Morning Routine Secrets
Number of hours and quality of sleep = better overall health
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I hope this is not news to you, if it is, let that sink in a little. Your sleep and overall health determines productivity, motivation and your choices throughout the day. That means we need good sleep AND a consistent perfect morning routine using the time you do have available to you each morning. This routine is comforting on our body and brain. It’s the perfect combination. By eliminating decision making, we save time, have less stress and focus better on individual priorities. “What if you could change your life just by changing the way you start your day? What would you change?” author, speaker and success coach Hal Elrond, author of The Miracle Morning book.
Develop your morning routine for at home:
Okay, getting into the juicy stuff. You definitely want to start small and start simple. Think of something you pretty much already do and then just add a little more to it. When you simplify, you reduce the guilt. Which makes it more likely you’ll stick with it. No more rushing or unmet goals – set realistic and achievable goals. I might not even call them goals yet. Just a thing you’d like to start adding to your normal morning. Now, a big question to sit on: Are you going to make small changes over time or a big overhaul of your morning? Truthfully, I can be either type. It can depend on the season, my current life vibe, my interest level and a million other little things. BUT, it’s important because you’ve read this far. It may take you a month or six, but what matters is your daily effort to stay motivated.
Morning Routine Benefits:
Being efficient: A routine helps us accomplish activities that are meaningful to us, because we can’t always do everything we want to in a day.
Reducing stress: When we’re organized, our must-do’s get done in our allotted time for them. We aren’t thinking about everything you have to do or worry about forgetting something.
Making better habits: These habits correlate to our values and allow for a great way to start fresh.
Feeling in control: With a routine we aren’t trying to organize our time (every time) and can better handle anything that might come up.
Stopping the procrastination: When your morning has direction you don’t put off things on your to do list which increases productivity.
Tried-and-true strategies:
Reading these strategies may feel like you neeeeeed to do them all, feel overwhelmed at how much time it’ll take adding to your morning or you may not think they will help. I promise you, they will help you. In more ways than you realize. Just try them, and stick to it. You don’t need an hour more in your morning. Just a few minutes, really.
forget about the snooze button (just wake up at the time you need to)
drink some water (leave a big glass beside your bed)
move your body (time for a short walk, stretching, squats while the coffee brews)
find joy (do something you absolutely LOVE before you get going on your day)
no phone until you’re on your way (don’t get sucked into reading email or a social media hole)
Morning Routine In Your Classroom:
So, you’ve got your perfect morning routine at home figured out. Now it’s time to transfer these strategies into your perfect morning classroom routine before your students arrive. When you set out your day with routines, as we know with children, we are more successful because we know what’s coming next.
Here are a few things (the only things) I do before my students arrive:
Turn on your favourite playlist (classroom speakers to the rescue!)
Change the date/calendar corner (depending on the time of year, I let my student helpers do this).
Set up your desk with your water bottle, coffee, snacks and review your day plans.
Grab the basket, bin, file folder with the activity you are doing first in your day and set it out for yourself.
Take a selfie with your brightest smile and send it to your teacher bestie, your partner, your mom or post it in your stories. Add a little note about something you’re looking forward to today. It may sound silly but it genuinely put a smile on my face to do this. Plus I loved looking back on all my outfits.
Head over to your teacher bestie’s room and see if she’s done her perfect morning routine yet and get excited together about your day!
