7 Morning Routines Proven To Get More From Your Day

It’s all too often that we’re in a hurry in the morning. Drinking coffee, having a bit of toast and some jam is not an effective way to get the most out of your day and help you to truly appreciate life.

Successful entrepreneurs Alex and Mimi Ikonn share their perfected weekday morning routine. 

How can you apply this at home?

Instead of rushing through the morning, slow it down and this routine to ensure you days are filled with sunshine even if it’s cloudy outside (or the sun’s not up yet).

You haven’t had a single drop of water while you were sleeping. Your body is dehydrated, so the very first thing you should do in the morning is drink a cup of room temperature water. Have you ever tried not drinking water for 8-10 hours before? How about 6?

Being dehydrated is partly why people have bad breath in the morning and why you’re so groggy in the morning. (If you ever find that you have bad breath in the middle of the day, drinking a glass of water will probably help get rid of it.)

Drinking a cup of tepid water in the morning will boost your metabolism and will help you eat less when you have breakfast later (in addition to all the other bodily processes water is responsible for).

But why room temperature water? Cold water can shock your system. Water at room temperature ensures it doesn’t do you any harm.

The easiest way to do this is to just set a cup of water on your nightstand or next to your bed. Some words of caution: don’t put it next to your alarm clock. You don’t want to mistake your glass of water for your alarm clock and spill it everywhere.

2. Put Your Phone on Airplane Mode

People are turning into zombies. They all just stumble forward while staring at their phones. We’re far more connected to them than we have any right to be.

If you find yourself unable to control your access to social media, putting your phone on airplane mode is the perfect way to make sure you’re present in the morning and not just messing around on your phone.

Airplane mode does not allow phone calls or texts to come in either. So if you’ve got an early phone conference or someone may need to call you before you leave the house, vow to ignore your phone until after you’ve completed your morning routine.

3. Journal

At this point, you should still be in bed. Pick up your journal and write your goals for the day. They should all be framed in a positive way. The goal here is to start your day off on the right foot.  We highly recommend The Five Minute Journal. 

Include a positive affirmation so that you see yourself in a positive light. They can be incredibly simple, fun, or as detailed as you want.

For example:

I am a unicorn. I can fly over negativity or turn grumpy people into happy people with my magical smile.

I am talented. I am unique. I’m a valuable person.

Have fun with it. Smile. Laugh. Today is a good day to be alive.

4. Make the Bed

It’s something that takes less than 3 minutes, yet most people say they don’t have the time to do it. But you really should spend the time making it.

Unsurprisingly, leaving your bed a mess can lead to a messy life. You may not make the connection, but if you’re OK with leaving your bed a mess of blankets and pillows, what else will you leave undone? By making it worth your time, you’ll make other mundane tasks seem worth doing.

Keep the positivity rolling. This one simple habit can lead you to more positive habits.

Plus, who are we kidding? It feels amazing to get into a made bed after a particularly rough day.

5. Meditate

You don’t have to meditate for a long time. 10-15 minutes will do it.

If you have trouble meditating, an app like Headspace can really help you out. In just 10 minutes a day, it’ll teach you how to meditate.  Besides being a great way to start the day (and really cement in your goals and affirmation), meditating daily has some incredible benefits:

• Increased focus
• Less stress
• Better sleep
• Slows aging
• Makes you happier

Trust me, after a good round of meditating, you’ll be less likely to fly off the handle later when the guy in front of you doesn’t use his turn signal.

6. Workout

It may seem strange to workout right after you’ve just calmed down, but it’s really the perfect time. A benefit of meditating I didn’t mention above is that it helps you train better. Part of it is related to your increased focus and the fact that you’re no longer stressed about whatever happened the day before. At this point, it should just be you and your exercise.

Again, you don’t need to spend a lot of time exercising. 20 minutes or so will do the trick. If you want to just do cardio or a simple yoga routine, that’ll be perfect. You haven’t eaten yet, so anything you do now will help you lose weight.

Or, if you want to lift some heavy weights, go for it. You’ll help release endorphins. If you weren’t feeling absolutely amazing yet, you should be by now.

But there’s still one more item you can check off.

7. Listen to a Podcast/Audiobook

Alright. So you won’t just be listening to a podcast or an audiobook. This is really more about using your time to its fullest potential. While you’re in the shower, getting dressed, putting your makeup on, shaving, etc., you could be getting tips for how to optimise your life with Tim Ferriss or listening about Frodo’s journey to Mordor.

It’s the perfect way to get to those books you’ve never read but always wanted to or it’s a great way to discover more ways to improve yourself.

Try this routine for 2 weeks and see how much better you feel. After the first day, I guarantee your morning routine will be the part of the day you look forward to the most.

We would like to thank Mimi and Alex Ikonn for being an inspiration and their permission to use this video. They exude their true passion in everything they do - helping people lead fulfilled, happy lives.