Hello Everyone!
Today, we will be covering the importance of maintaining a morning routine. As a college student, I know first-hand the temptation of staying asleep until the last possible moment, but honestly that doesn’t set you up for the best day. I have found that on the days that I wake up early and take my time completing my morning routine I can get a lot more done. One trick that I use is that the night before I will select an easy assignment that is due the next and save it to be completed in the morning. This gives me a sense of urgency when I wake up and forces me to get out of bed because I know that I am on a time crunch. While this won’t work for most people it is very helpful for me.
So, to begin let’s start with the night before.
The Night Before
I’m sure you’ve heard it from many places, but preparing for a successful morning routine starts the night before. There are a few things that you can do that will make your morning a little easier. All of these tasks can easily be implemented into your night routine. Not only do they make your life easier in the morning, but they also make it a lot easier to sleep because you aren’t worrying about what you have to do tomorrow because you have already made steps to prepare for the day.
- Clean your space.
- Write out a to-do list.
- Try to go to bed at a reasonable time.
- Make sure to set multiple alarms.
- Have your day planned out.
- Leave your phone in a different room.
One final tip that I have for the night before is to keep a journal or piece of paper next to the bed. That way if you think of anything that you need to do in the middle of the night you can easily jot it down without even getting out of bed.
What is Most Important to You?
It is important to recognize what you want to include in your morning routine. No one has the same goals for the morning and therefore your routine must adapt to you. Below are a few suggestions from my own routine but feel free to change this to fit your own schedule and habits.
- Wake Up
This is the absolute hardest part of my morning routine. I always have trouble getting up when my alarm rings. A few things that I have done to try and combat this is I set two alarms. One on my phone and the other on an alarm clock across my room. The alarm on my alarm clock is the latest time that I can get up because I am forced to walk across the room and turn it off, so it is sure to wake me up. It is also a good idea to set two alarms on your phone a few minutes apart just in case you accidentally turn off your first alarm in your sleep. It might sound funny, but I am speaking from experience.
Another tip regarding waking up is to always wake up at the same time no matter if it is a weekend or a weekday. By maintaining this schedule, it makes it much easier to wake up and get ready for the day.
- Make Your Bed
While it may seem like a simple task making your bed allows you to accomplish your first task of the day.
- Do Something for You
Without a consistent morning routine, I tend to jump right into my homework or work that I have to get done. But this can be very stressful. Taking at least 15 minutes to read or make a coffee can make a huge difference.
- Make Breakfast
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Even eating something small is better than nothing at all. Coffee is not enough to get you through until lunch. A few of my favorite breakfasts for busy days include cereal, yogurt, and oatmeal. You can also find some great easy breakfasts to meal prep on Pinterest. This is another thing that you can do the night before to get ready for the morning.
- Utilize a Habit Tracking App
There are several apps that can be used to track your routine. For example, check out the Habit Tracker app in the apple store. These are great because you can input your habits and make sure that you are keeping up with them. They can also send you reminders to keep you accountable.
Find What’s Best for You
This article from CNN gives even more examples of habits that you might want to implement into your routine. Make sure to choose habits that will benefit YOU!
It’s Your Routine
While these are the basic elements that need to be included in your routine you also need to remember that your morning routine must reflect you. Everyone has different priorities when they get out of bed and your routine needs to reflect that. Maybe start by creating a list of things that you want to include in your routine and then taking it from there.
Hopefully this blog will help you to get started in implementing a morning routine. It really does make a huge difference in your entire day!
See you next week!
Maria
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