E179: Creating Powerful Rituals Through Mundane Activities

I am recovering from feeling under the weather so I’m a little congested and sound different this week. Since feeling sick, I’ve had a lot of time to rest. And although I haven’t been keeping up with all my healthy habits or regular routines, I have been really aware of the mundane actions I do daily. I’ve become very present through this recovery time and have noticed a lot about how I do things…

[01:03] Most of our daily lives are automated. We wake up with the same alarm or sound, we get out of bed the exact same way every day, we walk to the shower the same, brush our teeth with the same hand, pour and drink our morning bevy the same way every time.

These are only a few examples of the many automatic, and mundane activities we do every day. Some other examples: sitting down at our desk and opening our laptops or turning on our computers, putting clothes in the washer and then moving them to the dryer. Setting the dinner table. The list goes on. I’m sure you can think of a few mundane actions you do every day, we all have them!

As you know I am a Healthy Habit Mentor and I help women create powerful habits, routines, and rituals so they can show up as better leaders and make a lasting impact on the world.

When I speak to rituals specially, people often ask me, “Does every habit have to be a ritual?” To which I respond, “Only if you want to have a more meaningful life.” And I usually have a cheeky grin on my face. Truthfully, no. Not every habit has to be a ritual, however I strongly recommend creating powerful rituals for some of the more mundane daily activities we do.

By the way, if you’re interested in diving deeper into habits and rituals, listen to episode 163 where I talk about the differences between the two!

E163: Habits vs Rituals

If we don’t HAVE to create rituals around all of our habits, then why create rituals for the mundane and automatic habits anyway?

Because these mundane activities are completely automatic and we do them daily. If we want to grow and evolve, we need to take steps out of our comfort zone–often!

If we don’t, we will continue to live an automated life, with no change, no growth, no evolution, and no surprises.

If we want to be the elevated versions of ourselves, we can do this by raising our energetic vibration. Creating rituals for little things we do daily is an EASY way to achieve this.

When our energy is heightened in this way; when we vibrate at a higher frequency, we are usually connected to feelings of gratitude, happiness, joy, appreciation, love, and self-worth. This elevated energy attracts more of what we are grateful for, and more high frequency people, experiences, and opportunities.

The same Universal law applies when we are vibrating at a low frequency. We attract low-vibration people, experiences, and opportunities.

[04:23] Creating rituals for mundane daily activities makes life more meaningful. It reminds us to take pleasure in the small things. It connects us to the present moment, the environment we’re in, the people we’re around.

When we are mindful in the small actions, we learn to be mindful when life is fast and big too! The way we do one habit, is how we do all of our habits, so why not start small?

Being present with our bodies and environment is a life-changing practice. When we are present, we become embodied in the moment. Being embodied in the moment allows us to make better decisions and choices to fulfill our goals, respond with our hearts, and live a more meaningful life.

[05:14] Here’s a practice to help you create powerful rituals through mundane activities:

Start by asking yourself the following questions:

“What does being present in my body mean to me?”

“When are the times that I feel most embodied or in my body?”

“What about those experiences helps me to be present in my body?”

“What is a mundane activity I do regularly in which I can practice embodying awakened presence?

Whether you chose to journal or meditate on those questions, reflect on your answers. What insights or clues did your response reveal to you? What ONE ritual and mundane activity can you start with in the next 24 hours?

[06:06] Let’s apply this with some a real life example:

Some of you may already know about my daily intention ritual. Every morning when I’m making my daily coffee or tea, I stir my intention of the day into my cup. That’s basically what I’m doing but here’s the full ritual…

I thoughtfully choose the mug I want to drink in, and collect the other ingredients and tools I will need. For this intention ritual I use a special spoon, and usually the same ingredients depending on the drink. Today I made tea.
While the water boils (or while the coffee brews) I think about what I have on my agenda that day. Today I have some computer/admin work, one or two calls, and some errands to run. I’m also not feeling so well so I take how I’m feeling or how I slept the night before into consideration.
As I pour the warm beverage into the mug I begin to stir counterclockwise for as long as I need to, there is no specific amount of times I stir for this part of the ritual. The counterclockwise motion is a symbol of removing the stillness and stagnation from the night before, the disease and discomfort in my body, and any other low-vibration feelings I want to let go of as I begin this new day.
Then I add in the milk or honey or whatever ingredients I haven’t already added to the beverage. Today I stirred Manuka honey into my Lemon Ginger tea. I stir clockwise three times and silently affirm the intention for the day. Sometimes I say it out loud. I usually choose one word as my intention, and I imagine the word/the feeling stirring into the beverage and “dissolving” into it. I seal the ritual with a pentacle aka I star and then I clean all the tools before taking a sip of my tea or coffee.
As I drink the tea or coffee, the intention/word enters my body and I embody this with each sip, and each part of my day. Today my word is healing. For me, this means pacing myself and taking things off my to do list. It means rest. It means drinking fluids. It means listening to my body and checking in throughout the day.

{08:32} Even though I’ve taken time to explain this particular ritual in detail, it is actually VERY simple and I was already making a warm drink every morning, I just added the intention setting part and the stirring pattern. That simple change has become a powerful ritual for this once mundane activity. I’ve shared this ritual on the podcast as well as my social media before and I now have people sharing their morning beverage and how they stir their intention or feeling word into their tea, coffee, or blend it into their morning smoothies! I love it!

Speaking of sharing rituals, I would LOVE for you to share YOUR powerful rituals with me! Take a screenshot of this episode and tag me on instagram @vallavignelife OR take a photo or video of your ritual and tag me in that! I really enjoy seeing how you apply these

[09:38] Oh also! Last week I chatted with my coach Robyn Gooding on the podcast and the episode was all about Embodiment Practices for Building a Better Business & Life

E178: Embodiment Practices for Building a Better Business & Life with Robyn Gooding

That is all for this week, now it’s time for YOU to take action. You can relisten to this episode of the reflection questions, or get them on the show notes page and start creating those new rituals. Start with ONE you can do in the next 24 hours and work on that for as long as you need before stacking other rituals.

Podcast Host

Valerie LaVigne

Valerie is the creator and founder of Valerie LaVigne Life and the Women's Empowerment Show. She helps busy and empowered women create healthy habits so that they can become the best version of themselves and transform their lives. Learn more about Valerie here!