Tired of being tired? Of feeling like you’re wasting your morning and, in turn, wasting your day? You need to revamp your morning routine! And good news. I have just the thing you need – morning routine ideas that you can use to do more with your mornings.
Ah, morning routine ideas…
There are a seemingly endless supply of them that you can implement to become your best self. To help set your day up in a deliberate manner so that you can do more, achieve more, and be more.
But, the annoying thing is that some ideas will work better for you than others.
Meaning that waking up each morning and walking the dog is a perfect way to start the day for one person, but that same routine won’t necessarily work for you.
You don’t even have a dog! *Maybe you do, I’m just making a point.
Check my email
I wake up each day at 6:15AM. As soon as I wake up, I set a timer on my phone for five minutes. And for those five minutes, all I do is check my email.
WHAT? YOU CHECK YOUR EMAIL FIRST THING?!
Yep. And I know, I know. Everyone says that you should never check your email first thing. But I do it anyways.
Why?
Because over several years I’ve curated what comes into my inbox. It’s at the point now where the only emails I receive to my phone are for things that make me happy.
I don’t have my day job email connected to my phone (I disabled that years ago). I also unsubscribed from junk mail and emails that don’t bring me joy.
Five minutes
The only inboxes I have set up on my phone are for my personal email where I receive positive newsletters from positive people, and my QuickBooost email where I generally get happy emails from those taking part in my free newsletter and goal success course.
It’s a really nice way to start my morning.
But I only indulge for five minutes. When that timer goes off, I move on. If there’s anything I didn’t get to, it’s rarely urgent and I can check it again later in the day when I need a break.
From there, I set another timer for five minutes. This time I’m playing around on Snapchat.
Snapchat has curated content – like mini-shows – that are light and easy to watch. They’re similar to IGTV on Instagram, but I try to be on Instagram as little as possible. I discovered years ago that spending time on Instagram (for me) only leads to unhappiness and comparison to others.
Additionally, Snapchat doesn’t have a feed that I can scroll through so I don’t get sucked in. I just go straight to their Discover section and watch light/funny clips for a few minutes while I wake up.
I may change my view on things down the road, but for now that’s how I feel.
When the timer goes off again, it’s time to get up.
Daydreaming
I pop out of bed, throw some new clothes on, make some tea and head outside to my patio.
For the next 20-30 minutes, I sit on my patio, listen to music, think of things I’m grateful for, and do some introspection/daydreaming.
It’s a nice way to ease into the day.
From there, I come inside, get fully dressed, and start working on QuickBooost (the site you’re on right now). I’ll work on QuickBooost for two to three hours in the morning before then jumping into my day job. I work from home so the transition is pretty smooth.
And that’s it! That’s my morning routine that I go through on most days.
56 Morning Routine Ideas To Start Your Day Off Right
Now, is my morning routine relevant to you? Probably not. In fact, I make the argument here that the whole notion of creating your routine around what others say you should do is totally ridiculous.
For example, I love exercising but I don’t like doing it first thing in the day. I find that I workout too hard in the morning and go about the rest of my day completely drained.
It doesn’t work for me.
So even if some Olympic athlete swears that the best morning routine involves running first thing when I wake up, I don’t care. It doesn’t work for me.
You want your routine to work for you.
And that’s why lists like this post are tricky: I can sit here and tell you the various ways that you need to do X, Y, and Z to change your life for the better, but it won’t be correct.
Why?
Because people are unique. You are unique. So what works for one person, may not work for you.
Frazzled
Why did I bother to write out my whole morning routine for you then?
Well, while you should never just adopt someone’s morning routine because they said so, it is helpful to get inspiration from others as to how they treat their mornings.
Now, I don’t expect you to have the same routine that I do.
I do hope, though, that you are able to gain some ideas from my routine and the list below to create a better morning routine for yourself.
Because how you spend your mornings are powerful.
When I’ve been deliberate about my morning routine, I’ve felt organized, focused, and in-control. When I’ve been lazy about my mornings, I’ve felt chaotic, lost, and frazzled.
So keep in mind that:
- Morning routines are powerful
- That it will take a little bit of experimentation to find the right mix of actions that works best for you
What makes a good morning routine?
You may be wondering what constitutes a good morning routine. Really, a solid morning routine is one that helps you move forward and achieve your goals.
It’s one that kickstarts your day and uses your time wisely from the very beginning.
If you’re familiar with my approach to goal setting, creating a morning routine is a similar process. It’s basically recognizing who you are today, who you want to become in the future, and bridging the gap between the two.
Your morning routine, then, is the first opportunity you have to send your day in a positive direction. And because of that, having a well-thought-out-one is imperative.
The better the routine, the more effective you will be with your time, the quicker you will progress and achieve your goals, and the sooner you can create and live your ideal life.
It all starts when you first wake up.
The best morning routine for success
One thing I need to reiterate is that there is no perfect morning routine for success. No one-size-fits-all strategy that you can use.
Because again, what works for your neighbor may not work for you.
It’s all about creating a custom routine for yourself. One that works for you and ignores everything else.
That said, there is a strategy that you should use when creating your own morning routine. A technique that you can utilize to make sure that you set a routine that actually works.
And for that, I recommend my post on creating a successful morning routine. Do yourself a favor and check out that post before moving forward.
What made the list?
This list of morning routine ideas is comprised of concepts suggested by trusted sources. From people that have done it themselves, to things that are generally accepted as good ideas.
And while I know I said that there is no “best list” because it’s dependent on your situation, you can use this morning routine list as inspiration for your own mornings.
When going through it, don’t get too caught up on who does what or what you “need” to be doing. Because it doesn’t matter.
The only thing that matters is that your routine works for you.
So use this list for inspiration and start stringing some actions together to help you create your ideal morning routine. Don’t see the items below as mandatory things to do, just see them as ideas that you could incorporate into your mornings.
Again, in order to create a successful, healthy morning routine you need to see this as an experiment of trial and error.
Morning routine ideas
Alright, it’s time to get into the list! There’s a lot to cover, but as I mentioned previously, don’t feel the need to do everything at once.
Instead, pick one or two ideas and try them out.
If they work, keep them as part of your routine and maybe throw something new into the mix from there. If they don’t work for your schedule, toss them and add something else into your morning routine in its place.
Keep experimenting to find what works best.
With that, it’s time to get into the list of morning routine ideas. I have broken it out for you by category to make it a little easier to work through.
I’ve also highlighted my favorites as well. Not that it makes them any more relevant or important. It’s really more just in case you’re curious.
Let’s get into it.
Oh and if you haven’t gone through my post on creating a morning routine yet, make sure to do that before getting started so that this all makes more sense.
Morning routine ideas: the basics
Before you can get too wild with your morning routine, it would help to lock down some of your more basic tasks first.
Basics are ones that you should definitely consider throwing into your routine. They are your most basic tasks – tooth brushing, showering, etc. Tasks that you can use to start your day right and to get out of the groggy sleep zone.
They are basic tasks that you’ll want to have as part of your routine ensemble. Some basic morning routine ideas include:
- Make your bed
- Brush your teeth
- Get dressed for the day
- Make tea or coffee
- Say hello to a loved one
- Make breakfast
- Open the curtains and let some sunshine in
- Prepare your lunch or dinner for the day
- Check the weather
- Take the dog for a walk
- Water the plants
Morning routine ideas: wellness
With the basics out of the way, there are a handful of things that you can incorporate into your morning routine to add more wellness into your life.
In this case, wellness means anything that will start your day off on a positive note and make you feel good. Ideas to help take your day from a one to a ten. To get you smiling, stretching, and ready to take on the world.
Some morning routine ideas for wellness are to:
- Stretch out
- Go for a run
- Do yoga
- Drink a glass of water
- Think of 3 things you’re grateful for (either write them down or say them to yourself)
- Meditate
- Sit outside for a few minutes and do some introspection
- Listen to music that makes you happy
- Try out an early morning workout class (like Pilates or Spin)
- Go for a walk
Morning routine ideas: get educated
One great way to start off your morning is by learning something new. To challenge your mind and expand the horizons of what you believe to be possible.
There are a lot of ways to make that happen.
This section is dedicated to morning routine ideas that you can use to further educate yourself. There’s nothing quite like starting off your day with a burst of inspiration gained from learning something new.
Morning routine ideas of this type include:
- Watch a TED Talk
- Read a book on personal development
- Do a crossword puzzle
- Read a book on time management
- Listen to a podcast
- Check out a blog post, maybe something on productivity
- Take a look at some inspiring YouTube videos
- Go through an online course (I recommend my goal success course)
- Peek in on global news (if it’s something that brings you joy)
- Get yourself motivated for the day!
Morning routine ideas: personal growth
Another fantastic way to start off your day is with some personal growth. Similar to the education section above, personal growth also involves learning new things, but with an important distinction.
Personal growth is all about pushing yourself. It’s about growing in some way and exploring new areas, interests, or passions within yourself.
See it like this – the section above was all about learning and consuming new information. This section is all about applying and doing.
With that, some morning routine ideas for personal growth are to:
- Set some goals for yourself
- Write down 10 ideas
- Reach out to someone new for advice
- Work on a side hustle
- Have a coaching call
- Spend a few minutes learning a new language
- Make a list of new-things-to-try and do one each morning
- Decide on one bucket list item to tackle
- Research a fun activity you can do over the weekend
- Try out a new breakfast recipe
- Create a productivity plan for yourself.
Morning routine ideas: get organized
Getting organized is a great strategy to incorporate into your morning routine. Why? Because it will help reduce the distractions around you and help you focus on what actually needs to get done.
To get organized doesn’t just mean cleaning up clutter though; it could be organizing your life, your plans, or the thousands of ideas bouncing around your head in a given moment.
It’s all about combating the chaos of the day before it even starts.
So use these morning routine ideas to your advantage to become more focused and ready to take on the day. With that, some morning routine ideas to get organized are to:
- Make a list of things you want to do today
- Clean off your desk
- Remove or reduce the distractions around you (ie. clutter, loud noise, etc.)
- Plan out your day
- Plan out your week, month, and year
- Check in on your finances
- Clean up your desktop
- Update your budget
- Check your email (for only a few minutes though. Don’t linger!)
- Sort the mail
- Take out the trash
- Spend five minutes on social media (if it’s something that brings you joy)
- Organize the laundry
- Get your work supplies ready for the day
How to apply these morning routine ideas
After reading through this list a couple times, feel free to start building out your ideal morning routine. Take an idea or two and try them out.
If they work for you, if they seem to help you or brighten your day, keep them. If you feel like they aren’t adding anything, or worse, lessening your mornings, get rid of them and try something else out in its place.
Your mornings are a powerful thing.
Use that time to start your day off right by moving forward towards your goals. See your morning routine as that first opportunity, that first impression to make tomorrow better than today and better than yesterday.
Try out these morning routine ideas and experiment to find what works best for you. Whatever morning routine you create will be well worth it.
Moving forward with your morning routine ideas
Your morning routine is incredibly powerful. It can set your day upon a trajectory to success, or it can slow you down and make you feel stuck.
I don’t like feeling stuck and I’m sure you don’t either.
So use the morning routine ideas listed above for inspiration. Try them out and start creating a better routine for yourself. From there, you can make even more progress.
Again, don’t worry about what everyone else is doing. If the world tells you that you need to wake up and run a mile first thing each day, but you prefer yoga, do yoga.
Your morning routine is there to help you, not hinder you. Treat each day as an experiment to find what works best for you.
Let each day build upon the last and help you continue to see growth. And then with that in place, you can start building upon other areas of your life as well.
When you’re ready to start exploring, I recommend the following topics:
Goal setting:
- Learn how to achieve your daily goals – here
- Utilize some goal tracker tools – here
- Set some short term goals – here
- Bonus: enroll in my goal success course! Learn more here
Productivity:
- Discover how to be productive – here
- Bored? Here are some productive ways to use your time
- Learn how to increase your overall productivity – here
Time management:
- Understand the power of Parkinson’s Law – here
- Try out some of these time management strategies
- Learn how to manage your time – here
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