You get one chance to start your day off right. Do it wrong, and your whole day is ruined, you feel rushed, and your stress level only increases throughout the day. We know. When you hop out of bed, sprint to the shower, grab a suit from the back of the closet door and slam the front door on your way to the car, you set yourself up for a day that gets no better.
With that beginning, what’s to stop you from reaching for the glazed donut during your meeting, tossing back a few too many cups of coffee and running out to grab a greasy lunch that you end up eating at your desk? When you start your day like this, you end up crashing mid-afternoon. You snip at clients, talk back to your emails and storm the kitchen for sugary snacks by 3pm.
Mornings are busy, and that won’t change. What can change is how you start them.
When you start your day with enough time to do all that you need to do before you get to your desk, you can go through your day feeling calm and in control. How would you feel if you adjusted your morning routine so that you got to work breathing easy rather than dashing for your desk feeling flustered before you begin?
There are several things that you can do to begin your day feeling relaxed and ready to take on what the morning holds in store.
Before you leave your home:
- Set the alarm so that you wake up with enough time to spend a few minutes either reading, meditating, watching the news or taking a short walk outside to breathe fresh air. This can be as few as 10 minutes each day.
- Listen to some soothing music while you dress. Feeling especially energetic? Crank up the tunes and dance.
- Plan your outfit the night before so you’re not staring aimlessly at your closet wasting precious morning minutes.
- Have quick and healthy breakfast options available so you don’t leave home with a grumbling stomach. Sit down for a few minutes while you eat.
- Pack snacks or even lunch the night before so you can have healthy foods on hand when you’re hungry during the day.
When you get to work:
- Make yourself a cup of coffee or tea, and drink it leisurely at your desk while you check your email.
- Don’t answer or return calls for the first fifteen minutes after you arrive. Let your mind prepare for the day ahead.
- Jot down 3 – 5 items that you want to get done that day. Check your list throughout the day to stay on track.
- Let your assistant know what your expectations are for the day so that you don’t end up feeling angry or disappointed. When you’re both on the same page, the work gets done, and you both end up feeling satisfied rather than stressed.
It takes time to make adjustments to your daily routine. Start with one item from each of the at home and at the office categories and add on from there. Over the next few weeks, see how your days change by making these simple shifts to your routine.
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Let us know how this is working out for you in the Comments below.
