10 Simple Things To Do Every Morning That Will Make Your Day Before You Start It
A morning routine that works for everyone
I’ve consumed countless articles, books, and podcasts about morning routines. From Tim Ferris, the author who needs no introduction, to Sam Harris, neuroscientist. It’s become inarguable that morning routines are essential in becoming successful and living a happy and healthy life. If you’re not someone who has a morning routine yet, it doesn’t take much to get yourself on the right track. I’ve developed a morning routine that doesn’t require you to wake up at 5:30am, meditate for 30 minutes, or climb Mount Everest before hiking the Santa Monica stairs. It’s something every single person can do with minimal effort.
“Watch your thoughts; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they become habit. Watch your habits; they become character. Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.” — Lao Tzu
My Routine.
I wake up around 6am every morning. Sometimes it’s 7am, sometimes it’s 5am, but by rising early I have a few hours of “me time” to get out of my head and find peace of mind. You’d thank me if you saw how I acted without doing these things every morning.
1. Morning Meditation (For Beginners)
I find the best way to begin my day is with a quick morning meditation. For beginners, especially those that find meditation daunting, download the free meditation app, Calm, and put it on while you’re still in bed for 5–10 minutes. As you get more comfortable with meditation you can expand on this, but I find this simple method to be very therapeutic. The key with meditation is consistency, and while you may not feel the results right away, 5-10 minutes will help long-term to relieve anxiety, learn to relax, be present, and overcome stress. A reminder to be grateful for what you have and carry an open heart throughout the day. Meditation helps you focus in meetings, slow down when writing emails, and brings an overall sense of patience when you interact with others. If you don’t get this done first thing in the morning, make it a rule to meditate for 10 minutes before sending your first email.
Good Read: Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics by Dan Harris
2. Think and Grow Rich
After reading Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich, I’ve added this quick action to my morning routine. By reading these affirmations aloud every morning, I am reminded of them throughout the day when facing decisions, and I’ve become a firm believer that you can accomplish your goals by getting this daily practice in your routine.
- Fix in your mind the exact amount of money you desire. Be definite as to the amount.
- Determine exactly what you intend to give in return for the money you desire.
- Establish a definite date when you intend to possess the money you desire.
- Create a definite plan for carrying out your desire, and begin at once, whether you are ready or not, to put this plan into action.
- Write out a clear, concise statement of the amount of money you intend to acquire, name the time limit for its acquisition, state what you intend to give in return for the money, and describe clearly the plan through which you intend to accumulate it.
- Read your written statement aloud, twice daily, once just before retiring at night, and once after arising in the morning.
3. Duolingo
If you’re interested in learning a new language, Duolingo is an awesome, free app that let’s you practice and guides you along a gamified journey making it easy and fun. You can set your own goals, so if you’re just starting out, aim for 5–10 minutes every day. It’s a great way to get your motor running and the synapses firing in the morning. Over the course of 6 months, I noticed a significant improvement in my Spanish. I’ve also made friends from all over the world, including a 14-year-old girl in Turkey named Helena… who kicks my ass on Duolingo.
4. Make Your Bed, Change Your Life
Making your bed is the first easy task to accomplish. It starts a chain reaction of other productive habits.
“If you want to change the world, start off by making your bed. 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 it will encourage you to do another task, and another, and another. And by the end of the day that one task completed will have turned into many tasks completed.” — Navy Seal William H. McCraven
If you end up having a bad day, at least you’ll come home to nicely made bed, instilling a small sense of pride before you shut your eyes for the night.
5. Exercise
1 mile run. 5 mile bike. 10 minute stretch. 30 pushups. 50 sit-ups. Yoga. Swim. Hike. There are so many ways to squeeze a little exercise into your morning routine without it becoming in insurmountable mission. Start small. This will get the blood flowing throughout your body, into your brain, and give you more focus and energy throughout the day. I don’t need to give a lecture on the benefits of exercise, the point here is that you don’t need to work out for an hour to accomplish daily exercise and get your body movin’.
6. Hot, Cold Shower
I’m not one of those guys that takes cold showers every morning to teach me discipline and emotional resilience (I’m not training for the Cold War), but I do enjoy ending my shower with a cold burst. I’ve noticed it makes me more alert in the morning and gives me a little reminder that warm water is something to be grateful for. There are other benefits of cold showers, which I doubt are scientifically proven, but it’s all placebo anyway. Or not. Who knows.
7. Bulletproof Coffee
I’ve been drinking Bulletproof Coffee for about a year now, which includes Brain Octane Oil and grass-fed ghee. Starting your day with cereal, a bagel, toast or fruit spikes your blood sugar leading to a quick burst of energy until your mid-morning crash when you’re tired, hungry and demotivated. Bulletproof helps you suppress hunger and gives you long-lasting energy and mental clarity. It also helps with weight loss so get started now, and you’ll have that bikini body just in time for Summer.
8. Read, Read, Read…
I find the best times to read are in the morning or at night when I have peace of mind. Reading inspires creativity, improves your writing, and gives you more interesting topics to discuss with friends and family. Medium is an obvious choice for me, but I also spend about 30 minutes each morning reading a book, usually on the topic of entrepreneurship or personal growth. 30 minutes a day will lead to about 25 books each year.
9. Review Your Day
As you look to get started on your day, review your schedule and the goals you set for yourself. But don’t be afraid to let your heart guide you. What do you want to accomplish today? Where is your energy directing you? Of course, you should schedule time to accomplish the tasks at hand, but to feel truly fulfilled in life you need to pay attention to what stirs you.
“Pay more attention to what stirs your heart. Pay attention to the music that makes you want to cry, or dance, or jump right out of your skin. Pay attention to what makes you happy — truly happy, the kind of happy that drips from your bones, the kind of happy that gives you hope and makes you believe that you have a reason to be here. Pay attention to the things that make you laugh, the things that make you smile. Really focus on figuring out what compels you, really focus on discovering the aspects of the world that interest you and challenge you and make you want to learn and grow. You have to pay attention. To the things that make you believe in being alive, to the people that support you and build you up and make you feel like you’re understood in a world that can sometimes feel like a haunted and hurtful place. You have to pay attention to the life you want to create for yourself, because you are in charge of your own happiness, you are in charge of who you become. So, if something makes your soul feel like it is finally home — pay attention to it. Whether it is a job, or an idea, or a person, or a place — just follow it. Just make your life your own.” — Bianca Sparacino
10. Make a Healthy Smoothie
I’ve been on the smoothie kick for a long time, and I can’t be happier. I used to stop by Earth Bar on my way to work and buy a delicious $10 Weho Breakfast smoothie. Boy was it good. But damn was that expensive. I bought myself a refurbished Ninja and make smoothies every morning.
My Favorite Recipe:
- Frozen Banana
- Frozen Strawberry, Blueberry, and Raspberry
- Almond Butter
- Almond Milk
- Udis Gluten Free Granola
- Organic Blue Agave
- Coconut Oil
Whatever your morning routine may be, do your best to stick to it each morning and begin the day with thoughts of gratefulness. Every day is a blessing and we’re lucky to be alive.
“When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it is to be alive — to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love.” — Marcus Aurelius
Thanks for reading. If anyone has feedback on any of these ideas, please share them with me! I’m always looking to try new things.
