I’ve had a morning routine for several years now. During these years I probably had more versions of a morning ritual than I’d care to admit haha.
I’m quite often changing up what I’m doing in the morning because I like to try out new ideas. Sometimes I make big changes, sometimes small adjustments.
But I always have some type of morning ritual. It helps me to get focused, to start they day off on the right track.
The morning ritual I’m going to share with you is a routine that I’ve had for several months. And for me, being the type of person who likes to change things up, that is quite an accomplishment.
Not that I deliberately was trying to stick with the routine, it just happened. It’s a perfect combination (for me) to get the day started right plus it’s not too time consuming.
I’m hoping it can spark some ideas for you on what you’d like to experiment with for your own morning routine.
As a side note, since it’s not something that’s part of the morning routine per se, I do try to have the habit of getting out of bed before 7 am. I also try to get at least 7 hours of sleep every night. I’m not always successful though. But that’s life.
Another side note, that’s sort-of part of the morning routine. In the evening I leave my bullet journal open on the first page of the month. So that every morning, as I sit down to start my morning ritual I turn the page and there I have my morning routine.
Having it written down here helps me to remember the different steps. Plus I don’t have to waste mental space with trying to remember what to do next. And as I progress through the routine I also go through my bullet journal, keeping my goals top of mind and remembering to fill out my trackers.
If you want to see what this all looks like in my bullet journal I made a video on my November setup that you can check out here.
Ok, so let’s get started shall we.
1. BREATHING EXERCISE
When I get out of bed I head to the kitchen to get a glas of water and make myself a cup of tea. I take my cup of tea and head to my desk in our home office. As I sit down I immediately close my eyes and do this breathing exercise. I think it comes from yoga originally and I’m not completely sure about the details, I just do what feels good to me.
I take a deep breath in for 4-6 seconds. I do it slowly through the nose, and make sure that I breath from my stomach and not my chest. Then I hold the breath for 8-12 seconds. It’s more like 9 seconds as it feels too forced to keep it longer. Then I exhale, also through the nose, slowly for about 8 seconds. The important thing to remember is that the out breath should be longer than the inbreathe. That signals to the brain to relax.
I see this time as a super quick meditation practice as well as I tend to focus solely on counting and breathing when I do this.
2. GRATEFULNESS
I know many of you also have a gratefulness practice, and I’m so happy that this has become something that many practice. Reminding myself of all the things I have to be grateful for really does help to start the day of on the right track.
So what I do is that I think of at least three things or three people that I’m grateful for, and why I’m grateful for them. As I think of this I also do my best to feel it, to feel my heart expand with love and gratefulness.
3. HEALING THOUGHTS
I think this might be pretty ”far out there” for many, but this is something that I genuinely believe. And when Anthony Robbins also shared that he does this as part of his morning practice I felt like I was in good company.
How I do this differs, but many times its just me thinking I’m connected to the universe and it scans through my body with love and energy, healing cells that are not healthy or functioning at its peak levels.
Sometimes I let the scanning take a long time, moving slowly from my head down to my feet. Sometimes I do a quick scan because I’m in a hurry.
4. VISUALIZE
I visualize three outcomes that matter to me. I see myself as having accomplished those things and how I feel now that they’re completed.
The first two things I visualize are long term goals that I’m working towards. Currently one goal is getting in better health and the other is being able to work for myself.
The last thing I visualize is how this day, today, is going to go. What I’ll achieve and how I’ll feel when I go to bed, satisfied knowing I got all the important stuff done. That I was the best version of me that I could be. That I kept true to my main values.
5. TRACKERS
If you watched the video I talked about earlier in this post you know that my bullet journal follows my morning routine. I begin with the decorative month page so that it looks pretty when I sit down to start the morning routine. Then the next page is of my morning routine which is then followed by my goals. Then my trackers and logs follow. So in the morning I just go through the pages, one after the other until I reach my weekly and then my daily. And the day may begin :)
Some days I have to get ready for work when I’m done with the morning routine. Other days I start later and I can squeeze some project time in before I have to get ready. Those days I do my best to not check any social media nor open my email for the first few hours, but instead get into work.
HOW ABOUT YOU
Do you have a morning routine? Does it change from time to tjme or do you stick to one routine? Do you notice that it helps you in some way? As always I’d love to hear your thoughts and experience so write a comment below :)
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