My Good Morning Routine(s)

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Routines help me stay well and balanced throughout all seasons. No matter what time I wake, mornings recenter me for the day ahead.

My good friend, Divya, and I wanted to share a glimpse of our morning routines with y’all. Read Divya’s post here!

My morning routine is something I’ve been working on for over two years now. After starting full-time in the city, I began to really miss the late mornings of senior year—the perks of priority registration—where I could take my sweet time and wake up on my terms, “and no one else’s,” as Amy Landino says in Good Morning, Good Life. Sadly, that’s not how my first year or so of “adulting” looked like. My mornings leaned more towards the hit snooze until the last second, roll-out of bed, get ready and get out the door in a rush variety than it was the skincare, sunshine, and smile type.

My favorite mornings include water with lemon and ginger. Share your AM drink of choice in the comments below.

Determined to take mornings back into my hands, I started a practice called morning pages—three pages of stream of consciousness writing first thing in the morning. A year and a half later, I realized that morning pages, along with skincare, is a keystone habit for my morning routine.

“Keystone habits start a process that, over time, transforms everything.”

— Charles Duhigg, The Power of Habit

Like minimalism, brain dumping whatever comes to mind through morning pages helps me declutter the slew of thoughts that fill up my headspace first thing in the morning. After I’ve word vomited for 1-3 pages, I create distance from niggling thoughts and pesky decisions that could derail my day. Not only is morning pages part of my morning routine, it’s part of my mental health toolkit too. And when I’m mentally well, other areas of my life fall into place helping me live my best life. That’s a keystone habit for ya.

“Life is a work in process and I’m a work in progress.”

— Rowena Tsai

I’m not perfect, so I definitely miss a day or weeks at a time. Part of being kinder to myself, however, includes not beating myself up over skipping morning pages, while also being aware that this habit has a profound impact on my well-being, productivity, and creativity. If I want to maintain that level of performance and keep doing better, then I must return to and keep practicing my good morning routine. It’s a simple idea, but executing isn’t always easy. What matters is we keep showing up to do the work.

My Good Morning Routine:

• Skincare which can be as simple as splashing water on my face or the multi-step process of cleansing, moisturizing, and—maybe—applying sunscreen.

  Sometimes, I leave sunscreen for later, but it’s important nonetheless!

• Water. I typically drink room temperature water first.

  If we have lemons downstairs, I’ll make myself lemon water with ginger, filling my cup halfway up with cold water. When I’m back upstairs, I’ll turn the kettle on and refill the cup with hot water.

• Morning pages which usually consist of two pages of stream of consciousness and a third page of affirmations written ten times, plus my quarterly goals written three times.

  While I’m not practicing morning pages exactly like Julia Cameron describes in The Artist’s Way, I find that this system works best for me when using an 8.5 x 11 inch, college-ruled spiral notebook. If I’m using a smaller A5 or Traveler’s Notebook, then I will write three full pages of stream of consciousness writing. It’s all about that modification and consistency mindset: find what works for you and keep going.

• 5-10 minutes of meditation follow morning pages to give me that extra boost of stillness and mindfulness to start my day on the right foot.

  If I’m struggling to meditate, I start out with three minutes. I find that giving myself flexibility in my meditation practice works best for me.

• The Alternatives. The last step(s) of my ideal, full-on morning routine is a work in progress.

A few of my morning pages notebooks.

The Alternatives:

• Light movement which can include going for a walk, stretching, or 10-30 minutes of yoga.

  This step is the hardest to practice consistently even though I know the positive impact it has on my mental and physical health. If you have any tips, I’d love to know because your girl needs help.

• Tidying or watering and dusting the plant babies. Plant care is self-care and so is taking care of your physical space.

  When I’m unmotivated to go outside or practice yoga, I get my movement in by taking care of my physical space and my green friends.

  Right now, I’m experimenting with moss training my plants to grow more upright, so they require regular misting. Seeing my plants grow taller motivates me to take care of myself too!

• Daily draws using tarot cards to set an intention for the day is a new morning favorite of mine.

  I love Claire Goodchild’s Black and the Moon Arcana of Astrology deck that I bought from Homestead Apothecary in Oakland because each card has a corresponding keyword, like Libra = Balance and Venus = Create.

• Bullet journaling to fill in yesterday’s blanks, set my focus for the day, and start getting stuff done.

  I’m starting my fourth bullet journal this year, and if you’re interested in getting started with your own bujo, check out my Bullet Journal Notebook Comparison Guide and my 2019 Bullet Journal Review.

“If I can hit at least three of these items, then I’ve won the morning. And, as the saying goes, ‘If you win the morning, you win the day.’”

— Tim Ferriss

The 3/5 Tim Ferriss Tip: If I can do 3/5 then it’s gonna be a good day. (Cue: Ice Cube)

• Skin (and oral) care

• Water

• Any of these items: morning pages, intentions/goals/affirmation practice, five-minute meditation, light movement, tidy, or water plants.

I’ve come a long way from the rushed morning routine variety through perseverance, observation, and experimentation—and I’m still working on it. When you start to find the small changes that move you closer to sunshine and smiles (or your version of a good morning routine), you might just find the power to seize any type of day that comes your way.

Mornings look different for everyone because our lives are not cookie-cutter replicas. That’s why there’s so much material on morning routines out there. In sharing my version, I hope you find inspiration to take back your mornings—however that may look like in your life. We are our longest commitments after all.

For a different look at morning routines, check out Divya’s Morning Routine to Detox and Reset the Mind!

So, what’s your morning routine like and what’s your take on mine? Share your thoughts in the comments below. And if you liked this post, click on the heart or subscribe for insider updates and tools to keep building a resilient, well-lived life.

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Resources Mentioned

• Amy Landino - Good Morning, Good Life

• Charles Duhigg - The Power of Habit

• Julia Cameron - The Artist’s Way

• Rowena Tsai - 5 Ways to Refresh Your Routine (ft. my ideal morning routine)

• Tim Ferriss - 5 Morning Rituals That Help Me Win The Day (#105)

• Black and the Moon - Arcana of Astrology