Your morning routine pretty much sets the tone for your day ahead. What you do in the morning before you head out for work/college is crucial for your overall productivity but sadly, not many of us give it the attention it deserves. One need not be a morning person who wakes up at 4:00 am to put this to practice. Just, a few alterations and additions to your every day habits can make a huge difference. Besides, there’s science to back the fact that productive mornings or performing morning rituals lead to an even more productive day.

Make the most of your day, every day with a set morning routine.

Here are a few:

1. Don’t hit snooze

The first and foremost thing you need to do as a part of your morning routine is wake up on time. It doesn’t need to be a super early morning but rather a consistent one. It’s important to allow your body clock to set itself (Unfortunately, It means you need to wake up at the same time on weekends too!) Regulating your sleep schedule might not sound like fun, but it can pay off in performance. Research suggests that many successful people wake up well before their workday begins. And, that in turn means that it would be more helpful if you also hit the bed early!

2. Keep your phones at bay!

Most of us are guilty of waking up and sitting on our beds for hours with our phones. We bombard our brain with things that it’s not prepared for. Stressful work emails and updates on social media instantly affect & distract us. They decide the course of our day even before we can jot down our to-do list for the day. Practice staying away from your phone at least for the first hour of the day when you wake up as a morning routine because the distraction it causes may take you a while to get back on track for the day.

3. Positive vibes only

Feeding your mind with positive, motivating thoughts as a morning routine can work wonders. Right from the time you wake up to when you take a bath, have breakfast and get ready, try to let only happy thoughts consume you. In the beginning, it may be tricky to get your mind to stop thinking about work but keep at it. Start your day by truly believing that it’s going to be a wonderful day. While the universe responds to this with a ‘yes’ your confidence shall do the rest!

4. Practice mindful meditation

Yoga, breathing exercises, Surya namaskars or even some ‘me-time’ while sipping coffee as a morning routine makes for a great start. It broadens your perspective and gives you a calmer, more proactive perspective on the day whilst also making room for some introspection. Try spending 15-20 minutes a day practicing this and we’re sure it would make a difference.

5. Exercise

This one is the least favourite of the lot for all of us but trust us it’s important. If you’ve pushed your way into waking up, steal about 30 minutes for a quick morning workout to increase the blood flow throughout your body. This turbocharges your brain with oxygen. You’re able to think and concentrate better at work with just a little cardio as a part of your morning routine.

If you don’t know where to start, here’s a list of fitness apps to get you going –> Get. Set. Go!

6. Breakfast like a Queen!

The most important meal of the day cannot be missed! A protein-rich breakfast can get you going until your next meal. Add cottage cheese, almonds, eggs, protein shakes, and Greek yogurt to the mix and start off your day with a full-filling morning routine.

7. Hydrate! Hydrate! Hydrate!

Caffeine may get you pumped but dehydration can completely ruin your mental and physical state at work. Remember to take a sip of water every 30 minutes. If it helps, set a reminder on your phone. Even mild dehydration can make it difficult for our brain to process tasks. So it would be a great morning habit to drink a tall glass of water, Nua woman community 🙂

8. Plan ahead with a planner

Listing down your tasks for the day (personal & professional) is half the job done. Checking things off your list would give you mental satisfaction as well as ensures that you don’t forget a thing. The best part is that you somehow manage to divide your time better and achieve all the tasks in the same duration.

As we’ve heard several times before, “If you put your mind to it, everything is possible.” And, if a small change in your morning routine can make that huge a difference then why not try?!

Try putting this to practice and tell us how it affects your productivity levels in the comments below.