For the longest time, my typical mornings used to looked like snoozing the alarm, rushing to get things sorted, getting ready and out the door to start my office. A decent shower was a luxury and breakfast almost never happened! Now we all know that’s not good and trust me not sustainable in the long run. Can’t say how I sustained this lifestyle all these years! If you read about any of the successful people, they all have a morning routine that kick starts their day. I have struggled to make one that serves my daily life.
I got a real chance to come out this cycle during pandemic. While these were the most stressful couple of years and probably one of the worst for a lot of us. My family and I were not left untouched by this. Looking back, what I appreciate today is the positive changes I could bring about. It all started with working from home. Not having to rush out the door and worry about what to wear wear everyday saved a lot of time. So I welcomed this change. Gradually, I started to see as the situation became from temporary to almost permanent for a lot of us. It came with its own challenges. I had to find a routine and discipline that could make me feel productive and efficient. At the same time, helped me differentiate between my work and personal time.
I am sharing my morning routine that not only helped me achieve all of this and more. It made me stay positive and manage difficult emotions all through this time. I’ve been following this routine (with minimum lapses) for ever 2 years now. Hence, I can safely say, you will be able to get some value out of this. I will be eager to know what specific tips and routine works for you. Please do share it in the comment box. Here’s what my routine looks like –
Getting up at 6:00 a.m.
To some this may seem very late, while others might think it’s too early. If I go back two years, I enjoyed waking up at 5:00 a.m. That’s the time I experienced peace and quiet in the house and was free to do what I wanted. Earlier, when I just moved to Europe (The Netherlands), 6:00 a.m. felt more like 8:00 a.m. in India. By October it’s pitch dark when i get up at this time now. Since, I’m not working on a full time job yet, 6:00 a.m. works perfect for me. To those who can’t imagine how to get up early, I hear you. I’ve been a night owl for the longest time. Getting up early can be daunting. Although, there’s nothing wrong in waking up at anytime that works for you. Even so, I’ve discovered more positives in getting up earlier in the morning. I’ll soon share my experience about how I turned myself from a night owl to an early bird and why you should do that too.
My first cup of a tea for the day
A fresh cup of tea is what I imagine anytime I am stressed and want to relax. I can picture myself with a cup of tea sitting in front of a lake, a balcony, basically among nature. In a way, imagining this quiet cup of tea makes me excited about waking up. So, that’s what I do. I make a cup of tea for myself and sit quietly, just try to not intentionally think about anything. This gives myself the time I need to recharge for the day. All the planning, action will come later, but right now I’ll sip this tea and do nothing else. If I don’t get to do any of the other steps I mention later, I’ll still be sane and ready to take the day on. Some quiet time with myself just helps me more than anything else.
Read
Yes, this is what I like to do next. Morning time is the best for when I want to read something that is more than just casual reading. This is the time I prefer to read books on personal development, business, or any topics that I would like to learn about. If I spend about 20 to 30 minutes reading in the morning, I am more attentive than if I were to read any other time of the day. Here are some of the books I enjoyed reading and re-reading in the last one year –
- 12 rules for life
- Getting thing done
- 7 habits of highly effective people
- Man’s search for meaning
- Meditations
- Bhagwat Geeta
- The Catcher in the Rye
- Chanakya’s Chant
- The Traveling Cat Chronicles
- A Thousand Splendid Suns
- IKIGAI: The Japanese secret to long and happy life
Workout
I’m one of those people who avoids the idea of working out for as long as I can. However when I actually do workout, I love it and wonder why I waited for so long. Hence. I have experienced, it’s best to get it out of the way as early in the day as possible. Once I’ve completed my workout routine I feel accomplished and literally recharged for the day. These days I have been following a Yoga routine by Yoga with Kassandra on Youtube. I had a knee injury that made my thigh muscles pretty weak and knocked my confidence in walking. This particular routine has been very helpful in getting that strength back. My body has become more flexible and I like the rush of endorphins that makes me ready for the day.
Meditate
It all started for me during the pandemic time. Like most of us, I went through a turmoil of emotions. Starting to practice meditation during that time has helped me beyond I thought was possible. So now, I try to mediate anywhere between 10 to 30 minutes everyday. It relaxes me, moderates my thoughts and emotions and in a way grounds me. For this I sometimes just listen to a meditative music or follow guided meditation and both techniques have been helpful.
Shower and get ready
After my workout and meditation routine, I take a quick shower and get ready for the day. Even on days of work from home, getting ready helped me move from at home mode to at work mode. This usually takes me anywhere around 15 to 20 minutes tops. My goal is to be put together enough for office calls, or if I were to step out for errands or receive delivery packages. 🙂
Breakfast
By this time I’m famished! All I can think about by this time is food. It usually helps to have thought about and prepped the night before about my meals for the day. This is the time I quickly jump to cooking what I planned or what is available and my mood fancies. The combination usually, involves something that has a good combination of protein, carbs and antioxidant.
Tidying up
This is also one thing I like to get out of the way. A neat and organised home and workplace makes it easy to concentrate and a happy place to work in.
I know the list looks long, still, it does not take that long. Depending on the time it takes me anytime between 1.5 to 2 hours. I still falter and there are days when I’m not able to keep up with the routine. But the days I follow, I’m my most productive. I hope you were able to get something of value from this post. To see what else I shared this month do check out my October posts.
This post does not contain any affiliate links. Any products I mention, I’ve purchased myself and have been using these for years.
