How much time does it take from the moment your alarm goes off until you walk out the door to work? For residents of the capital, the morning routine takes an average of an hour and a quarter, while Berliners take about fifteen minutes longer. Starting your day off right means ensuring you’re happy at work and keeping your mind sharp. But how do you organize your morning routine?? What can you add or remove?
1 Get up earlier to save more time
Among the habits found among top bosses and entrepreneurs, getting up early is one of the most common. A few of them simply set aside time to drink coffee and get dressed.
On the contrary, getting up earlier is an opportunity to include activities in your day before your work even begins, which will allow you to rethink the balance between your personal development and your professional success. Since most people are not very active at dawn, this will allow you to engage in your activities in an environment free from classic distractions: emails from colleagues, instant messages, LinkedIn notifications, etc. So, take advantage of this opportunity to add tasks that require calm or sustained attention to your morning routine . Beyond that peace of mind, completing something early in the morning can contribute to your well-being by creating a sense of accomplishment before you even get to work, even if it’s just reading a chapter or making a good breakfast.
2.. Prepare your body for the day
Physical activity is often found in the morning routines of successful people—from Tim Cook to Michelle Obama to Virgin Group founder Richard Branson—but it doesn’t have to be vigorous. Stretching, running, even yoga for former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton—it all depends on your fitness level and your exercise aspirations. The most important thing is to define your goals and take advantage of those prime morning hours to work toward them. Additionally, regular exercise has been scientifically proven to improve your memory and thinking skills over the long term, which will be a definite plus once you’ve established the habit.
3 Reading and writing to awaken the mind
To prepare yourself intellectually for your day, try incorporating some reading into your morning. Reading is an integral part of the morning routines of top executives, and can take different forms: like Warren Buffett or Sundar Pichai—the CEO of Alphabet Group—some choose to read the newspaper, while others check the day’s news online. For others, the morning hours are an opportunity to pursue personal development and productivity, reading. To develop this habit, start by subscribing to important news sources related to your work or one of your passions, and select one or more articles each morning on a topic that interests you. Conversely, some entrepreneurs choose to use their mornings to write. For example, you can keep a daily journal or clearly define your intentions for the day ahead, as American inventor and politician Benjamin Franklin did every morning
4. Prepare your morning routine the night before
It’s important to keep your morning routine running smoothly, especially if you’re a slow wake-up caller. To do this, try to give yourself an advantage by planning your routine in the evening. The key is to simplify your routine as much as possible so you can focus on the activities that matter to you. So take the time to visualize the different stages of your preparation, and how you could make them easier: perhaps it will simply consist of choosing in advance the clothes you will wear, filling your coffee machine with water, or plugging your computer into your desk.
5 But above all, find your balance
A good morning routine is all about well-being and personal balance. Whether you choose to implement the items on this list or something completely different, the bottom line is that you leave the house with a clear mind and the intention of having a stimulating and productive day . If your morning routine isn’t entirely satisfying, experiment! Get up half an hour earlier, or later; eliminate the activities you can’t accomplish in the morning, and replace them with others. For EDHEC Business School, the balance between personal growth and professional success is essential.
