Each of us have a morning routine, whether we realize it or not. The real difference is if we create a morning routine intentionally or not.
A good, intentional morning routine is essential. Have you ever had a bad start to the morning and then suddenly it set the tone for the entire day?
While you shouldn’t let the morning deter the way that your afternoon and evening go, attitude-wise, there are a few things that we can do to try to make the best of our day!
With all of the coronavirus chaos happening at the moment, creating a stable routine at home is going to make the adjustment that many of you are making by working from home, so much easier.
How to Create a Morning Routine
Before we deep-dive into some helpful tips for creating a morning routine, let’s start with the basics.
Grab a pen and paper and write down the things that you have to do every morning.
Next, write down the things that you wish you could do every morning.
Now that you have both of these lists, we can begin to put together a morning routine that fits your schedule. It’s all about prioritizing your time and making your morning routine serve you well.
Wake Up Early
Use this time to make a cup of coffee, curl up in your favorite chair, and allow yourself to gently wake up.
I like to make the most of this time by praying, reading motivational quotes or affirmations, and catching up on the news.
Although, now that the coronavirus is happening, I tend to skip the news right now.
I’m informed, but all of the constant virus talk makes me have a little anxiety.
WHY THIS HELPS: No matter what items are on your must do list and your want-to-do list, getting up early will give you more time to do those things.
Plan Your Day
It’s a good idea to have an overview of what needs to get done each day. I recommend looking over the lists of your must-do items and want-to-do items now.
TIP: You can certainly plan your day ahead of time by doing it the evening prior. I try to that most of the time, but it’s truly what works best for you.
Write down next to each activity how much time, approximately, it will take to complete. Then put together a little schedule with those items that will work for your day.
Pick Three
I recommend choosing just three must-do items and write those on a to-do list. Be sure to keep your to-do list in front of you at all times to help you stay focused.
You’ve probably heard of this technique before. It truly works! We tend to overwhelm ourselves with a ton of things all at once, and then wonder why we can’t ever get anything done.
If/when you finish those first three items on your to-do list, you can add three more and so on. But just start with three!
Get Ready
Take a shower, get dressed and prepare to get moving and start making your dreams come true.
If you’re working from home right now (and if you aren’t and are an essential employee, THANK YOU FOR ALL THAT YOU DO!), you may be tempted to skip this step.
I promise you’re going to feel so much better and actually feel more like working if you’ve gotten dressed as if you were leaving the house. It’s likely already a part of your daily routine, so if you start changing it because you’re working from home, you’re probably going to throw yourself off and not be as motivated.
Eat Breakfast
It’s true what they say: breakfast really is the most important meal of the day! Start your morning off right by eating a healthy breakfast.
What you eat in the morning will give you fuel to power through all of those items on your to-do list.
Slay Your Day!
Do you ever just feel like you’re just trying to survive rather than live? I’m going to make a post about that someday, but really think about that.
We get so caught up in what’s happening around us, especially now with the coronavirus, and we lose track of time and our goals.
Now, my friends, is the exact time to focus on all of your goals and start ticking off those little check-boxes in your planners.
You’ve got this. I know you can do it. Go out and slay your day, don’t just count down until the end of it or until it’s Friday, or whatever it is we are waiting on.
I hope you enjoyed learning how to create a morning routine! Let me know in the comments if there’s something you’d like to try to incorporate in your morning routine, or if you don’t really have one but want to start one now!
P.S. If you’re still interesting in learning more about morning routines, check out my guide to elevating your morning routine!
Let’s Chat!
Do you have a morning routine?
What’s your favorite part about your morning?
Do you like to get an early start to your day?
These are great tips and a must these days. I find it’s sometimes hard to work from home x
Laura
https://www.beautywithlala.com/
Thank you, Laura! It can definitely be tricky getting used to working from home.
I love this! I used to get a Starbucks every morning, but I’ve been cutting it back to every Sunday morning. It was hard to get off that habit, but man it is easier now and I look forward to it way more. LOL. Plus, just sitting in the drive thru line took a good 20 minutes I could be spending doing something else. Altho, now they’ve closed the Starbucks all by me because of the virus, so bummer! lol! I am a total morning person and I get so much done then. I love doing my workout before anyone else is up and having that checked off! That Girl Wash Your Face is such a good book! Ive read her second book and I’m currently reading her husband’s book on audio right now.
Carrie
curlycraftymom.com
That’s awesome, Carrie! I understand, it is a very hard habit to break. I’ve been trying to make mine at home, but it’s still hard not to stop and pick something up, haha. We don’t have a drive-thru Starbucks, ours is actually in our Kroger, but they’ve closed ours down too! So I guess that’s one way for us to kick the habit, haha. Love your morning routine, that sounds great. I’m definitely looking forward to reading her hubby’s book, as well!
These are very helpful tips darling!
xoxo
Lovely
http://www.mynameislovely.com
Thank you so much, Lovely! Hope you have the best weekend!!
Perfect tips for a good start into the day 🙂
lately I’ve been ding 10 min yoga home workouts, light a candle and then prepare my breakfast 🙂
xxx
Tina
https://styleappetite.com
Thank you so much, Tina! 🙂 That sounds absolutely wonderful and so peaceful!
I try to get up at the same time everyday and same with breakfast. Makes everything feel consistent.
Jennifer
Effortlessly Sophisticated
That sounds great, Jennifer. Keeping things consistent really does help make our days go smoother.
I’m not much of a routine person, but I really love your must do, want to do lists, I just feel they really put things in perspective and as you don’t write more than few bullets they’re totally doable and look like a proper challenge rather than scary 🙂
I love to sleep in, especially now with a lockdown and as I usually work evening and late shifts, but to be honest it really feels good when you realize how much can be done if you get up early. Thanks for the great tips <3
LackaDaisy
Aww, thank you so much! 🙂 Let me know if you give the lists a try, they really help keep me sane! That’s totally understandable, I can’t imagine working nights (I’m a zombie after 8 pm, haha!). You deserve ALL of the sleeping in you can get, friend.
So agree with you! And I’m in love with that post!!
I’m actually going to put in practice the “Must-do list” and “Want-to-do list” so I have them more clear and don’t miss anything 😉
xx
Eli
https://curly-style.com/2020/03/camisa-de-lunares-semitransparente.html
Aww, thank you so much, Eli! 🙂 I hope you really like this system, it helps me a ton!
Yes feel great with doing everything consistently. Not a very morning person I would say, but at least a morning routine helps me to get everything in place
Hope you stay healthy and safe
xoxo
style frontier
It absolutely does, friend! Thank you so much and hope you’re doing well! 🙂
I love drawing up my to-do list in the mornings, it always helps to motivate me! xo
Makeup Muddle
Same here, Gemma! 🙂
Yes it is so important to have a routine to get you up and started on the day. These are so helpful and I love the cute boxes!
xoxo,
Christine
http://dailykongfidence.com/
Thank you so much, Christine! I had a fun time putting those together. 🙂
This is so true, and very helpful. My new years resolution this year was to get up earlier. And make a hour by hour timeline and stick to it. Umm I have yet to do this lol. But it does make one more productive to be sure.
Allie of
http://www.allienyc.com
Thank you, Allie! 🙂 I’m so happy you found it helpful! Both of those are great goals! It’s never too late to jump back on board and try it again. I’ve also wanted to do something similar with blocking my time throughout the day for different tasks, but it’s still a work in progress for me too.
These tips are so helpful! Thank you beautiful. Xo, Ellese
https://openlyoptimistic.com/how-to-stay-mentally-and-emotionally-fit-at-home/
Aww, thank you so much!! 😊
Great tips! This is a very useful and motivating post
https://www.recklessdiary.ru
Thank you so much, I’m so happy you enjoyed it!
These are some great tips. I really need to make my mornings more productive. I also need to step up my to-do list game too.
Sxx
daringcoco.com
You’ve got this, Sonia! Let me know if I can help! 😊
I wake up a bit late but my “morning” mostly likely starts with a work-out. Once that’s done I can continue to the rest.
Hope you’re doing well!
http://www.fashionradi.com
That’s a great way to get your morning started! Things are good with me, Radi, I hope the very same for you! 😊
Oh yay such an inspiring post x
Lisa | lisaautumn.com
Thank you so much!
Love these lists! I am a morning gal and am up around 5 am. It’s my most productive time! Thanks for sharing your routine Ashley!
https://www.kathrineeldridge.com
Thank you SO much, friend. That’s wonderful!!
I always drink coffee and read a book for the good start 😀
That sounds great, Kinga! 🙂
These are great tips! I try get up before the kids in the morning and have a little me-time (like now!) while they sleep, and it helps me feel productive as I can get some blog work done for the day! 🙂 Or just read other blogs 🙂
Unfortunately I’ve had to keep tabs on the news too with the questions around schools and kindys, to know what will be happening with the kids.
Hope that you are having a nice weekend 🙂 It’s another quiet one at home here.
Hi, Mica! Thank you so much. 🙂 That’s a wonderful start to your day!
That’s totally understandable, friend. So happy you’re having a nice, quiet weekend. My hubby and I are having the same kind of weekend. It’s been in the 70’s/80’s here in Ohio, and sunny. 🙂
My favorite morning routine is the part where I brew a fresh pot of coffee. *Ahhh* These are great tips for staying on task and completing your goals. Love it! I’m not familiar with the “three” technique but I’ll give it a try!
Kaitlyn @ Oh, the Places We’ll Go!
Yes! Coffee is a fantastic part of the morning (and afternoon, and evening, haha!). Thank you so much, and I hope you’ll find the pick three method helpful. Let me know how it goes, friend! 🙂
Such a great article! So important to create good morning routine when you’re spending the day inside. Love all these ideas. Definitely gonna try and make a list first thing! Xx
http://www.thefashionfolks.com
Thank you so much! I hope that you find the lists super helpful! 🙂
I think that more than ever, morning routines are incredibly important right now. Otherwise it is really hard to structure the days when you are stuck at home all day!
-Didier
http://www.didieryhc.com
Absolutely, Didier! It is a crazy time we are living in, but keeping those routines consistent really helps.
I love this idea, and when I get back to work — I currently work from home, I really want to try doing this so I can be less overwhelmed.
That sounds wonderful, Natalie! You’ve got this!
Great post! I think with this “new reality” a lot of us are facing, a good morning routine is more important than ever. Thanks!
Thank you, Jonathon! Absolutely, it really is a crazy time for us – but we will get through this! 🙂
Love these ideas! Especially during this difficult time. Morning routines are going to be a must-have for us all to stay sane being at home so much! 🙂
Absolutely, Megan! Thanks so much for reading! 🙂
These are cute and helpful info graphics! Will try a thing or two!
Thanks!
Jil | https://www.letsjiloutdoor.com/
Aww, thank you so much, Jil! Let me know how it goes! 🙂
Morning routines are the best. These days I find it difficult to get myself out of the bed early. Nice routine up there
Totally understandable, Faith. We are living in a crazy time right now! Thank you so much for stopping by and commenting. 🙂
Never thought that will help my inner me to feel more positive if I get dressed with one of my outdoor long dress….but you are so right!!!
It really helps to carry on like we normally would, before all of the coronavirus chaos! Have a wonderful week, Elena!
Thanks for this – I really need to have a morning routine! And get up earlier!
Life is a Shoe
You are more than welcome, I’m so happy you found this helpful! 🙂