Not everyone enjoys getting up at the crack of dawn. When the alarm goes off, we would rather hit the snooze button and catch a few more Zzz's before rolling out of bed. The downside to hitting the snooze button is having to rush through your morning routine to make sure you get to work on time. Most of us would agree there are two types of people in the world: people who are naturally cheerful in the morning and everyone else.
Take Stacy our HR manager, she wakes up with a smile on her face. She says she feels most energized right after she wakes up. Her internal clock is set to wake her at 5AM no matter what time she goes to sleep the night before. She looks forward to seeing the sunrise and planning her day well before most of us have rolled over to turn off the alarm. While many people are enjoying their second cup of coffee in the morning, Stacy has already checked her bank balance, whipped up a batch of cookies and might be cleaning her house while they are baking.
Let's face it, not all of us are motivated to wake up before dawn, run five miles and check their bank balance at 5AM. The truth is some folks are just born to be morning people. So what can you do if you weren't born a morning person but want to start making your morning hours more productive?
Stacy suggests you start by taking a look at your routine and then making a few changes. Are you hitting the snooze button a couple of times before you actually roll out of bed? Are you guzzling energy drinks and downing gallons of coffee to wake up? Are you eating and drinking coffee late at night? Do you end up stressing yourself on the drive to work because you're running late?
With just a few small changes you can make your mornings less stressful and more productive.
- Try to get 7 to 8 hours of sleep a night. You're most productive after a good night's rest.
- Don't eat spicy or heavy meals late at night. They can cause heartburn and indigestion which can keep you awake or interrupt a good night's sleep.
- Turn your alarm back so you wake up 15 or 20 minutes earlier. Ease into your new schedule by setting your alarm back 10 minutes earlier and adjust it back every few days.
- Choose not to snooze. Get out of bed the first time the alarm goes off.
- Fuel your body and rev up your energy level by eating wholesome foods for breakfast and stop guzzling all that caffeine.
Let's face it, not all of us were born morning people, but we can choose to embrace it. Embracing the morning is more than just rising with the sun; it's about motivating yourself to make purposeful choices.
