They say “At the end of the day, it’s the little things in life that matter.” However, I feel we are all somewhere doing it wrong. It’s the beginning of the day which matters. It’s that very time when it’s actually about the little things.
How many times have you woken up from your bed and said to yourself, “Wow, what a beautiful morning! I’m so excited to live the coming 24 hours?” None, right?
You know if you would have told me years ago that one day I’d jump out of bed, excited for my day, before 6 am, I’d probably have laughed at you. Because, being energetic in the morning is an alien concept for a lot of us and B. Who gets up at 6 am? Well, I’m happy to raise my hand on that, after all these years of knowing what it takes to be here.
Most of us want to wake up excited and create endless momentum with what we love to do and many of us find ourselves distracted and overwhelmed by anxious thoughts and emotions. But you know, what I have realised in these 23 years that there is no magic wand that you spin around and voila: You have what it takes to make it to the most productive and efficient day!
It takes a series of dos and don’ts. It takes some level of introspection to know how your body works. To do the right things at the right time and most importantly, to LISTEN to your body. So here I am presenting you my list of little tips and tricks to get you ready for the new day ahead of you.
1. Firstly, let’s rewind to the night before your going-to-be-productive-morning. The time before you go to bed is an ideal time to prepare yourself for the next morning. Yes, I know a lot of us are exhausted from the day but this is the time when you can actually indulge in the things that give you a “me-time”. Having a night routine is so important that I cannot stress on it enough.
With the 9 to 5 jobs (sorry it’s actually a 9 to 9) that we do, we somewhere forget to give ourselves that special care that we so need as individuals. And the profession I’m in (I’m a YouTuber, just in case you are wondering), there is literally no time when you are NOT working because your brain is 24/7 generating content ideas and ways to achieve them. Hence, I try and spend a good time in doing things that relax my body from the entire tension of the day.
The boxes that you must tick off before sleeping include washing your face (toning, cleansing, moisturising—whatever the beauty gurus say these days); no eating any kind of food after 9 pm. This is because if your body is still digesting food when you’re trying to get to sleep, you’ll have a tougher time falling asleep; making yourself a good herbal tea is always a great idea; and pick that book lying on your shelf since ages that you bought thinking it will give you some good insight on how to live life.
And hey, don’t think I forgot the most important thing, okay? Keep all your electronics away from your sleeping area. No, don’t think of keeping it on the side table. You know you are going to spend 30 minutes on it when you wake up in the morning, mindlessly scrolling through Instagram!
Secondly, hey, good morning! You just won a lottery! Every day 86,400 seconds are deposited into your life account. Now if you decide to sleep through those seconds, you will only get 50,000 or maybe only 40,000. So do you want to waste them or hit that alarm stop button and get up on the bed and THRIVE to be a better version of you? I wake up every day at 6 am and believe me, it’s no rocket science, it’s no miracle. If I can, so can you. The thing is, you think you have time but the question is DO YOU?
Now mornings are actually the best part of the day for me because of… BREAKFAST of course! No just kidding… Starting your morning right is so important. They tell you to be grateful when you wake up in the morning but how do you really do that? You do that by meditation. Now meditation is a bit different for me. When you go outside and breathe the early morning fresh air? That’s meditation. When you sip that coffee with your loved ones and share the goals for the day? Meditation. When you close your eyes for 60 seconds and realise you are 1 step closer to your goals? Meditation. When you feel happy to be still breathing and moving your hands? Meditation.
Now that you are up, what you need to do is exercise. Yes, I know, trust me I have been there. Right now you don’t feel like hitting the gym, that’s fine. Start small. Put your yoga mat out or go for a run (walk is fine too to begin with) but do something… Believe me when I say this, this is the key to having a productive day. You will feel 100 times better in just a week if you are regular with it. You don’t have to take the long jump. Take a small one. Start small. But exercise is what I swear by when it comes to making yourself feel good and look forward to the day with enthusiasm.
Take a good bath. Make yourself a powerful breakfast. Treat yourself to some Instagram worthy breakfast (not that you have to share it there. Just do it for yourself if you want to). Try out new things once in a while. Try out acai bowls, make green smoothies, avocado and egg toasts or if you’re feeling too fancy that day, make oat pancakes, you know?
I know you read one of these kinds of articles on a daily basis but this very article will also get added to the same list if you don’t get up and make those changes. We always dream of changing the world but sometimes, changing your own self is enough. I know the irony is that you are reading my words while you are on the internet but stop scrolling up and down, close whatever technology you are reading this on and make your mornings worth it. So that you can mean it when you say: Good morning!
So, Good Morning!
Want to share your story of how you thrive? Write to us at [email protected]