The “Why” of Creating a Morning Routine
Trolling the social media sites, it’s easy to look a someone else’s posts and make comparisons. Each hour of the day, we see posts highlighting milestones met, goals achieved and plans for bucket list experiences. In the moment, it’s easy to infer this person is more successful, has more money or is just plain lucky. What we fail to realize in this snapshot is the culmination of hours, days or even years of dedicated time and effort.
Creating Repeatable Results
It’s not glamorous but putting in the effort may be one of the most overlooked and unrecognized elements of success. Rather than recognizing continuous effort, we’ve been conditioned to believe success happens fast and is something you either have or you don’t. But success is more often the result of putting in effort each day, whether we want to or not.
Ryan Estis, a leading speaker and consultant to businesses seeking breakthrough work performance, examined how CEOs, COOs and CIOs in the executive suite start their day. Estis found each relies on a repeatable routine performed every day of the week. Highlights of his discoveries include rising early for meditation, getting in an early workout, practicing gratitude and spending time with family. The common thread of each routine, is the consistency with which they set themselves up for success. Those using a morning routine reported feeling mentally and emotionally prepared for the day as a result.
Designing a New Approach
When creating a morning routine, it doesn’t matter what you do. Instead what’s important is that the routine is important to you and it’s repeatable. If a morning routine is a new step, start small with things you typically do but maybe want to shape into a concrete routine. Knowing what works for you and your life can help make the most of the day before work demands start, in effect, setting you up for success for the rest of the day.
Borrow a Proven Morning Routine
- Create a to-do list the night before
- Workout first thing in the morning
- Meditate
- Play a game
- Eat a nutritious breakfast
- Practice gratitude and positive thinking
- Determine priorities for the day
- Drink water
- Draw
- Get up early
Small Changes Matter
One of the most important things in creating a morning routine is building in flexibility. A routine should provide structure and support yet be able to flex, as necessary. If a routine triggers unnecessary stress, it’s not the right routine for you. The best routines emphasize simplicity and can be as basic as getting up and going to bed at the same time each day. For others, it’s streamlining a work wardrobe or having a go-to breakfast prepared the night before. Whether you choose to borrow the advice of the experts or create one of your own, the most effective morning routine is the one that works for you.
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