Your Morning Routine, Does It Set You Up For Success?

I used to get up every morning at the last minute, rush through the shower, look through my unorganized closet for something to wear and run out the door at the last minute, praying that Southern California traffic wouldn’t be too bad. If the traffic wasn’t bad I might have time to drive through a fast food restaurant to grab a bite to eat & eat it in the car on the way to work.

The rest of my day was crazy, chaotic and stressful.  I was always tired, stressed and anxious.  Too much to do, not enough time or energy to get through it all.  And, if I had a bad morning, the rest of the day just spiraled from bad to worse.

Can you relate to this?

 
One of the many things I have learned since becoming a coach is the way you start your day, generally dictates the way the rest of your day will go, which translates into the way your life will go.

 
It wasn’t until I became a health coach that I was introduced to the concept of a morning routine that not only includes regular hygiene and grooming the body, it also includes mind and spirit.  At first I didn’t think I had time for this.  Now, I make time.  I have learned when I make time for a morning practice that includes mind, body and spirit, my day goes much smoother.  I am more focused, more productive, I think clearer and have more energy.  I get more done and I am more successful in all my tasks.  This makes me happy.  On days (which are rare) that I do not get to do my morning routine, I feel edgy and I’m not as focused.  

How can you set yourself up for success?  I recently read a book called The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod.  This book reaffirmed to me how important the morning routine is for success in your life.  The author has some specific steps he recommends for the readers for their morning routine.  However, you can create your own very powerful routine just by asking yourself one question:  What actions can I take every morning to improve my life?  Take a moment of quiet time and journal this question and see what comes up.  Keep your list short, and to begin, don’t spend very much time on each item.  If meditation comes up for you, you can benefit greatly from it in just 1 minute each day.  Start with a few items for a short amount of time and build on that.  Make sure you have at least one item for your mind, body and spirit.  Set your alarm for a few minutes earlier and take action.  I know, you already get up so early you don’t want to get up any earlier.  Trust me.  If you will just take an additional 10 minutes to feed your mind, body and spirit, the impact will be tremendous.

Are you thinking, you already have trouble getting up now, how can you possibly get up earlier?  Just 10 minutes. Set yourself up the night before.  You may be doing something in the morning that you can do at night instead.  You may not even need to get up earlier to fit in a 10 minute practice.  However, if this is not the case, make sure you are mentally prepared to get up earlier.  You may need to go to bed a few minutes earlier and your thoughts prior to going to sleep can have a huge impact on how you feel when you get up.  Set the intention, as you are falling asleep, to wake up rested and energized and ready to start your day.  Get out of bed as soon as the alarm goes off and begin your morning routine.

My routine can vary depending on how early I have appointments, but the non-negotiables are drinking a large glass of water as soon as I wake up, prayer, meditation or just a moment of silence if I am in a rush.  On the days I don’t have early appointments I add journaling, and exercise.  I also make sure I have things in the house and already prepared for a quick healthy breakfast.  You will see tremendous benefits by incorporating just these few minutes each day.  

If this sounds like something you want to implement, but you are already tired and burned out and the thought of something else in your schedule overwhelms you, click here now and schedule your What’s Possible For You Discovery Session, where we will chat about what you want and how to get it without adding to the tired, burned-out, overwhelmed feelings you already have.

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