Create a Morning Routine that GIVES You Time…

When you lay down at night do you ever have the unshakable feeling that you wasted a day? That everything you hoped to complete was thrown off the table or the ONE thing you hoped to get done, didn’t?! Have you ever considered what a morning routine could do for you?

The thing about a morning routine is not so much the ability to check a few boxes right off the bat or an ability to claim you have one, as much as it is about putting what is most important to you at the top of your list.

I have tried many morning routines that just don’t stick. They would work for a while and then I seem to fall off track. However, what I see now is the routine I was trying to implement was created from someone else’s priorities. Not only that, but routines often change with the seasons.

For example, it doesn’t make sense for me to walk the dog first thing in the morning during December, January, February and March where I live. For starters, it’s dark. Additionally, it’s cold so the dog refuses to indulge me with this routine, which then becomes more of a battle than an accomplishment. To top it off I simply don’t find joy in it during these months.

When considering a morning routine, it’s important to identify what you are looking to gain from it. It helps you create efficiency in your day and priorities. Here are a few questions to help guide you in discovering the perfect morning routine for you:

1) What feeling you are looking to gain?

I desire to feel as if my day is beginning productively and that I feel calm and connected to myself. When the weather is decent, a walk with the dog helps me feel as if I’ve already incorporated movement into my day (health is one of my top 5 values) and I know the dog will be more likely to be calm and rest when I sit down to work. In the winter, journaling with a snuggly blanket and cup of tea is more my style.

2) What goal are you trying to reach that gets lost once your day begins?

I know if I get past 1:00 without exercising the likelihood of it happening is close to 20%… at best. I get too deep into daily tasks and family needs and activities to expect it to happen. Not to mention, my energy is at it’s lowest in the evening further guaranteeing I won’t feel like exercising.

3) What 1 thing could gain you time, energy, and help kickstart your day or make everything easier?

A small glass of water with my supplements before a cup of coffee helps me a) remember to take my supplements and b) adds a little hydration back into my body that was lost over the last 8 hours of sleep.

4) Can you do something that reminds you: YOU come first on your to do list?

I’ll admit, this one has taken me some time to practice. Typically I put everyone else’s needs first. A lot of times this is simply nourishing myself. I will make lunches, begin work, care for the animals and check in with my family before eating breakfast, which sometimes leads to me not eating. Talk about the domino effect later - exhaustion, moodiness (hello hangry mama), fuzzy headedness, inability to concentrate, and more. Simply having breakfast prepared the night before as a quick grab, or taking a few minutes in the morning to make a bowl of oatmeal goes a long ways.

5) What one thing would make you feel your day was a success?

What is that one thing that would make you smile when you close your eyes at the end of the day knowing that you did it? If everything goes sideways, as life does, what is that “task” that will make you feel the day was still a success? For me, it’s taking time for myself. It could be a walk, time to journal, time to write or create, movement, or a quiet reflective cup of coffee or tea. One way or another I have to intentionally know that each morning I have 15 minutes to create space for myself. It’s a challenge and a practice to remember to put my needs at the top of the list, but at the end of the day - especially the difficult ones - I can always say I did something for me.

The goal of a morning routine is to help you make the most of your time for the things that provide you with energy and a feeling of taking charge of your day for the things that deeply matter to you. (see the pattern there?!) Give yourself permission to make a morning routine work for YOU. It will be challenging to maintain if you are not personally connected to it because you’ve taken someone else’s routine and tried to make it yours. Putting items at the top of your list that are not aligned with what you value will not gain you time so much as cost you time.

It would be like attempting to make another person’s retainer fit your mouth. Your alignment will not be the same as theirs.

Not to mention that’s pretty gross~