Three weeks in a row. That's a trend.
I'm kind of surprised I've done this three weeks in a row now. What started as a whim as I was out hiking has turned into a little side project that is really helping me stick to my main amateur radio goal for 2025; learning and using CW.
Setting and sticking to specific routines have helped me improve myself over the years. While once I thought it was silly and weird to go through an intentional morning or evening routine; I've grown to fully imbrace the concept for it has helped me grow and improve.
Adding LCWO.net to my morning routine.
As I take my first sips of coffee, I've been spending about 10 minutes using the LCWO.net website to practice copying code. I really like this website.
Sterling N0SSC made a great YouTube video a few years back. I set up my practice session based on his recommendations. I set the length of each practice round to be 1 minute long. I like that amount, for it is not an overwhelming amount of time to hold my focus and it makes it easy ro track progress.
When I see how many sessions I completed in a day, week, month, etc. I know how many minutes I spent copying code. I find about 5 sessions will take me about 10 minutes with start time and time spent reviewing my results. So my routine is to do at least five sessions in the morning.
Skip a day but never two.
For me personally, and I'm sure many others, one of the biggest reasons why I failed to stick to something is missing a few days. Whether it's sticking to a budget, sticking to a diet, getting exercise, etc. I am good as starting strong. But as soon as a miss a few days, the habit stops cold.
I picked up the mantra of "skip a day but never two" from a hiker who was training for a through hike of the Appalachian Trail. For him taking a rest day now and then was well & good, but taking several days off is how it would end. I have been applying that philosophy ever since.