I hear people say all the time that they wish they could wake up early but they struggle to create the habit. First let me go on record saying that I do not believe that you have to get up early and be super productive before the sun comes up to be successful. Most of the really successful people in the world don’t get up early and get straight to work. I believe we all have different times of day that we are most productive. We should find that time individually and make the most of it. You won’t be happy if you’re constantly having to force productivity. Also, I don’t always get up early.
When I say “wake up early,” I mean wake up earlier than you need to. If you roll out of bed with just enough time to get ready for work, I really believe you are probably starting your day off on the wrong foot. Some of you might disagree and that’s totally cool. But if you think it might benefit you to get up a little earlier than necessary, but you’re wondering just how to wake up early and love it, check out these tips.
Decide What to Do With Your Early Morning Hours (Hint: this is the key to loving it)
There’s no point in getting up earlier than necessary if you don’t do something with your time that will benefit you in some way. For me, that’s spending time with God first and then being a little bit productive. When I spend time reading my bible and praying first thing in the morning it sets the standard for everything for the rest of the day. I always want to give God my firsts thoughts — my first praises, worries, and all. Then I move on to doing a couple little tasks to make the rest of the day easier. That might be washing the dishes or prepping something for dinner that night. I always leave time to make breakfast as well. Then I get ready for the day.
Sometimes I sleep in. Sometimes on purpose and sometimes accidentally. Those days I only have time to get ready and run out the door. No big deal, it happens, but I definitely see the difference in my day when I manage to get up earlier than necessary. Also, early might look different for you than it does for me. Again, I’m not saying your day has to start at 5 a.m. in order to have a good day. On the days I have to work, I don’t have to be there until 10:30 a.m. That means early for me is not actually that early. I usually get up around 7 or 7:30, sometimes 8. But I still have plenty of time to do my usual morning routine before I have to get ready for work. You decide what early is for you, it might be earlier or later than me.
Deciding what you’re going to do with your morning hours is your first step though. Then decide what time to get up based on what you want to do in that time. Don’t feel too pressured about what you’ll do, you might end up changing your mind a few times until you figure out what works best for you.
How to Wake Up Early
Set Bedtime Rules
My biggest issue with waking up earlier always comes when I get out of my bedtime routine. Every once in a while this happens and I have to get back on track. When I say routine I don’t mean a checklist of things I do when I’m getting ready for bed, although your routine can absolutely be like that. My routine looks something like this:
- Eat dinner before 8 p.m.
- Get in bed by 10 p.m.
- TV/phone off by 10 p.m. (I read a book to fall asleep easily)
Prepare For Your Morning The Night Before
I have heard people say that they sleep in their workout clothes so they can roll straight out of bed in the morning and get to work. That’s a little much for me, plus it sounds super uncomfortable. But I do believe in preparing for your morning the night before. Here are some things you can do:
- Get your coffee pot ready
- Set out your clothes (for work and/or workout — whatever your morning plans entail)
- Have breakfast planned (it wouldn’t hurt to meal prep breakfast)
Move Your Alarm Clock and Phone Away From Your Bed
Your phone should be out of reach and turned to silent because I’m sure you’re getting notifications all the time like I am. There’s not way you can fall asleep and get good rest with all that going on. My phone goes on silent mode automatically at 9 p.m. For emergencies, there is a setting that allows my phone to ring out loud after someone has called me three times in a row, just in case anything were to happen. I just let my family and close friends know that if they need me after 9 p.m. they need to call three times for me to hear it.
Now let’s talk about that alarm clock. Are you a repeat snoozer like me? Oh my gosh, I can’t stop myself, it’s just way too tempting. That’s why my alarm clock (which also happens to be my phone) need to be far away from me if I want to get up at the time I have planned. I just put it on the dresser across the room. Simple fix. Although I have been known to jump up and grab it really quick and then climb right back into my warm bed with my phone. But most of the time, if I keep my goal in mind, it works. That brings me to my last point.
Think Happy Thoughts
I heard someone say once that the attitude you go to bed with is the attitude you’ll wake up with. Supposedly it also affects the kind of sleep you get. So I tested this theory myself and I will say, more often than not, if I go to bed thinking positively about the next morning, I wake up feeling like I can handle it. If I go to bed thinking, “Ugh, I have to get up so early. This is going to suck,” then I’m going to wake up thinking, “Ugh!” It’s not a perfect science, but it makes sense if you think about it.
So before you go to sleep, think happy thoughts. Think about what a nice morning you’re going to have and all the time you’ll have to ease into your day instead of be thrown into it.
