may be a quick nap when you get home from work, a yoga routine, a smoke break or an afternoon snack. But most of you do have at least a few minutes of the day when you do something that makes your day feel normal. Before you go apartment hunting it's important to get a strong picture in your mind of what your routine is.
Back when I worked as an agent I would often work with renters who had a hard time deciding between multiple apartments. I would recommend that they think about how they would complete their normal routines in each apartment. One of the group would usually emerge as the place that seemed most suitable for those daily habits.

RentConfident can provide you with the facts about each apartment and landlord on your short list of apartments. But when you do your research and find that all of the landlords are pretty much the same, it's time to take a more personal and practical approach.

A pretty apartment might wow your friends but if you can't live in it comfortably there's no point in paying all that money for it. Rather than focusing on the appearance of an apartment, give some thought to how awkward it feels to be separated from your usual routines, and seek out the place where you'll be able to make each day feel right for you.