Your morning can have a bigger effect on your day than you might think. Now, I’m not saying you need to wake up at 5 a.m., meditate for an hour, work out, drink a green smoothie, and somehow manage to read half a book before 7 a.m. Those are not the morning habits I am talking about.
I am talking about adding a few simple morning habits to your routine that won’t only make you more productive but will also make you happier.
1. Wake Up Early
I know, I know. Nobody wants to hear that they should wake up earlier.
But hear me out.
Waking up early doesn’t mean you have to become one of those people who happily wake up at 5 a.m (Although if you want to try, here is an article on how to) while the rest of the world is sleeping. The point is simply to give yourself enough time in the morning so that you don’t have to immediately rush into the rest of your day.
When you wake up with enough time to shower, eat, get dressed, and actually breathe before you have somewhere to be, the vibe of your morning will completely change.
You also get some time that belongs entirely to you before the world asks things of you. Before you have to go to work, attend school, or run errands.
2. Journal
If you have been on this blog for more than a minute, you know that I am a big advocate for journaling. Journaling is one of my keystone morning habits. I think that it is a catalyst for anything you want to do in your life. It helps you organize your thinking and, therefore, clears your head.
Every morning you wake up with thoughts already running through your head, and journaling helps you slow down your thoughts so that you can focus on the day ahead.
You don’t need to write three pages every morning or have a beautifully decorated journal. You just need to put your thoughts on paper. There are so many different ways to journal. And if you don’t know where to start, read this step-by-step guide where I walk you through how to start journaling:
3. Dance
One of the best things I have done to increase my happiness is creating a playlist with all the happy songs I used to listen to when I was a kid. I listen to it as soon as I wake up. And if I’m not feeling up to it immediately after waking up, I’ll play that bad boy after my shower. So, when I’m getting ready, I am blasting Little Mix songs and feeling like I’m at a concert.
This has done wonders for my happiness. I leave the house feeling like the bad bitch I am.
The lady on TikTok who said sometimes when you’re sad all you need to do is shake your ass was onto something.
You don’t have to be a good dancer either; I certainly am not. All you need to do is move your body and sing along to your favourite songs.
The point isn’t really the dancing. It’s about giving yourself an opportunity to feel good before the responsibilities of the day begin. You don’t have to earn happiness by finishing your to-do list first. You’re allowed to have fun before you’ve accomplished anything.
4. Give Yourself a Compliment
This is a spin-off of Mel Robbins’ habit of giving yourself a high five every morning. I believe that you should give yourself a compliment every morning before you walk out that door.
The compliment doesn’t have to be about your appearance. You could compliment yourself on how hard you have been working, how well you handled something difficult yesterday, how kind you were to someone, how you’re taking care of yourself, or simply something you like about your personality.
The important thing is that you start your day by saying something kind to yourself.
Most of us are already pretty good at noticing what we’re doing wrong. We notice when we’re behind, when we procrastinated, when we didn’t exercise, when we said the wrong thing, or when we don’t look the way we want to.
That is why I need you to flip the script first thing in the morning. You should acknowledge what is good about you and your life. The world will try to knock you down, so I need you to be your biggest cheerleader.
5. Do Something That Makes You Happy
Before fulfilling all your responsibilities and obligations, you need to do something that makes you happy. Do something that feeds your soul. It doesn’t have to be productive. In fact, I think that’s the point.
You could watch an episode of your favourite show, sit outside with your coffee, listen to music, dance, read, talk to someone you love, do your hobby, or sit in silence and enjoy having nowhere to be for a few minutes.
When your entire day is structured around things you have to do, it can start to feel like your life is just one long list of obligations. Committing to doing something you genuinely enjoy as one of your morning habits serves to remind you that your life isn’t only about what you need to accomplish. It is also about joy and rest.
6. Get Some Sunlight
Getting some natural light in the morning is one of those simple things that can be surprisingly beneficial.
Your body has an internal clock, called your circadian rhythm, that helps regulate when you feel awake and when you feel sleepy. Light is one of the signals your body uses to keep that clock on track.
Getting bright light in the morning can help signal to your brain that it is time to be alert, while exposure to darkness later in the day helps signal that it is time to wind down. Morning light can therefore help support a healthy sleep-wake rhythm.
You don’t need to turn this into another complicated wellness routine. You can just sit near a sunny window, have your coffee outside, or take a short walk around the block.
The goal is simply to let yourself experience some natural light at the beginning of your day.
7. Write Down Your Top 3 Priorities
Instead of waking up and immediately reacting to whatever happens to come your way, take a few minutes to decide what you actually want to accomplish. You need to map out your day so that you can spend your time doing things that truly matter.
One way to do this is by choosing your top three priorities for the day. These are the three things that would make you feel like you had a productive day if you got them done.
It doesn’t have to be three huge tasks, either. The point is to give yourself some direction without overwhelming yourself with a massive to-do list. You don’t need to know exactly how every minute of your day is going to go. Just know what matters most, and make sure you make time for it.
You don’t need a complicated morning routine to have a better day. Sometimes, the smallest things can make a difference. You don’t have to try to add all 7 morning habits into your morning routine. So pick a few morning habits that work for you, make them your own, and see what happens.
Thank you so much for reading.
If you want to elevate your relationship with yourself, get my book: No Bullsh*t Guide to Self-love, here.
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