You got the memo, getting up extra early is a good thing to do. You set the alarm, you peeled your resisting body out of bed, now what? Do you head to your phone and check your email? Do you put on your workout clothes and get out the door? Do you meditate and try not to fall back to sleep? What’s the best use of this precious time?
I don’t know the right answer but after a few years of practice I seem to get the most out of my early morning wake up call, if I do two simple things. 1) Get out of bed. 2) Do not check email first thing.
Getting out of bed is the hardest part. . No reading in bed (been there), no meditating in bed (done that), no hitting the snooze, or laying there for just a few minutes. That’s a recipe for falling back to sleep. If you do that one little thing, the rest is easy.
If I get up and check email I have a lower quality day than if I wait an hour. Checking email first thing no matter what time you wake up means you are effectively jumping into the day ahead before you’ve exercised, showered, dressed, or eaten. I’ve noticed it makes me less present, less patient, and more irritable. I actually start to resist the things I have to do in the morning rather than enjoy them because I now have other things on my mind. I also have the annoying feeling that I’m late or behind when I made the effort to get up extra early. If I’m going to get out of bed that early, I want some serious rewards, I do not want to get up only to feel stressed for a longer period of time than if I would have slept later.
When my alarm goes off, I give myself several options of what I can do with that time. If I’m not terribly sleepy I’ll meditate first thing. Otherwise, I’ll make a quick list of 5 or so things I want to get done throughout the course of the day. Then I’ll close my eyes for awhile and focus on my breathing, nothing more complicated than saying to myself over and over again, “I am breathing in, I am breathing out, ” then catching my mind wandering and returning to those words again. Sometimes I’ll write in my journal, but most often I read a book. My one criteria for the book is that it is something good for my mind. No 50 Shades at 5am. Then time permitting I get my workout in. By the time the house begins to stir I’m excited to see my loved ones. I feel nourished and awake. I’m more creative and productive and I’m in a better mood.
So if you do want to start getting up earlier, first make yourself actually get out of bed, and then resist the temptation to check your email. Use this time for you, be completely selfish, the rest of the day will be for others, for completing, producing, and sharing. This is your time, personal time, and it will be well worth it.
I’m very fond of the idea of not checking email first thing. In fact, I’ve noticed for me that staying away from my computer PERIOD seems to be a positive thing. I like to stretch some, since my body is typically stiff, I drink some water or a green drink and then meditate, exercise or read. I like to do all of those things before I start my work day, in addition I also shoot to touch bases with someone to let them know my plan for the day. I find it helps keep me more in the game. Thanks for sharing about what works for your morning routine. I’d be interested in hearing how you plan your day. That’s a struggle for me. Plan the night before they say, I agree, but find myself staying up pretty late, which significantly impacts my morning. Ideas?
I’ve narrowed down the planning part of my day to 5 things. Those are the 5 things that if I accomplished that day, I would consider the day successful. Sometimes they are business or work related but not always. I have a notebook that I keep handy, and if I’ve got a lot on my mind at night or there is something that I don’t want to forget I’ll jot it down for the next day, that way I can rest easier. But most of the time I get the list done in the morning. Usually during my morning “me” time, I’m in the clearest place to decide what’s most important. Once I’m at my desk or started working I lose that clarity of the bigger picture and I can get lost in details or whatever fire I need to put out. So ideally the list is completed in the morning, but before my workday begins. I hope that provides some food for thought.