A successful day starts with your morning. Wanting to sleep in no matter what time you fell asleep the night before is natural, but the key to success and productivity is waking up earlier. If you find yourself struggling to wake up at least two hours before work, it’s time to rewire your brain and take actionable steps for waking up earlier.
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Establish a Nighttime Routine
First, to get adequate sleep, set a nighttime routine to regularly follow each evening. Try to avoid creating unrealistic goals to start. It might be tempting to say you’ll read three chapters of a book, take a bath, or even eat before 7 PM each night, but these goals might not be attainable every night. Establish easy, relaxing routines that work for you and help you get the best sleep, such as using scents to improve your mood when you’ve had a stressful day.
Prepare the Night Before
Set yourself up for success by making your mornings easier. For example, if you want to wake up and exercise, set out your workout clothes as well as your outfit for the. Set up your morning coffee so that you only have to turn on the coffee maker in the morning. Taking simple steps the night before gives your brain less to think about when you wake up so that you’re ready for the day when the alarm goes off.
Play Music When You Wake Up
A great way to wake up earlier and start the day is to set your favorite song as the ring to your alarm clock. Listening to your favorite tunes—as opposed to waking up to an annoying “BEEP, BEEP, BEEP”—can offer a more positive start to your day. Music influences your mood and can set the tone for your day right away, making it harder for you to hit the snooze button.
Sit Up as Soon as You Wake Up
The minute your alarm goes off, sit up. Hitting the snooze button to get “five more minutes” of shut-eye will be tempting. But those first few seconds of waking up are critical, and they can either set or wreck your day. No matter how tired you are, just sit up. Once you’re up, you can take a few minutes to shake off the groggy feeling and then work toward getting out of bed. Getting used to this might take a few days, but it’ll get easier over time.
To ensure you can dedicate the time to work on your goals and dreams, it’s important to rewire your brain and take actionable steps for waking up earlier. When you make it a daily habit to come home from work and only watch TV, eat dinner, and go to bed, you’re only hurting your future. Shake it up and make time to work on your dreams by waking up earlier!
