Win the morning = win the day
As much as I don't like waking up early, I dislike losing more. Here's how losing the morning can affect your whole day: **Alarm goes off** You either: 1. Hit snooze --> Leads to: waking up late 2. Get on your phone --> Leads to: wasting time and energy 3. Get ready for work --> Leads to: no intention for the day All Lead to: feelings of frustration, anxiety, and overwhelm (lack of control) Leads to: bad attitude leaving your home, taking it into your travel, into work, & into life Leads to: bad experiences that reinforce your perspective and attitude that stay with you throughout the day Leads to: desire to "disconnect" from those feelings, so you will distract yourself through one of your many vices (social media, entertainment, food, games, etc.) Leads to: wasted time and energy Leads to: a lack of "motivation" to prepare for tomorrow Leads to: repeating the cycle all over again I know this so well because this was my cycle! However, I realized that if I can just win the morning, I can win the day, then the week, then the month, then the year, then life. So what changed? Here's what I did to begin winning the morning 1. It's simple: YOU WIN THE MORNING, THE NIGHT BEFORE! Remember the 5 P's: Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance - Create a night routine that you follow everyday before you go to sleep, include the following: - Set aside time the night before to plan your next day (hour by hour if possible) - Prepare your clothes and food - Prepare your work - Clean and organize your home (a cluttered space is a cluttered mind) - Place your phone far away from you when you sleep so you're not tempted to hit snooze 2. HAVE A MORNING ROUTINE I believe you should include some of the following to your morning routine: - Flow work: this means you just execute on a task or project for a solid hour (I recommend this for those who already have a good handle on their thoughts and focus - Silence/Meditation: this means you meditate to still your mind so that you can be present for more than 15 minutes (I recommend for those who need to develop focus) - Bible study - Journaling - Exercise - Reading