If you want to be a success you need a solid morning routine. That’s the advice bandied around by science-backed success gurus.
Get up at 5 am. Run 10k. Do a yoga class. Meditate. Practice gratitude. Journal. Take supplements. Repeat affirmations. Fast until lunch. And so on.
Wow, writing that list out is enough to exhaust me. And we’re supposed to be achieving all this before breakfast!?
You might have started January aiming to once and for all nail your morning routine. With the help of the new year’s motivation, you may have started well. Extra determination might have kept you going until mid-January.
It’s now February, the darkest, coldest month (if you’re in the northern hemisphere). Are you still getting up at 6 am? How’s that daily morning run going?
Don’t feel too bad about it. You’re not alone. By the end of January, 2 in 3 people have abandoned new year’s resolutions.
Win the morning, win the day
Productivity experts and success coaches have been banging this drum for years. Be the most successful you can be by winning the morning.
Having a killer morning routine involves forming lots of new habits. This takes a long time and a lot of effort. The most difficult, if you are a night owl like me, is getting up early.
If being unable to get up in the morning was an Olympic sport I would be a gold medallist.
On some days when you’re feeling extra energetic, it is possible. But what about those days when you didn’t sleep well? When your kid was sick in the night? You’re exhausted from the previous 12-hour workday? Crippled with period pain? Got a cold? Dreading the day ahead at work?
The productivity junkie that I used to be, strived to do all the suggested morning actions.
Most days I didn’t achieve many of them.
Apart from getting up.
Getting up should be celebrated the most.
Don’t get me wrong, when you do have a productive morning routine you feel pumped. You feel invincible like you can achieve anything. You get high on the ‘winning at life’ vibes. Even if you do nothing else all day you feel like a success because you’ve already achieved so much.
I’d feel like a failure if i’d not run a half marathon, written in my journal, and reached enlightenment through meditation by breakfast. I’d already given up. My day was never going to be won. I was never going to be a success.
The pressure I put myself under to do all this stuff before I was even properly awake got in my way of actually doing it.
The pressure of winning the morning can ruin your day.
It can be a poisoned chalice striving for the impossible ideals set by productivity gurus. Life can be calmer, more rewarding, and still productive if you practice the following:
Sleep
Getting enough of it should be your priority.
Avoid getting up extra early to achieve robotic-like levels of productivity. An extra couple of hours of sleep will stand you in good stead when you want to finish off your work late afternoon.
If the pressure of a successful morning routine isn’t enough, sleep deprivation will ruin your day.
If repeated over a long time, lack of sleep can seriously impact your health. Prioritise getting enough to stay healthy and productive every day.
Find your own rhythm
Some people bounce out of bed at 6 am full of all the energy needed to win the day. I don’t. These people aren’t human in my book. As I said, I’m not a morning person. Never have been. No matter what time I go to bed, I still feel groggy when I wake up.
Like a vampire, I come alive as the sun sets. This is the best time for me to do my greatest work. I can get more done in 2 hours of focussed time early evening than I can in the whole rest of the day.
Find your best time. Track your energy levels throughout the day. You’ll procrastinate less and be more focused when your energy is high.
Make your body clock work for you.
Listen to your own needs
Forget what you’ve read in a book on success. We are not robots. We are all individuals with individual needs.
Get clear on your goals and what steps will get you closer to them. What do you need to do each day to help you get to your goals?
If you want to write 2000 words of a new essay and going for a jog first will help you do that, then get your running kit on. If it’s writing until 11 pm then get a good sleep and plan your next day to start later. If doing your social media in the morning in bed is your thing then do it.
Whatever makes it easier for you to achieve your goals is what works for you.
Cut yourself some slack
The aim of the morning routine is to achieve a successful day and get you closer to your goals.
When you’re working to your own rhythm and goals you can make your morning (and day) work for you.
If you get up late and don’t start your task list until midday, don’t sweat it. The important thing is you’re moving in the right direction. Acknowledge the small steps and keep progressing slowly.
Not every day can be 1000%.
Some days will be a sprint.
Others will be a stroll.
If you’re still moving forward, celebrate your wins.
Final Thoughts
No matter what time you start your day there are still 24 hours to achieve what you want. If some mornings you want to journal and meditate, go for it. On other days coffee and shower might be all you can muster. And that’s ok.
Focusing on the things that matter when it comes to your health will boost your productivity. Get good sleep, eat healthy food, drink lots of water and take breaks.
It’s not sustainable to do all the recommended things every single morning. That’s a lot of pressure to put on yourself to achieve before breakfast. That pressure alone will make it more difficult to achieve what you want.
Go easy on yourself and do what small steps you need to do to make progress.