by Mandy Green, Busy Coach
Today I want to give you some quick and simple things you can do to start building momentum for your day by getting some quick wins each morning.
If you have specific morning routines or habits that you have that help you get the day off to a great start, I’d love to hear what those are. Email me at mandy@dantudor.com
Remind Yourself Why You’re Doing It
While you might intellectually understand that it’s beneficial to get ready for the day, that alone won’t motivate you to do anything.
You have to understand why you’re doing something. Write down what you want to accomplish each morning and list all of the reasons why. If you find yourself getting derailed, take out your list and review your aspirations. Looking at your list can help you understand your priorities, and you’ll be able to get back on track quicker if you get derailed.
Start the Night Before
The best morning routines start out the night before. Lay your clothes out the night before, pack lunches, and even plan dinner. Make sure your laptop and all of the documents you will need are out and ready, so you don’t have to think about what you need in the morning. Your day can get off to a great start if you’ve planned out your start.
Put Off Your Distractions
The biggest problem when it comes to a morning routine is distractions.
What happens is that checking email, social media, the news, and Sportscenter feels like productivity. But we’re really just distracting ourselves from what needs to be done first. Don’t allow yourself to do any of those tasks until you’ve finished your morning routine.
Eliminate Choices
Wear the same clothes and eat the same breakfast, suggests Carson Tate, author of Work Simply.
Boring? Yes, at times. However, the goal is to minimize decision making and move through your morning routine with the least amount of mental output as possible,” she says. “The fewer decisions you have to make in the morning, the less fatigued your prefrontal cortex becomes, freeing you up to focus on strategic, revenue-producing ideas and projects. Eliminating choices is a powerful productivity hack.”
For example, Tate has two pairs of the exact same black pants and buys the same style of dress in different colors. “I can open my closet and get dressed on autopilot,” she says.
For coaches, this usually isn’t a problem because we tend to just wear our schools gear. 😊
Set Your Priorities for The Day
Carve out a little time to review your calendar and identify what you need to do, says Janine Adams, founder of the professional organizing firm Peace of Mind. “That can happen with coffee or breakfast, on the train to work, or anywhere else you can focus,” she says. “Knowing the top three things that you need to accomplish in a day gives you extra focus and helps you stay on task when you arrive at the office.”
Set A Goal
I have a client through Busy Coach who challenges herself to do things that will start off the day well: She and her husband give themselves a star for a variety of good behavior, like getting up early, going for a walk, meditation, making a smoothie, Pilates, or writing. They add up their number each morning with a goal to get to five stars.
These are just a few examples of things that you could do to get off to a great start to the day. If you want some other ideas for how to win the morning, go to Busy.Coach. In the blog, there are a lot more examples of things you can do to win the morning.
If you want some more tips and strategies for how to make the most of your day, email Mandy Green at mandy@busy.coach to set up a strategy call.