Morning Routine: Establish a Positive Attitude First Thing
My morning routine is sacred. I learned early on that unless I make self-care a priority first thing in the morning, chances are I won’t take care of myself at all.
Did you know that the first seven minutes of your morning determine your mood for the entire day? Because of that fact, I actually made some significant changes to my morning routine recently.
Like most people, I would grab my phone first thing. I’d find myself mindlessly scrolling social media without really connecting with anything I was seeing for nearly an hour. Also, Myra, my business partner and bff, lives in Amsterdam. By time I wake up, she’s already been awake and working for 6ish hours. Without fail, I’d see a work notification on my phone right when I went to turn off my alarm, and that was it. Despite Myra in no way expecting a response from me until I “log in” at 7AM, I’d send over a quick reply. From sleeping to working in .025 seconds. No bueno.
I’ll be honest, submerging myself in social media first thing would leave me feeling empty, jealous, or down right annoyed. What an awesome attitude to start the day with. I found myself hitting snooze more than I liked. Unintentionally, I started to let my mornings slip away from me. I felt unmotivated, agitated, and unproductive.
So I decided to refocus my mornings, which really starts with something I do from the night before.
Before I go to bed, I put my phone on airplane mode.
My Morning Routine:
5:30 AM: The alarm goes off. I hit play on the episode of Rick Warren’s Daily Hope podcast that I would have made sure to download the night before. I get out of bed and get my cup of coffee. I usually sit at the kitchen counter with my coffee while I listen to the episode.
Making quiet time with God a priority first thing in the morning helps me maintain a grateful and positive attitude throughout the day.
6:00AM: Me time. I give myself about 45 minutes to do whatever I want. This typically includes journaling, reading blogs, and/or watching youtube videos. Since I was in HS, I’ve allotted myself time to ease into my day. Rushing stresses me out.
6:45 AM: Get ready. I shower at night, so I quickly splash some makeup on my face and figure something out with my hair. Remember: I work from home, so I don’t always put in the most effort here unless I have a meeting.
7:00AM: Log on. This is when I take my phone off of airplane mode. I log in to Slack and Asana and check in with Myra. At this point, I start my workday.
Starting my day without immediately being plugged in has made all the difference. Since I don’t take my phone off airplane mode until it’s time to work, I spend less time on social media as a whole. As a result, my mood is much less affected by outside forces and instead I’m able to maintain joy from within.
