“There is never enough time to do everything, but there is always enough time to do the most important thing. It’s not a matter of time; it’s a matter of desire.” — Nina Yau
Morning routines can be one of the biggest hurdles leaders face to add to their disciplines! If you don’t know it by now, I’m a raving fan of morning routines. But it was not always like that. As a teenager, I’d sleep in until noon if my parents let me. My first few jobs as I entered the workforce, I’d push for afternoon and second shift hours, so it didn’t interrupt my morning sleep time!
In my earlier days of leadership, burning the midnight oil working on some type of project, I’d wake up at the latest possible time I could to get to the office, only to find myself gripping my steering wheel with stress if I hit traffic or I got stopped by a train, delaying me a few minutes getting my Team rolling out for the day. I’d get to the office, and storm right past everybody, and jump right on the computer. Anybody that would come in and just want to chat for a second, I’d tell them “Can this wait? I need to get our route lists created.” I was a mess, a horrible leader, and I did not deliver a good message or any type of motivation to kick off the day for my Team.
When you wake up to your hair being on fire in the morning, you’re toast by the middle of the day! Internal anxiety is rushing through one moment to get to the next. Thinking ahead creates tension. “I need to get this done so I can get the next thing done.” Rushing through a moment to get to the next makes you resent “this” moment.
Rituals free your mind to focus on the current thing, not the next thing. Here are just a few things I do to answer anxiety in the morning and help keep from starting my day in a ball of stress!
1. Get up before anybody else in the house (4:30am is standard for me Monday – Thursday)
2. I keep the lights low, but have a reading lamp next to me. It’s dark outside, but I don’t turn on any bright lights as the dark is calming. I’m less distracted when the light is low. Seeing the sun rise is powerful.
3. Drink a glass of water first thing right after I brush my teeth
4. I set my coffee maker the night before to start brewing five minutes before my alarm goes off
5. I spend 15-20 minutes reading and studying scripture and the daily devotional as I sip my first cup of coffee.
6. I Read from a book for a few minutes and catch up on some blogs I subscribe to
7. I Plan what MUST get done today and I think / plan on what is to be done for the week. I try not to think too much about long term stuff in the morning quiet time
8. I Exercise. In the spring and summer, I go for a run outside. In the winter, I hit the gym
Here is what I have learned about myself – I am the most productive and my brain is most receptive to growth as soon as I wake up and spend time for personal growth items. If we spend these precious minutes in a frantic panic, rushing to get things ready for others, or rushing off right to work a few minutes after we get up, it sets the tone for a bad day!
Creating a morning routine for yourself is essential to being a successful leader and building a life where you can grow yourself which will help grow and serve others. Waking up earlier will give you ample time to focus on conquering the day with more energy, mindfulness and strength. I challenge you to give a morning routine a try. Doing so, you will stress out less, be more productive, and have more energy to tackle the day ahead. Establishing morning rituals and routines will help curve internal anxiety and prepare for the external chaos you will face during the day, I promise!