What determines whether you have a bad day or a good day? I know that one of the best things I have done for myself has been to create a morning routine. This prevents me from wandering off outside like an Alzheimer's patient and never coming back. It has also helped me strengthen a few weak personal habits (always being late) and when I follow the routine, it seems that my days go by more smoothly.
The truth is, everybody HAS a morning routine, but many people are not intentional about creating a positive, effective routine that will help them grow as a person. Here are a few reasons why you should get out a sheet of paper and plan out the first two (if not more) hours of your day.
The truth is, everybody HAS a morning routine, but many people are not intentional about creating a positive, effective routine that will help them grow as a person. Here are a few reasons why you should get out a sheet of paper and plan out the first two (if not more) hours of your day.
1. You increase your daily productivity.
"Many people overestimate what they can do in a day, and vastly underestimate what they can do in a year."
I do not know the source of this quote, but it is an often used motivational phrase. This problem of perspective is one of the reasons we tend to give up when we fail to accomplish something we have set out to do.
A set morning routine will assure you that you have taken care of all necessary business BEFORE you go to work, or school, or attend to the rest of your day. You can take incremental steps forward if you know to plan things in advance.
For example, if you decide to make breakfast a priority in your morning routine, you will make it easier for yourself to establish good eating habits for the rest of your day. This, in turn, will help you determine your level of health for the year.
A set morning routine will assure you that you have taken care of all necessary business BEFORE you go to work, or school, or attend to the rest of your day. You can take incremental steps forward if you know to plan things in advance.
For example, if you decide to make breakfast a priority in your morning routine, you will make it easier for yourself to establish good eating habits for the rest of your day. This, in turn, will help you determine your level of health for the year.
2. You foster a sense of security.
When YOU determine your morning priorities, you create a sense of control in your life. Now, I am not saying that you should become a control freak and schedule your entire morning down to the minute. I am saying that a few key touchstone points of continuity will help you be grounded even in situations that are outside your ordinary frames of experience.
For example, I get up and make coffee first thing in the morning. By the time I have used the bathroom and put my contacts in, it is done. I then proceed to sip my coffee for the remainder of my morning activities. My coffee habit grounds me (WHAT A PUN) and is something that I can continue even when I'm on vacation or doing something out of the ordinary.
For example, I get up and make coffee first thing in the morning. By the time I have used the bathroom and put my contacts in, it is done. I then proceed to sip my coffee for the remainder of my morning activities. My coffee habit grounds me (WHAT A PUN) and is something that I can continue even when I'm on vacation or doing something out of the ordinary.
3. You make more intentional choices for the rest of the day.
If you get up and feel like you're flying by the seat of your pants, the rest of the day is likely to knock you around a bit. You won't quite be able to recover from that position of being reactive instead of proactive. Having the security of that morning routine contributes to your sense of personal responsibility.
All successful people are proactive. They go after things. They don't subscribe to a victim mentality.
If you are struggling with finding willpower in some area of your life, then you probably don't have your morning routine in the bag. When you start the day with a set goal in mind, you are much more likely to reach it than if you just strike out on a whim.
All successful people are proactive. They go after things. They don't subscribe to a victim mentality.
If you are struggling with finding willpower in some area of your life, then you probably don't have your morning routine in the bag. When you start the day with a set goal in mind, you are much more likely to reach it than if you just strike out on a whim.
4. You get in the "groove" more easily.
I don't know about you, but I love those days where everything seems to run smoothly; where transitions go off without a hitch; where the kids are well-behaved and the dog doesn't poop on the floor.
Those days are few and far between when you don't have a morning routine. Dogs and children need you to have a morning routine. They don't know how to create their own.
Everyone from artists to zookeepers knows that finding that flow is the key to doing satisfactory work. No matter how difficult the task, if you are groovin', you are experiencing happy feelings. Morning routines make these days much more attainable by taking away the resistance of decision-making.
Those days are few and far between when you don't have a morning routine. Dogs and children need you to have a morning routine. They don't know how to create their own.
Everyone from artists to zookeepers knows that finding that flow is the key to doing satisfactory work. No matter how difficult the task, if you are groovin', you are experiencing happy feelings. Morning routines make these days much more attainable by taking away the resistance of decision-making.
Want to know the secret to working out at 5 am?
Make it a part of your morning routine. Pretty soon, you won't have to argue with yourself for 20 minutes while you struggle to get out of bed. You just do it.
Want to know the secret to getting to work on time?
Make and stick to a morning routine. You can plan in advance the specific time you need to leave the house. Then, if you are like me, you leave 15 minutes earlier than that time because you get distracted easily.
Want to know the secret to a great marriage?
Plan a morning routine together. Then you will always start your day intentionally. Loving your spouse is all about intention.
Go think about your morning routine.
It could probably be improved. Be intentional about it. Take time to do the things that matter. Set your priorities and then follow through with intentional actions. Your day will be better.
100% GUARANTEED
100% GUARANTEED
