The Importance of A Morning Routine
Yesterday I mentioned how my days are pretty much light and amazing. I wanted to give a little more guidance on how I’ve reached this point. It started when I discovered the law of attraction. I believed in it, but things really started to click when I read the Miracle Morning about 18 months ago. I’d been doing bits and pieces of what the book suggests over the years, but I didn’t realize that there was a community of people doing the same thing. (I probably read someone’s post years ago and didn’t realize it.) The book gave me more structure and helped me understand the importance of it and why it works.
Now, I try to wake up around 5 or 6 am and then this is what my morning looks like:
Read: I keep my iPad or a book next to me so that it’s easy to grab as I try and wipe the tiredness of the night away from my face. Some mornings I have to talk myself out of looking at my cell phone. I’ve found that it’s a slippery slope if I reach for my cell phone before I complete all these steps. It’s normally what determines if the rest of this will flow smoothly or not. So instead I read a book. Normally it’s something business related - learning a new skill, a memoir, self help. I’ll read for about 20-30 minutes and this helps get me alert and in a motivated state.
Meditate + Exercise: After I read, I throw on my workout clothes and then go to the yoga mat that I already have set up in the living room. Well, normally I go to the bathroom first and then the mat. Where the mat is set up means that I can’t go to the bathroom and go back into bed without passing the mat. I meditate by doing breathing exercises and then I exercise my doing yoga. (I go kickboxing 5-6 days a week, but I use yoga as my exercise for this routine).
Pray: I end my yoga stretches in child’s pose. This has me on my knees which I find is the perfect time to pray. I thank God for another day and then list the things that I am grateful for.
Journal: Once I’m done praying, I get comfortable on my couch and I start to journal. I don’t worry about the structure too much. I just try and get the words on the paper as fast as they come. Sometimes I write about what happened the day before, other times I’ll write a list of what I’m grateful for and other times I’ll write down random ideas.
Personal Manifesto: My manifesto is filled with all the things that I want to accomplish as well as affirmations. My last step is to sit on my couch and read my manifesto aloud. If my brain has any resistance, I’ll stop and think if anything needs to be rewrite.
Visualization. Honestly, this is the step that I haven’t quite mastered and so I don’t spend a long time on it. But after reading my manifesto, I’ll sit and think about something specific that I want and allow myself to feel how good it feels.
And that’s it. This is my morning routine. Your routine won’t look exactly like mine. It’s the difference maker in me accomplishing my goals or not and what I attract into my life. When I stop doing it, it only takes a few weeks before the shift begins and I feel myself taking in negative thoughts and being caught up in fear and worry. That’s how I’ve come to know that working on myself and my energy is the only thing that matters.