Morning Routine

I usually wake up between 4:30 – 5am. Some people asked me what I do so early. To be honest, I want to get up even earlier. I’d love to keep my sleep hours as short as possible because I want to get more things done each day. But I know that taking enough sleep, which is a total of 6.5 to 7 hours, is just right for me. If I sleep too less, I don’t feel refreshed, and my skin doesn’t recover well. If I sleep too much, I feel unmotivated throughout the day and sometimes get a headache.

Here are the things I do in the morning.

1. Leave the bedroom

As soon as I get up, I make the bed, get changed and open the curtains in the bedroom. I won’t be back in the bedroom until the evening unless I put clothes away or something.

2. Leave the bathroom

Go to the toilet and then the bathroom. When I wash my hands, I wash my face, brush my teeth, and put make-up on in one go. So again, I don’t have to go back there again and again.

3. Hydrate

Move to the kitchen, make my lemon water in a bottle, have some of it and take a supplement.

4. Workout

Turn on the kettle and move my body while waiting. During winter, the kettle takes longer to boil, so I manage to do 100 crunches, 100 squats and about 10 push-ups. But it’s getting warmer in the morning, and the kettle doesn’t take long, so I currently do 100 crunches and 60-80ish squats. Once the water is boiled, I make fruits/herbal tea. I no longer have coffee or alcohol but occasionally have decaf coffee or non-alcohol drinks.

5. Meditation

I’m still learning and don’t know what’s right. But I sit up comfortably, close my eyes and focus on my breaths. I feel my focus is getting deeper (IYKYK) than when I started it. Then, I shift my focus on each part of my body from head to toe and scan my body condition. Any pain, something odd or cold, I pay attention and do something about it during the day.

6. Gratitude

Write down 3 things I’m grateful for. Big or small, it doesn’t matter.

7. Goals

Review goals (the bigger picture), and write down up to 10 small actions I can take toward them today. Put them into my schedule for the day and adjust plans accordingly.

8. Motivation

Read a motivational article or book, or watch a video of motivational speakers. Whatever I need for the day. Write down 1 to 3 words/quotes from them that empower me.

9. Budget

I keep the record of our household expenses in a google sheet. Each morning, what we paid the day before is added to the sheet, and I adjust the budget if needed. The sheet already has our budget (list of all known & estimated expenses) for about 2 years ahead. I also use this time to pay bills and do business accounting (just the daily bookkeeping).

10. Read

This is not the time to read whatever book I like. This is the time I specifically allocate to reading business-related material. I’m studying business now, so I prioritise reading the course resources at the moment. If you’re looking for a book for your creative work, I recommend a book called “Organising Your Creative Career” by Sheila Chandra.

Conclusion

I complete these 10 things by 7:30am (in about 2.5 hours). When my kid gets up and needs me before I finish all these, I just do mum stuff. If I’m too strict on following the routine and stress myself out, there’s no reason to do it. I’m still learning and always open to suggestions or advice. Time efficiency, optimisation, and getting things done as much as possible with the available resources are the keys to me.

Is there anything you can take away? Tell me about your morning routine. Any advice to improve my morning routine? Any comment is welcome!