We are all creatures of habit, and in many cases, this implies bad habits. In sport, coaches use the phrase 'muscle memory' to describe how constant practice can allow athletes to carry out complex physical routines without conscious effort. If we can develop mental muscle memory to perform routine tasks repeatedly and effectively we can hugely increase our productivity and efficiency as teachers.
We therefore need to think about our habits in a different way. They don't just 'happen'; they can be changed, and they can be created. By tackling routine tasks in a routine way, we can strengthen our mental muscle memory and do them semi-automatically. Less effort. Less stress.
If you spend a little more time analysing 'what' you do and be prepared to vary 'how' you do it, you can start to lose your old habits and develop new ones. This is fundamental in good time management.
Now, this web-page is NOT a part of the Background section of the website, it is part of the Techniques section. This implies that you should not simply be aware of your habits, you actually need to DO something about them. You should spend a little time - we are talking about 1-2 hours - thinking about what you physically do in your non-contact time (though this technique may also be of use in your actual teaching). We are not talking about abstract concepts here, but physical actions: for example, when you do 'differentiation', does that involve photocopying additional worksheets, downloading extra resources, producing different marking criteria, or writing a different-numbered exercises on the whiteboard, or...what?? When you are clear in your own mind what you are actually doing - physically, not theoretically - consider 'what is the best - efficient and effective - way to do it'. When you have identified your 'best way' make it a habit. Don't vary or experiment or tweak or alternate: stick with one basic way of doing things until it becomes automatic. Then you can consider variation and improvement.
For more information on modifying habits, read on here.