“What did I miss while I was asleep,” I’d wonder as I scrambled to get out of bed to get to my laptop, all while scrolling through emails on my phone. Within minutes, I’d be responding to texts, shooting off emails, making phone calls and updating social media before I even had the chance to hop in the shower and eat breakfast. Those minutes would turn into hours, and before I knew it, my entire day had passed by before I had an opportunity to eat, drink a few glasses of water and find my center.
It was no wonder when I visited a holistic doctor in 2014 after my monthly cycle went missing that I found out I was extremely fatigued, dehydrated, mal-nutritioned and my nervous system was on the brink of shutting down. I knew in that moment that things had to change.
During a February 2015 text exchange I had with Sway In The Morning co-host Tracy G, we dived into the topic of morning rituals which went something like this:
Tracy: What does a successful morning look like?
Me: A successful morning to me right now is waking up with a positive mindset and knowing I can do anything I put my mind to. It might sound small but I’ve mentally abused myself over the past year more than any man or human ever could. A successful morning means eating two meals before noon. It’s the small stuff.
My success definitely does not include giving my mornings to others and not myself first, even though I am very thankful for my job.
That was my morning for 8 years, giving it to others. Now I make sure I wake up, drink a glass of water, open my blinds, listen to an empowering podcast while cooking my breakfast, and really make sure I’ve found my center before I plug into what the rest of the world is doing.
I’m trying my best to have an hour to myself in the morning before having to prep for my show. Now that you’ve realized that it’s a non-negotiable that can help you with future decision making, if something is going to disrupt your recharge time in the morning – Is it worth it?
Absolutely not.
Two years later, I’ve remained pretty consistent about my morning recharge time and it has literally transformed my days and changed my life. Here’s at least 12 things I find myself doing upon waking up before I’ve even had the chance to check emails or log into my computer.
- Lay in silence for 15 minutes and visualize how I want my day to go
- Write down my intentions for the day in my journal
- Pray (and Thank God for the many blessings he’s bestowed upon me)
- Stretch (a lot of people do yoga or meditate, I’m not there yet)
- Make my bed (I’ve found that if I don’t do this, I’ll want to jump back in)
- Drink a glass of water (You are super dehydrated upon waking up)
- Open my blinds and let the sun in (this is actually my favorite part of my day)
- Shower (steam shower helps get my ideas flowing)
- Cook breakfast (normally it’s 3-4 eggs with a side of oatmeal and fruit)
- Take my vitamins
- Listen to an empowering podcast or audio book (this can be done while making breakfast)
- Put on feel good music
- Aromatherapy (I find that when I put Peppermint oil in my diffuser it helps energize me, Lemon awakens my senses)
Bonus: Depending on how I feel, I may do about 15 – 30 minutes of cardio to get my heart rate going in the am.
Once I’ve completed most of my ritual, and fully immersed myself into my “Me” time, that’s when I will log online and plug into what the world is doing.
I have noticed such a dramatic change in my life since putting these rituals in place and my friends have all pointed out the shift they’ve seen in my energy and overall attitude towards life since I’ve been doing this as well.
A lot of people may say, “Sorry, I don’t have time,” but making the choice to go to bed earlier, and wake up an hour or two earlier makes all of the difference. If you put a good morning ritual that works for you in place versus the usual routing of scrambling out of bed, hopping in the shower, plugging into emails and rushing out the door you increase your chances of having a productive, well-balanced and positive day.
Try it, and let me know what happens!
What’s your current morning ritual?
Originally published May 17, 2017
Yes…it helps..i wake up at 5
.mediate for 5 mins..it works
I definitely need to start a morning ritual to have a better day.
After my alarm I lay in bed 5-10 mins going over my day task. Then I wake my child up and you know how that can be we have good/bad days.
I like to check my social media in the morning just to see if 45 had a heart attack/stroke yet. Needless to say I’ve been let down so far. #notmypresident
My mornings are very similar… definitely shifts my energy positively… I also write and speak positive aspirations… when I drive I don’t listen to anything I just speak our loud positive things over my day, my career and goals, pray… it’s changed how I go about my day and how I feel during it
I find myself riding in silence nowadays too!! Just me and my thoughts and visualizing how I want my day to go
Definitely makes a difference! Something about affirmations… I write them down in a journal … its like a daily vision board.
I also noticed (for myself)… when I get on my knees and pray I’m more connected compared to laying in the bed
Thanks for sharing ladies. I will work towards being more mindful in the AM… you all shared some great ways to do this
Agreed. I find that when I gave up getting on social media during the day time, I had more time to pray, read, do a daily devotion and even meditate. I stopped turning my TV on right away too. So every morning, I just get up and stretch really good, shower, then read a daily devotion of inspiration. It does give you that positive energy for the day.
This is amazing!! Nicole’s articles are the best ever!!!!I’m not consistent with my morning ritual,i need to get serious with ME TIME.
Very guilty
Gratitude journal is a great morning practice to instill. You reflect on a few a thing you are grateful for everyday from the smallestr to most significant
Im doing it now.
This was good! My kids won’t let me be great though.
I’ve heard The Miracle Morning is a great book for helping to get your day started the right way. It’s on my list. I take about 30 minutes to myself. It helps.
I say my prayers, thanking God for waking me up, and ask for guidance to bless someone else
I love my morning ritual…although lately I’ve gotten a bit off track. Typically it involves: drinking 2 glasses of water, journaling, a mini-workout, reviewing my goals for the year, month, and day, meditation, making my green smoothie and taking my supplements. It really makes a difference in how I feel and how my day goes. Thanks for sharing yours…this is a great motivator to get back on track! 🙂
I have been working on my morning ritual for some time now. At first, I thought I would just get up and do it. But sometimes I fall back to sleep. But I’ve written down exactly what I want to get done before going to work. Then this morning, I got up with ease. I logged onto here to see this post. I am inspired to keep up my morning ritual.