5 Steps to Make Your Morning Productive

Summary

The website content outlines five key habits to enhance morning productivity, including waking up early, making the bed, journaling, engaging in physical activity, and planning the day or week.

Abstract

The article "5 Things to Make Your Morning Productive" emphasizes the importance of establishing a morning routine to maximize productivity and ensure a fulfilling start to the day. It suggests waking up before 6 a.m. to gain extra time for personal activities such as enjoying a morning coffee or reading. The article also advises making one's bed as a simple yet impactful first accomplishment of the day, which can lead to the adoption of more life-improving habits. Journaling is recommended for mental clarity and motivation, with specific prompts provided for morning and evening reflection. Physical movement, such as yoga or meditation, combined with hydration, is encouraged to energize the body. Lastly, the article stresses the significance of planning one's day or week to manage time effectively and balance various tasks and hobbies.

Opinions

The author believes that waking up early is a fundamental step to increase productivity, aligning with the adage "the early bird gets the worm."
Making the bed is seen as a small but significant task that can set a positive tone for the rest of the day and contribute to a sense of accomplishment.
Journaling is highly regarded for its ability to organize thoughts, track personal growth, and maintain a clear mind, with the author personally endorsing the use of Notion and a 3-minute journal template.
The article suggests that physical activity in the morning doesn't necessarily have to be intense; even gentle yoga and meditation can be beneficial.
Staying hydrated, particularly in the morning, is considered essential for maintaining energy levels throughout the day.
Planning is described as a personalized system that helps in identifying time wastage and ensures a balanced approach to weekly tasks, including work, education, and hobbies.

Make your bed and clean your space

I know what you are going to say. “Nobody is going to see if I made it or not”, “I don’t have time, my mornings are crazy”, “I grew up already and don’t need to” etc, etc. All of this is true. But it is not the point. Nobody will judge you if your made bed is worth posting on Pinterest or not. A quick fluff of the pillows and tug of the sheets and comforter takes only a while, and you will feel the difference instantly. When you decide to do it, it will become your first completed task of a day. At the end of the day, when you complete different tasks you will see that small habits matter, and this tiny habit of your can motivate you to apply more of tiny habits, that will improve your life.

Journaling

It took me a while to learn how to journal. As for now, I have a dozen applications to write up my daily thoughts. First I use Notion — the application I want to talk more about in another post — and 3 minutes journal template. It asks me a few questions in the morning and before going to sleep.

Morning:

-> What did I dream? -> Three things I am grateful for -> Looking forward to -> What under my control would make today even greater -> Idea for Experiment to Run -> If I lived even more consciously, freely, and courageously I would -> I am -> Most Important Thing to Focus

Evening:

-> Three Wins -> One thing I learned. Is it a Breakthrough Idea? -> One thing I could have done to make today better and how can I apply it tomorrow? -> Something I could have said better? -> Am I resisting something? What? -> Favorite thing of my day? -> Short story of a moment today: -> Experiment/hypothesis from today? -> What could I do tomorrow that is High Leverage? High/boundless upside, low downside. -> Request for the subconscious mind to sleep on

Journaling keeps me motivated and I feel living my life by writing about it. It is priceless to clear mind after night and before sleep too. You should try it.

Moving around and hydrating

You might not be excited about the idea of a morning workout. “Not another person telling me to get sweat before the work”. I totally understand. How about some morning yoga stretches and meditation? For me is it a great way to kick start my day and strengthen my core. Whether you decide or not, remember about staying hydrated. Drinking water in the morning gives you energy all day.

Plan your day (or a week)

Everybody has their own system of planning (or not). I Spend the first hour of each Monday looking at and planning the week ahead. Some people are planning weekly, other monthly. You must find what suits you. Planning gives you the advantage of knowing how much time is wasted between tasks. Start from that:

-> Write up all extra tasks you need to do next week -> Write up all tasks you need to do every week like going to school, lectures, work -> Write up your hobbies

Then, with all mixed up, open weekly view and simply add to each day one activity from all categories, and fill the whole week. There, you did it.

5 Things to Make Your Morning Productive

Start and end your day with no regrets

Get up early, even on Weekends

Make your bed and clean your space

Journaling

Moving around and hydrating

Plan your day (or a week)