3 Things Successful People Almost Never Do in the Mornings

#1: They are never in a rush.

We learn a lot through watching and copying others — according to the well known psychological social learning theory. The feedback we get from copying a particular behaviour can determine whether we continue with it or not.

Because our morning routine has an instrumental impact on our entire day, we can always learn from those who are successful by watching what they do and acting accordingly in order to help us get the best start to our day.

With that being said, here are three things successful people almost never do in the mornings.

1. They Don’t Rush Their Mornings

It’s all too familiar — putting the alarm on snooze, oversleeping, then waking up in a rush and realising you have only 15 minutes to get ready for work.

All this does is increase our stress levels. We go from having a peaceful rest to the mindset of GO GO GO!

When stress levels rise, cortisol, the stress hormone which can have a damaging affect on our health, spikes. Essentially, many of us start our mornings by making it harder for our bodies to be prepared for the day due to this increased stress.

Instead, successful people are great at taking their time in the morning. They don’t panic, feel overwhelmed or add to any stress in their mornings. For example:

• Jeff Bezos sits down with his family for breakfast. He takes his time in the mornings.
• Oprah doesn't even have an alarm. She wakes up, takes in nature, takes her dogs for a walk and does some spiritual exercises.

Just a couple of examples highlight how much time even people like Bezos and Winfrey they take in the mornings despite their busy schedules.

The benefit to this is it allows for the natural rise and dip in cortisol levels we have in the mornings. It reduces any stress you may have. Also, it can have a calming effect to take your time in the mornings which may help with tackling your day.

So, don’t rush your morning either. Slow down and enjoy your mornings. Whether that means sitting down for breakfast or taking in a bit of nature in the. Do what’s right for you.

It can have a calming effect and stop you from feeling too overwhelmed in the mornings.

2. They Don’t Leave Their Mornings Unplanned

I wonder how much time we all spend thinking about what’s the best thing to do in the morning to be productive.

My guess is that it’s a lot and, whilst doing this, an hour or two goes by and we haven’t done anything. It feels terrible when the first couple of hours of the morning have gone, yet we’ve done virtually nothing because we’ve been spending more time thinking about what we should be doing.

For me, that’s one of the worst ways to start the morning.

This is something successful people almost never do. Instead, they know what they’re going to tackle when they start their work to improve their productivity, to help kickstart their day. For example:

• Investor Kevin O’Leary makes a note of three things he will do in the morning before he goes to sleep. His mornings are planned rather than wasting time debating what to do.
• Former American Express CEO, Kenneth Chenault does the same thing. He completes his evening by writing down three things he wants to accomplish the next day. Again, this helps him start his morning productively.

We can easily implement this technique to help us have better morning routines, making our day better.

Just as Kevin and Kenneth do, in the evening, write down three things that you want to accomplish in the mornings. Alternatively, in the evening, make a note of the task you’re going to get started with, in the morning. It can be a good way to kickstart your day.

Try not to leave your mornings unplanned. Know what you’re going to do. It’ll save a lot of time thinking in the morning about what you should be doing.

3. They Don’t Neglect Themselves

Because we’re used to rushing our way through the morning, we take ourselves out of the equation.

Our focus is on too many other things, but ourselves. For example:

• In the morning it’s likely we’re focused on emails, work, projects, presentations and this list goes on.

Here’s where the successful people are so clever. The mornings are a time for them to pay attention to themselves. Whether that’s trying to get better at something, exploring some self-compassion or prioritising their health, they make sure they engage with something that’s helping them. They don’t neglect themselves. For example:

• Charlie Munger — one of the greatest investors and friends of Warren Buffet sets aside an hour every morning just to learn.
• Arianna Huffington — breathes deeply, practices gratitude, does 30 minutes on a stationary bike, does 10 minutes of yoga and mediates in the mornings. Her morning is filled with time for herself.

The morning is a great way to focus on yourself and engage with things that can help you grow. It can also help you start the day amazingly well because you feel like you’ve accomplished things in the morning.

I’m not saying to do all those things above.

Pick one thing that you can do in the morning that makes you focus on yourself. Whether that’s reading to improve your knowledge, doing a workout to improve your health or practicing gratitude to help you be more thankful, don’t neglect yourself in the morning.

The very best use their mornings to enable themselves to grow. You can easily do the same by choosing one thing to focus on in the morning for yourself.

Final Comments

Our mornings are so vital. They contribute to our entire day. If we start them off right, it’s likely the rest of our day will be good too.

We can easily use the people who are ahead of us to help ourselves. Simply looking and implementing similar things that they do in the mornings can help us.

It’s also important to look at what they don’t do. Keep these three things that successful people don’t do in the morning in your mind to help you start your morning routines better:

Don’t rush your mornings.

Don’t leave your mornings unplanned.

Don’t neglect yourselves.

If you like reading these stories and want to support me as a writer, consider signing up to become a Medium member. It’s $5 a month, giving you unlimited access to stories on Medium. If you sign up using my link, I’ll earn a small commission.