The morning routine that's changed my life

Jürgen DV
Oct 4, 2020
6 min read

Updated: 10 hours ago

"Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going." - Jim Rohn

How everything started

A couple of years ago, I read Robin Sharma’s “The 5 AM Club: Own Your Morning. Elevate Your Life” and got inspired to become a member.

It changed my life!

To be honest, I’ve always been a morning person and to take real advantage of the habits mentioned below, it’s best to start early.

However, there are some great tips below for the “snoozers” out there.

A great advantage of implementing a fix morning routine is that you don’t need to use your mental energy to decide on what’s next, it’s a simple flow of pleasant activities one after the other.

In order to remove any barriers from having a great morning routine is to plan ahead the night before, prepare your exercise clothes or anything you need so you don’t have to search everywhere before you get started.

Design a morning routine that suits YOU, so you’ll be excited to get out of bed. Decide how much time you want to spend on yourself, this can be anything from 20’ to 2 hours.

Here are some idea’s you can choose from:

1. Smile and Get up early!

"To have the results The Top 5% of producers have, you must start doing what 95% of people are unwilling to do. As you start to live like this, the majority will call you crazy. Remember that being labelled a freak is the price of greatness.” – Robin Sharma

Before you step out of your bed: SMILE!

One of the great advantages of getting up at least one hour earlier than everyone else is the quality time you get for yourself.

It’s no secret that this will improve your self-esteem, self-love and at the same time, boost the love you’re able to give to others.

Getting a head start before most people will also bring a great feeling of control, preparedness and calmness.

It’s proven that aligning your circadian rhythm with the sun has tremendous health benefits.

Most of all, getting up early will give you time for all the fun stuff coming next!

2. Get a big glass of water!

This is a no-brainer: your body gets dehydrated after 8 hours of sleep. One or two glasses of water will rehydrate you after losing it through your breath and set you up for a regular refill throughout the day.

3. Don’t check your social media, news feeds or emails!

“An addiction to distraction is the end of your creative production.” – Robin Sharma

Avoid the screen trap and maintain control over your mind, don’t let social media, news or anything else disrupt this quality time. Stay focused on your routine and be assured that answering this message one or two hours later will not make a difference to the sender (who’s probably still sleeping anyway).

This is your most valuable hour of the day, don’t waste it on mindless chatting or reading about the last stunt of one or the other president!

There’s a reason why Steve Jobs didn’t want his kids to have a smartphone. He understood how addictive they can be if not used properly.

Don’t go for the quick dopamine kick you get from clicking your notifications, instead use your mental energy and inspiration to prepare your day, allow your creative genius thrive on your dearest goals and dreams.

You’ll be amazed about the inspiration that will jump into your mind during these moments of silence.

4. Get some exercise!

Anything that will lift your heartbeat north of 120 for at least 20’ will do.

High intensity interval training (HIIT) is an amazing way to start your day, running, cycling, swimming, rowing, circuit training. Be careful with real HIIT exercises not to overdo it and make sure to take 48hrs of rest between HIIT sessions.

My favourite is weight lifting (having a gym right next-door makes it easy of course but a set of dumbbells and a bench are not crazy expensive) and I go for 2 to 3 muscle groups each day.

However, exercise is not just about toning your abs: it’s great for body and mind. Breaking some sweat in the morning brings down your cortisol (stress/fear hormone) level, stimulates your dopamine (feel good hormone) production and generates a protein which plays a role in the repair of brain cells and formation of new neural connections (BDNF or brain-derived neurotrophic factor), not to mention the associated increase in optimism, energy level, metabolism, …

5. Meditate!

“Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In that response lies our growth and our freedom.” — Victor Frankl

After working out the muscles, it’s time for a brain workout.

There’s a lot of bias around meditation, some people think it’s stuff for hippies.

Proven by science to reduce cortisol levels and thus lowering stress, it’s a simple technique to strengthen your focus, learn to let go and get in touch with your deepest emotions.

Meditation trains your mind to elongate the space between stimulus and response so we can choose our response to any impulse more wisely.

There are several ways to meditate but I stick to the technique I learned from the Headspace app

Pick a quiet location where you will not be disturbed for the next 10’ – 20’
Sit down with your back straight and the palms of your hands on your lap
Take deep breaths in through the nose, out through the mouth.
Close your eyes with the third exhale and let your breath return to a normal rhythm
Get comfortable with the space around you, the smell, noise
Scan through your body from head to toe
Now turn the focus to your breath, allowing distractions to come and go
Each time you realize you’re distracted, gently return your focus to your breath (you can count your breaths if it’s easier)
After 10 – 20’, return your attention to the surrounding space and open your eyes.
Stay still for a couple of seconds to enjoy the calmness in your body and mind.

Reconnecting with your inner self will help you to make wiser decisions and reduce negative, impulsive reactions.

6. Plan!

“If you want to be happy, set a goal that commands your thoughts, liberates your energy and inspires your hopes.” —Andrew Carnegie

If you look at your goals with a peaceful mind, right after meditation, inspiring ideas will come quickly.

This is when I take my smartphone (all notifications are disabled!) and write down the most important goals for the day, creating a strong intention to focus on these specific goals during the most valuable hours of the day ahead.

Looking at these notes during the day will help increase my productivity, avoid procrastination.

7. Get inspired!

“You're never alone when you're reading a book.” - Susan Wiggs

Books, podcasts, audiobooks … there’s a wealth of knowledge with a few clicks again.

It’s your job to take time and initiative to work on your personal growth, discover insights from others who spent countless hours to analyse problems and found solutions.

Reading just 10 pages per day will cost you 20’ and bring insights from nearly 20 books a year! My Kindle was the greatest gift I ever received.

Listening to inspiring podcasts is a much better way to start your day than consuming negative news feeds. Some of my favourites are Rob Dial, Lewis Howes and Dean Graziosi.

Some books are great to listen to and another great way to discover books is by listening to a 15’ summary on Blinkist.

8. Journal

“To achieve goals you've never achieved before, you need to start doing things you've never done before." - Stephen Covey

Writing for just 10’ every morning and every evening will boost your personal growth and gratitude. It will help you to avoid repeating mistakes, getting clarity on your dreams, problems and achievements while recording the progress you’re making every day.

Some great questions to ask yourself in your journal:

What am I grateful for today? What would make today great?
Who am I? What do I do? How do I make a difference? What will I do today that really matters?
What are my most important values?
How does my perfect future look like? What would I be doing? Where would I be living? With who? How would I spend my time?
What are my most important goals in life?

Once you completed your morning routine, it’s time for a cold shower. Besides all the physical benefits, taking a cold shower is like going to the mental gym. It’s an amazing way to shut the little voice in your head that’s saying … “don’t do that, take the nice warm shower, nobody will know, … “ . This same little voice is the one holding you back from your goals, dreams and desires. If you can conquer that little voice, you can push yourself to do the right thing for the rest of the day!