“I pressed snooze on my alarm clock and then went back to sleep for another hour.”
Sadly, that’s what I told my buddy at the gym. I barely make it on time for my BJJ class at noon. I’m somehow always late and I never start my day off right.
I’ve never had a solid morning routine. I’m a proud night owl. I typically wake up just in time to chug a coffee before heading out the door. I’m tired of waking up and rushing. I want to to continue being a night owl. I just want to jumpstart my day so that I get started on the right foot. The first hour of your day is important so that you don’t loiter for the rest of the day.
I used to always brag about how I didn’t need sleep. Now that I’m training with heavy weights (heavy-ish), kettlebells and BJJ, I need more sleep than ever before.
Today’s article is for me and for you guys. It’s time to think of the most complete morning routine to attack the day. If you’re having trouble with sleeping, then you need to read up on finally getting some damn rest.
What did my friends have to say about their morning routines?
I reached out through a few Facebook groups to find out what others did as a morning routine. Below are the results…
Amy Dix: My wake up time depends on if I teach group classes early. If yes then I get up at 4AM, make a very quick breakfast and coffee and eat it on the way. Then I get back home at 7, get the kids ready for school, drop them off, then go train clients. My own workout usually happens after a quick lunch.
Tanner Baze:
Wake up at 4:00.
Large 32oz of water followed immediately by coffee.
Check emails/messages from clients.
Read or write for 30 minutes if messages haven’t taken long.
Work at 5:30.
Kristen Perillo:
Pee.
Shower/makeup/hair.
Feed herd (I have 5 pets).
Feed me.
Coffee and news/online reading.
I actually really think a routine is the only way to get all that done and start the day focused. I do a lot the night before, too, though, like pack meals, prep coffee maker, etc.
Jackie Beck: I wake up, delete all of the emails that I don’t actually need to respond to, eat breakfast, walk the dog (and myself!), then work for a few hours.
Kia Khadem:
Headspace.
Coffee.
Read for an hour before checking phone.
Workout.
Greg Mikolap: Coffee, writing sessions and planning my day.
Athena Lent: Wake up, yell 5 more minutes several times, coffee, hit the gym, get ready for work.
Teresa Mears Wake up, eat breakfast while reading newspaper, check for urgent email, work on websites, go to gym.
Todd R. Tresidder: My wife and I alternate workout days with getting breakfast done and the kids off to school. I do family mornings on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and workout Monday Wednesday Friday. She does the opposite. The next 3 hours are dedicated to writing my next book and product development. I used to try to squeeze it between client calls but it never got done, so now I block out my mornings from clients and do only personal/product development. It is finally getting done now. That which you prioritize first is what gets done.
The order of priority is clear from my actions – family, health, and personal/business development.
Fahima Marissa: Wake up, do yoga for 15mins, check email over breakfast and (if I’m on the road) head out the door, otherwise boot up my laptop and start working.
Erin Painter Baker: I leave the house before anyone else is awake, no matter what time of year.
Alarm goes off. I get up and take the dogs out. Use the bathroom. Make my lunch for the day. Make and eat breakfast. Brush teeth and do hair. Feed the dogs. Get dressed (outfits almost always determined the night before). Kiss the hubby goodbye (without waking him), peek in kid(s) room(s) to say goodbye/have a good day, even if they aren’t awake. Pack my work bag. Leave the house.
Mark Greutman: I’d have to get up before 6 to have any kind of morning routine. 4 kids aged 1 to 9 kinda messes with any routine revolving around my own needs… and while it would be good to get up before 6, I just don’t.
Lauren Greutman: My mornings look like this – Mark Greutman usually sending one of the kids up to wake me up because I am still sleeping. Lots of coffee and snuggles. I would love to workout more.
Michelle Jackson: I wake up at 4:30 in the morning. Journal, meditate, focus on vision board, write down my affirmations, walk in the park at 6:00 a.m. and then hit the gym. Get back home around 7:30 a.m. Get dressed and ready to rock my work by 8:00 a.m.-I work from home now.
Kate Dore: Mornings are my most productive time of day. I prefer to wake up before 6:00 AM, have a cup of coffee, a proper breakfast, and create something before heading to my day job around 9:30 AM. During this time, I typically start writing a blog post or freelance writing assignment. I also read articles, write copy, and schedule content for my social media channels.
Miranda Marquit: Generally I wake up, get the Crio Bru going while I delete emails and set up my day. Get my son off to school or make my son start his music practice (depending on time of year). Then I exercise for 30 minutes, clean up, and get to work.
Cat Alford: My morning is different every day. Usually feeding babies sometime around 5 am and then they go back to sleep. Then usually up at 7:00 again with babies and take care of them until I get help at 9 at which point I start working. I suppose I could stay awake at 5 but am a serious night owl who stays up working late. Something I want to work on.
Jacob Wade: Roll out of bed about 15 minutes before I catch a carpool to work.
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner: I usually start off my morning by checking emails and Instagram. Then I eat breakfast and either go for a hike or go rock climbing, depending if it’s an off day or not. After that I eventually start working.
Karen Cordaway: I get up, meditate and write in my 5 Minute Journal. I then exercise while listening to a podcast. Entrepreneur on Fire is a current favorite. I then watch a short video on youtube as a “treat” about organization, productivity or something purely fun like fashion before starting the work day.
Valerie Rind: Reset the alarm for just 10 more minutes, please. Berate myself for staying up too late (I’m definitely a night owl).
David Stein: Wake up whenever I wake up without an alarm. Of late it’s been about 5:45am. Meditate, read something uplifting, pray, record podcast or write until about 8:30 am, then make breakfast.
Rebecca Green Neale: Wake up, feed the baby, get the kids ready, send one or both out the door with my husband, get ready, grab breakfast and a kid, then hit the road. In terms of productivity, once I’m at work, I look at the ” to do” list I wrote the day before, identify the top 3 things to get done that day and write them on a post-it note. Then I tackle the gnarliest one. I read Eat That Frog earlier this year and that’s what I do — “eat the frog”
What’s my plan for a morning routine?
“I want to be remembered as a person who wasn’t afraid to start things.” -Tina Roth Eisenberg
I want to introduce you to the Snap System.
I have a horrible habit of checking emails and getting glued to my phone right off the bat. I check Facebook and respond to comments. I then check my email and respond to emails. The same goes for Instagram, Twitter, and so on. Not very productive.
Actually, it’s pathetic. You’ll never create anything or do anything remarkable if you spend your time loitering on social media.
Here’s the Snap System:
- Wake up ASAP. Don’t press snooze on the alarm. This is the key step here.
- Splash cold water on your face. You have to head straight for the washroom.
- Prepare coffee as you chug water.
- Do a quick workout. Very quick. 10 pushups and 10 squats is a perfect example.
- Start reading or writing for ten minutes to get the creative juices flowing.
- Move on with your day.
You have to snap first thing in the morning (or afternoon).
I don’t care when you wake up as long as you don’t loiter. If you loiter, then you’re just going to waste the day away. Before you know it, a few hours will pass and you’ll be behind on everything. Or you might just rush to work and show up late and cranky. Nobody wants that.
A couple of random notes…
I work on my own schedule pretty much. I’m very fortunate for that. I’ve also added play to my life so I’m never really bored or stressed out. I also have been working on my sleep forever. Falling asleep and getting enough rest is critical. I don’t want you to walk around like a zombie on a daily basis.
I personally think that breakfast is a waste of time. I subscribe to intermittent fasting, so luckily I don’t have to worry about food in the morning. My mornings are simple.
I’m testing this out. This isn’t guaranteed to work 100% of the time. Sometimes it’s okay to wake up and loiter on your phone.
I want you to start your day off right so that you don’t feel depressed when bed time rolls around and you realize that you didn’t do anything that you wanted to. Yesterday you said tomorrow.