How To Be A Morning Person

There have been three schools of people since the beginning of time: The Early Bird, The Night Owl, and the majority that are in-between.

I think there's something to be said about greeting the day and experiencing the sunrise. There's a quiet calm to the morning; when the birds are chirping and the roads are still empty. It's a beautiful time to be awake.

If you're reading this, it's probably because you have your own reasons why you want to become a morning person. If you're reading this because you're not sure why anyone would want to be a morning person, here you go: 

• Increased productivity

• More time in your day

• Fewer distractions

• More alone time

Being a morning person comes naturally to some, but for others, it's a disciplined skill.  I fall somewhere in between. I naturally wake up around 7:30 am, but I have trained myself to rise between 4 am and 5 am. Here are some of my not-so-obvious tips on becoming a morning person: 

Obviously, you need to get to sleep a little earlier than normal. But more importantly, you want that to be uninterrupted sleep. If you sleep with a television on, any type of noise, or light, the first thing you want to practice is eliminating that. The more interrupted your sleep is, the less rested you'll feel when your alarm goes off at an 'ungodly' hour, and the more likely you are to snooze it and sleep in. 

Drink water before bed. This has worked for me but only when combined with uninterrupted sleep. I drink a glass of water before bed so that when my alarm goes off in the morning, my need to pee drives me up and out of bed. However, this trick doesn't work if you wake up in the middle of the night needing to use the washroom (because of noise or light from your tv let's say..)

Your alarm tone or song is key. Make your alarm something soothing and pleasant. If your alarm tone is something annoying, you will resist it and spite it by hitting snooze. Try the sound of birds chirping or the ones that start off quiet and gradually get louder.

Beat the 'I don't want to get out of this warm cozy bed' syndrome by having a warm cozy robe or sweater right next to your bed so that you can throw it on right when you wake up. I won't get out of bed until my obnoxiously fuzzy blue robe is on, and once it is.. game time!

The night before, have an idea of what you're going to do when you wake up and think about the importance of it. Repeat it to yourself once more when your alarm goes off. If you are waking up early to meditate, remind yourself why it is important that you get up and do it: so that you have a more peaceful and productive day. Maybe you want to wake up to go to the gym, which personally is the hardest reason to get up early, but remind yourself: I am doing this because it stimulates my brain and I feel more awake at work as a result. I get up early to write, and so, I remind myself: My writing puts me in a happy place and has a proven track record of setting the tone for a better day.

Give yourself something to look forward to and have it easily accessible for when you get up. Coffee is what gets me out of bed in the morning.. mmm. So I have my coffee grinds out on the counter, the french press clean, and water in the kettle ready to boil when I press the button. This girl can be sippin' on some sweet, sweet coffee within four minutes of my alarm going off. 

Don't break the habit. It will take you, at most, 21 days to form this new habit. If you break it within those 21 days you will need to begin again. One morning of you saying "Nope!" will foil the whole plan. Power through until it becomes a natural (or almost natural) feeling for you to wake up early. 

If all else fails, send me your number and leave your phone on loud! I'll wake you up!

Lynn