Mornings can be rough.
I’d know… I set up my alarm for 4am every night, only to play a game of catch-and-release with the snooze button until about 5am. At which point I engage in a tough back-and-forth with myself, discussing the pros and cons of leaving the sweet refuge of my blanket to face the harsh realities of this world. Then starts the mad dash to take a shower, get breakfast and lunch bags ready, before (gently) admonishing the small creatures of the house to roll out of bed and act like humans…
For women everywhere, the lapse of time between the moment we open our eyes to the time we finally walk out the door, looking somewhat human, without forgetting any little creature or dropping the other shoe, IS a journey in and of itself. And for most of us, how we start our day very often defines how we go through it (which also very often explains sugar binges and chocolate highs..)…
Yet, there are plenty of women out there who do this day in and day out, without (apparently) resorting to massive amounts of sugar or excessive online shopping (don’t judge me). From doing a bit of research and looking around, I’ve learnt one or two things from some of these successful and uber-productive women on hacking my morning routine (and cutting down on the sugar and online shopping):
Make Sleep and Exercise a Priority
Listen, if you don’t care for yourself, you can’t care for anyone else. Period. Running on empty batteries is running on no batteries. It took me a while to understand this, as my over-inflated, Superwoman ego was bent on doing it all, no matter what. Except your body can only do so much, and your mind may betray you the minute a German chocolate cake shows up…
In her latest book “Thrive: The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Life of Well-Being, Wisdom and Wonder“, Arianna Huffington talks about practicing daily rituals. When speaking to Soul Cycle, she explains how her daily ritual starts “the night before, with a good night’s sleep”.
Meanwhile, First Lady Michelle Obama gets up as early as 4:30 am to exercise. In this 2009 interview with Oprah, she puts it in unequivocal terms: “If I had to get up to take care of my kids, I’d get up to do that. But when it comes to yourself, then it’s suddenly, ‘Oh, I can’t get up at 4:30.’ So I had to change that. If I don’t exercise, I won’t feel good. I’ll get depressed.”
And is it any surprise that Vogue Editor-in-chief Anna Wintour starts her day at 5:45 am with a game of tennis?
Ok, time to dig out my sneakers…
Find Creative Ways to Spend Some Time With Family
Even more than money, time’s a commodity. Especially when it comes to spending time with family…
In the research for her “I Know How She Does It: How Successful Women Make The Most of Their Time” book, author Laura Vanderkam found out many busy families choose to have family breakfasts instead of dinners. All in all, they focused on how they could find ways throughout their days to create family memories.
For celebrities like J. Lo and Kim Kardashian, it means starting their busy day with their twins. For others, it may mean leaving early and saving dinner time for family time. Whatever works best…
“Good Enough” Is the New Perfect
The biggest morning hack of all is letting go of the need to be perfect. Whether it’s foregoing blow-drying your hair like designer Tory Burch, or getting an extra half-hour of sleep like Oprah (so you can do even more afterwards), understanding that what you can do is “good enough” is one giant step towards turning your mornings into success.
What are some of the morning hacks you use?
To Your Success,
The Corporate Sis.
