I can’t say that I love the morning, but I definitely don’t hate it. I’d rather be up getting my day started, awake and refreshed, than rushing to get out of the door. 

I’ve pulled together some of my most helpful tips for being more a morning person and preparing for the day; let me know in the comments if you have any more ideas.

The Night Before

While the night before doesn’t make you a “morning person,” I’ve found that it helps my mornings be less hectic and I’m able to dread getting out of bed less.

Plan ahead, as possible. If you can set out your clothes, lunch, purse, etc., the night before, that makes the morning quicker and less thought is needed. After I clean out my bag after work, I put it right by the front door so that as I think of something I need to bring I can put it right in.

Find an alarm (clock) that works for you. 

This one from Phillips has been on my bedside for the past year because it has a light that gradually gets brighter, simulating the sunrise.

This app called Sleep Cycle tracks your sleep and wakes you up at the best time for your body, within a time span you set.

You can also just try changing the alarm tone to something you know you’ll wake up to and start your day right. Find what works best for you!

Try an app/settings that change your tech from blue light to yellow.

I use f.lux for my computer – it works alongside the sun’s rising and setting to change the coloring. Instead of looking at the harsh blue light right before bed, which makes going to bed tougher, my screen tints a bit yellow. It’s easy to change back to full color if you need to, and I actually have the setting on 100% of the time at work because I’m there on a computer for 8 hours. 

For my iPhone, I have the “Night Shift” setting on (from 9pm to 7am). You can find this in settings, or within the brightness setting on the control panel.

Morning Routine

Avoid that snooze button. I’m writing this mostly to hold myself accountable because I am so bad about this in the morning. I’ve been known to set my alarm an hour early so that I can “snooze”. Do what I say, not what I do 😉.

Don’t stay in bed on your phone. Get right out of bed – I promise you’ll be less likely to fall back asleep. I love a good ‘ol scroll through my Instagram feed, but find that it just makes me both late for work and less positive as I go throughout my day.

Drink a cup of water right when you wake up. It helps wake you up and sets the habit for the rest of the day.

If I’m feeling fancy, I’ll also do a warm lemon water (but usually I’m double-fisting with coffee).

Wash your face, at least. Just like drinking water, this always helps wake me up (and is just a good habit).

Take some time to “meditate.” I put mediate in quotes because this can truly be a time for whatever you’re interested in. In the 20 minutes or so after I’ve made my coffee and before I get ready for work, I’m typically journaling, planning, doing Bible Study, or reading.

Multitask. Putting your time to good use really can almost double your mornings. While I’d like to say that I make my lunch the night before, most days I don’t. I use the time it takes my kettle to warm up water to make my lunch for the day. 

Make your makeup work double-time. Figure out your true “5-minute makeup”. Mine? Concealer, brows, mascara, and lipstick.

Need inspiration? Go to YouTube and search “5-minute makeup.” (here is one of my favorites)

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Have any more tips and products for making the morning great? Let me know in the comments below!