Coffee Talk #213: Create a Morning Ritual

It’s Tuesday! Grab your cup and let’s start chattin’.

If we were having coffee together this week, I’d ask: what are you doing for the holidays this year? Are you making any new traditions or even putting a pandemic spin on old ones? I’d love to know!

If we were having coffee together this week, I’d tell you that I have some BIG things happening in the next two weeks and I cannot contain the excitement. I’ll share when I feel like it’s a little more concrete. My goal was to #GetAfterIt by 12/31/20 so I still have a little bit of time. Gahhhh so pumped.

If we were having coffee together this week, I’d share a life changing tip. This will make you more creative, more efficient, and a better version of yourself: Create a Morning Ritual.

Rituals are the secret to productivity. This ritual time is YOUR time. Think of your morning ritual like putting on that oxygen mask first, before assisting others.

It’s so simple, too. It doesn’t have to be extensive or complicated. We’re talking about the first 15 minutes of your day.

This is not your morning routine. It’s part of your morning routine, but it’s separate from your morning routine. I’ll say it again – your morning ritual is NOT the same thing as your morning routine. I want your morning ritual to be completely focused on you, not on the tasks or things that you need to do for others. Your morning ritual prepares you, awakens you, helps you be the best version of you each day.

What does a morning ritual look like? For me, right now, I like to start the day with a big glass of water, some light stretches, a few moments of meditation or quiet time, and some time writing in my journal. None of these things are part of my work day – for my mentor job or for my fitness job.

I love journaling – I spend just a couple of minutes asking myself how I feel that day, what’s my energy level, do I have any aches in my body, what did I dream about the night before, etc. This might sound silly, but now I have this treasure of weeks and weeks of almost data on myself. I can go back and notice things about my daily life – it’s an opportunity to find patterns in my mood or energy or physical body. This is a chance to notice things about yourself. We live in a world filled with distraction, things are keeping us from noticing even basic information about ourselves.

How can you get started with your own version of a morning ritual? I like to incorporate these three things:

• Mindful / Mind
• Movement / Body
• Creative / Soul

Find something for each category (or honestly just start with one) that is meaningful to you. This will set the tone for your day.

Notable–your morning ritual can change slightly with the season, but I’d keep it the same length of time in each season. I recommend just 10-15 minutes. Maybe this means rising 10 minutes earlier each day!

Let me know how it goes, or even what you do each morning as part of your ritual!