I stink at mornings

Contrary to popular belief, I’m not convinced you’ve gotta spring out of bed at 5am to be “the best version of you.”

I also don’t believe you need to meditate, journal, stand on your head, jog four miles, visualize yourself in skinny jeans, recite mantras, and scribe your goals all before you enjoy a cup of joe.

I have issues with the so-called “morning routine” that’s taken the world by storm. (I’ll be sure to write about that in the future).

But for now, I’m addressing a more immediate challenge.

It’s one I hear no matter how frequently I speak about focus, prioritizing, or overwhelm.

Inevitably a brave attendee raises their hand to ask: “Do you have any tips on how to get out of bed if you’re not a morning person?”

The truth is, I’m not really a morning person either. Or a night person for that matter.

Can’t stay up too late and have a hard time getting out of bed in the morning.

Maybe that makes me a day person? (Is that even a thing?!)

Whatever I am, I do my best to avoid a close relationship with the snooze button, cuz I know I always feel better when I follow through with what I’ve planned.

Small wins are a big deal, especially when you start your day with them.

Here’s a list of small ways to help get your caboose out of bed in the morning…whether it’s 4:42 am (who are you people??) or 9:37 am.

** Put your alarm (which is most likely your phone) across the room so you have to get out of bed to turn it off.

** Schedule your coffee to start brewing 15 minutes before you want to wake up. If you’re a coffee-lover, the aroma can literally wake up your senses.

** If you love the warmth of your bed, buy a super cozy robe and keep it by the foot of your bed so you can slip into it right when you get up and keep the coziness going.

** Schedule a walk or workout with a friend. It’s easy to hit snooze when it’s just you, but you’re not gonna keep your bestie waiting outside!

** Get your phone OFF your bedside table and charge it in the kitchen or another room. This is especially for you if you reach over bleary-eyed to check social media, emails, or the news. (Trust me: this is life-changing and to date, research shows that no one has died from not surfing their phone first thing in the morning!)

** On that note, buy yourself an alarm clock and don’t rely on your phone for it.

** Set your alarm to an annoying sound, buzz, ring – not soothing music. Reminder: this works best when it’s across the room so you have to get up to turn it off.

** Get up and brush your teeth immediately. This will instantly wake you up.

** Put your workout clothes at the foot of your bed at night so you put them on as soon as your feet hit the ground.

** Remind yourself you’ve done much harder things than getting your tush out of bed. Given birth. Asked for the raise. Got out of the relationship. Raised a family. Had the hard conversation. Surely you can sit up.

** If you’d like to wake up an hour before you do now, set your alarm for 15-minutes earlier (not 60 minutes). Get used to that for a few days, then set it another 15 minutes earlier, and so on. Retrain your mind and body in baby steps.

** Go to bed one hour earlier at night. Amazing how this helps you get more sleep! 😉

** Try a light alarm. It wakes you up with light before it wakes you up with sound. It starts shining a light 30 minutes before the time you set and slowly gets brighter.

** Keep a full glass of water at your bedside. Set your alarm for an hour before you ideally want to wake up. Drink the water. You’ll have to pee an hour later.

** If you have a spouse, partner, kids, or roommate who gets up earlier than you ask them to get involved. Like, throw the comforter off you, turn on the lights, open the shades, put on loud music, pour water on your head, etc. Give them permission to do whatever it takes.

** Seize the day. Waking up and thinking about all the things you don’t want to do is a terrible way to motivate yourself to get out of bed. Instead, think ahead to the best things you’ll do all day to fuel you to get up. Like coffee, kisses from the kids, glass of wine at 4pm! (uhh…I mean…6pm).

** Have a plan for your morning the night before. Like, actually plan the time you need to get in the shower to still allow for downtime or to beat traffic. Plan your outfit. Make sure you have the Zoom link or directions. Anything you can do the night before to make your morning more relaxing will make it easier to look forward to your day.

** Or come up with another way that motivates you.

By getting up at the time you’ve planned, you have an immediate “WIN” which is an awesome start to your day.

Remember, small wins are a big deal.

Xo,

Mridu

ps. Look out for details on an upcoming class on exactly how to plan your whole day so you go from chaos to cool cucumber. I’ll be holding it in early November.

pps. In the meantime, join my FREE training on Saturday, Oct. 3rd called “Overwhelmed, Overstretched, & Over It!” This is my keynote talk on how to get focused and in control aaaaand the first time I’m doing it free online and I totally think you should be there. Register HERE.

ppps. Are you a day person too?! Please tell me I’m not alone!