Personal growth is extremely important in this 2019 world full of speed and stress. To kick off our list of tips and tricks that’ll help you to create a morning routine that works for you, we actually suggest getting started with your morning routine before you even go to sleep. This might sound like a strange tip, but hear us out. Life isn’t perfect, and there are tons of things that can disrupt you when you wake up. Maybe you’re about to leave for your morning workout and you find out that your car has a flat tyre. Maybe your kid doesn’t feel too well and they need you to take them to the doctors before you leave for work. Or maybe you didn’t sleep too well and are feeling sluggish at the start of the day.
Sometimes the best way to have a productive morning is to get a head start on it the night before. Many productivity experts and successful people spend their evenings preparing for the next day because it makes their mornings free to get an early start on important work. American Express CEO Kenneth Chenault ends his evenings by writing down three things he wants to accomplish the next day. Planning the evening before is effective because we have a limited amount of willpower and decision-making ability every day. The thought of making too many decisions in the morning will slow you down and drain your brain for the rest of the day. If you can eliminate decision-making from your mornings, you’ll have more energy and time to have the most productive morning you can!
If you make your bed every morning, you will have accomplished the first task of the day. It will give you a small sense of pride and will encourage you to do another task. And then another, and then another. And by the end of the day, that one task completed will turn into many tasks completed. Making your bed will also reinforce the fact that little things in life matter. If you can’t do the little things right, you’ll never be able to do the big things right. And if, by chance, you’ll have a miserable day, you will come home to a bed that is made. That you made. Read additional details at Mindfulness.
Get rid of clothes that make you feel bad. If your closet makes you feel bad about yourself whenever you open it, it’s time to do something about that: Throw out clothes that are too tight, don’t fit or that you wear to cover up or blend in. Be ruthless! And reserve your closet space for pieces that make you happy from now on. Need advice on how to detox your closet? Here you go. Rewrite your inner monologue. Pay attention to the things you say to yourself all-day in your head. Do you talk to yourself with respect and compassion, like you do with your closest friends? Or can you be a real bully? Notice what negative phrases you repeat all the time and train yourself to replace them with more positive and respectful self-talk. Expand your fashion comfort zone piece by piece. Think of your comfort zone as a muscle. You can train yourself to become more confident when it comes to fashion, by taking baby steps. Pair a single bolder piece with your basics for example, or wear a toned-down version of your goal look for a while. Take it step by step, until your comfort zone is big enough to cover all of the colors, silhouettes and looks that you love – no matter how daring they seem to you right now. For more tips on how to expand your comfort zone, check out this post.
Furthermore, it has been proven that natural light brings a lot of benefits regarding our mood and overall well-being. Being exposed to natural light boosts your vitamin D levels – which is important for absorbing calcium and preventing diseases such as depression and weight gain, it makes us more awake – which does wonders for our productivity, and it generally affects our mood in a positive way – reduces the chances of suffering from SAD, better known as Seasonal Affective Disorder.
The truth is if we don’t make time for self-care, we probably won’t find the time for it. Make self-care a non-reschedulable appointment with yourself. Schedule it in your calendar and set reminders if you need to. For example, block off 30 mins in the morning to do yoga and 30 mins at night to read. Tell your family or roommates what times you will be unavailable. Make it as official as possible. It can even be something as simple as planning ahead and laying your clothes, bag, and lunch out the night before to alleviate some stress in the morning. Read more info at Self-Care routines.