Once you enter the personal development realm and go all-in, it’s hard not to be overwhelemed by the amount of tips, tricks and mantras shared by friends, guru’s, cynics and, of course, well meaning family members! I found this applies to morning routines just as much as it does to, say, your health, relationships or finances.
You could spend a lifetime working your way through good and not-so-good advice all before you found the perfect morning routine — so bear with me while I contrast my old and new morning routines.
I’m up… I’m up… It’s a miracle!
My brother (he’s very well-meaning) spouts Hal Elrod’s Miracle Morning as his perfect outline of a “successful” morning. According to my brother, well to Hal really, there are 6 things you should do when you start your day.
Silence / Meditation
Affirmations
Vizualization
Exercise
Reading
Scribing
As you might have spotted, it makes a mnemonic SAVERS, so it is easy to remember. Great job Hal. This looks good to me — except I don’t see breakfast. Apparently it’s mentioned elsewhere in the book though.
My old morning
Raising my three year old daughter in a busy city (we are currently in Mexico City) has taken a few adjustments. My daughter definitely operates as my alarm clock. When we first arrived, my alarm clock would drag me out of bed and I would do my best to activate the “snooze” setting, alas, to no effect.
As the metaphorical fog lifted, I was straight on to my iPhone, working my way sporadically through Facebook, emails and Whatsapp responding where I could gather enough clear thought to reply. I would sometimes close out of Facebook only to immediately re-open it!
I would then dress my very patient, adorable alarm clock and make her breakfast. But I would rarely eat breakfast with her.
There was no meditation or silence.
Affirmations were for bedtimes.
Visualization was limited to dreaming of returning to sleep.
I would fill every moment being busy or busying myself with procrastination. Not with exercise.
Reading Facebook posts and clickbait.
No scribing. Just texting.
A new day
So what changed? Well my daughter, on her own accord, decided to start getting up a little later. She’s changing all the time and I’m very grateful for the transition from 5:30am wake-up calls to a more reasonable 7:00am morning cuddle.
I haven’t read Miracle Morning but, perhaps instinctively (or perhaps by osmosis from collective points I’ve picked up elsewhere), I now incorporate most of them.
I eat a healthy breakfast with my daughter.
I say affirmations in the mirror as we take it in turns to brush our teeth and get ready.
I spend a moment being grateful for something immediate (like the beautiful sunrise, or cuddles just shared), something in the past and something yet to come. I’ll sometimes count this as my visualizualisation.
Exercise is completed with a brisk walk to school. Bonus round is a Yoga routine when I get back.
I read — a book! Emails wait for 10am. Facebook at lunchtime.
I meditate. I’m getting better too and I often use visualization as mediation.
I write. Blog posts, training materials and journal entries.
This “good” morning routine doesn’t feel like a checklist and I’m grateful that I work from home which allows me the freedom to set my own schedule. I wonder, did I just need to wake up rested rather than frustrated? Maybe.
Maybe I found Hal too late, but either way I really enjoy my mornings — and that is a miracle.
Thanks for reading.
Zoe
CEO of BE School, Mexico City
