For The Nights Owls With Early Days
For The Nights Owls With Early Days
The first few things you do in the morning set the tone for the day.
Everyone has a chronotype, which we commonly refer to as either “early bird” or “night owl.” Approximately one-third of people are night owls – which means energy levels, productivity, even metabolism and hormones, are all on a slightly later schedule than an early riser’s, due to a combination of genetics and environment.
The first few things you do in the morning really do set the tone for the day. This is why, having a morning routine that works for you and your energy levels is more important than living up to the “ideal morning routine”.
Tanisha, our resident night owl says, “As a night owl myself, I feel defeated when most articles and pieces about productivity have an element of “wake up early” somewhere in the list. I have tried all sorts of ways to be an early riser - but on most days it ends up with my energy levels crashing by midday. So waking up with the sun, getting a workout in before I go to work, seems like an unattainable goal to me.”
5 habits to incorporate in your morning routine that will make waking up less of a chore:
Make the most of the night before
As a night owl, you may have more energy when the sun sets, use that time to set up your mornings to be as low-effort as possible. This could include - setting your clothes out for the next day, packing your bags, knowing what you’re going to eat for breakfast in the morning, keeping your coffee pot on the stove, and even scheduling the Uber for a certain time. This means you get to be as efficient as possible.
Add some of the elements of morning routine in the evening
You can always unwind in the evening with meditation, write your gratitude journal at night, and do stretches after your day. Getting these things done in a day is more important than when you get it done.
Decide on a Set Bedtime
Whether it is 10 pm to 6 am or 12 am to 8 am; having a consistent bedtime routine helps train your brain to naturally feel tired when it’s bedtime. You could even set an alarm to begin your bedtime routine every night, anywhere between 30 minutes to 2 hours before bed.
However, when waking up - try to stay away from the technically dreaded (but secretly most favoured) snooze button.
Have an accountability buddy
Share your bedtime routine with someone close to you; it could be a parent, a partner, a friend, your roommate. Get them in on your plan to ensure you’re up at the time you’ve decided to wake up.
Wake up & stay up!
Now that you’ve woken up, STAND up from your bed. Take a cue from Mel Robbins’ Five Second Rule which says “If you have the instinct to act on a goal, you must physically move within 5 seconds or your brain will kill it.” This works because the counting will focus you on the goal or commitment and distract you from the worries, thoughts, and excuses in your mind.
Most importantly, ditch the guilt - a guilt-free morning routine is more important than living up to the ideal morning routine that the Internet serves you.
However, we also acknowledge that having the luxury to be in charge of your own schedule is a privilege. Even if your schedule is largely out of your control, we hope you’ll be able to incorporate the following tips in a way that makes sense for you.
For more inspiration, head on over to My Morning Routine; a nice resource for morning routines in general - interviews, conversations etc.