How to create the perfect morning ritual

Setting yourself up for a productive day

Good morning! Welcome to ‘the perfect morning ritual’, my guide to transforming how we start our days.  It’s no secret that many successful people swear by their morning rituals - it’s like a secret weapon for achieving daily productivity.  Did you know that according to a recent study, 92% of highly successful people have a morning routine (source)?

Many successful people wake up earlier so they have time to do their own thing before they start their working day. There are some wild examples of celebrities and successful entrepreneurs who seemingly rise at 3 or 4am each day for their morning routine; Michelle Obama and Oprah wake-up at 4.30am each day!

However, I personally don’t think we need to be getting up that early!! As a parent and carer - I do benefit from having some time to myself, and now that my kids are teens it’s definitely easier to do this in the morning. So let’s explore…is there such a thing as the perfect morning routine?

Morning routine vs ritual

Over Christmas, and even into the start of the New Year, I was struggling with my daily practice that had served me so well during the year. I have been a bit out of sorts & off kilter as a result of some things going on in my personal life. Despite the path forward not being entirely clear, I'm beginning to feel a bit better in myself, and it's been coming back to the personal development tools & techniques that are helping.

I wanted to share with you my morning routine. However, I'm calling it my morning ritual. Rituals are sacred, and meaningful… whereas a routine is performed without conscious thought.

It's really the intention behind the action, and having the awareness of it, that makes the difference.

Routines are essentially a set of actions sequenced together, and typically these actions are habitual and there’s likely to be little thought given to them. For instance, in the context of a morning routine, when I get out of bed I tend to visit the bathroom and brush my teeth, then I’ll head downstairs to make myself a cup of tea which I’ll invariably take back to bed. 

Whereas after I’ve performed this initial set of habits, I’ll move into the morning ritual. The ritual is purposeful, and more mindful.

Getting up early: how to start a morning ritual

I had always considered myself a morning person; throughout school and university I was never one to stay up late studying (I think I did it on one occasion, and regretted it when it came to the exam the following day!). However, that said… I've also struggled to get up early and I was known to hit snooze a number of times before actually rising!

It was through my one-to-one coaching with Lynette Gray in 2020 that I was introduced to the concept of Miracle Mornings. My mornings have been transformed as a result, and I believe that my days are more productive too.

If you’d like to read more about my thoughts on how to get up earlier in the mornings, you can check out this other post ‘How to get up earlier in the mornings’ here.

Hal Elrod’s Miracle Morning

If you haven't heard of The Miracle Morning, it was a concept introduced by Hal Elrod in his book of the same name. The routine consists of six activities that Hal prescribes for your morning in the acronym SAVERS.

S - Silence (Meditation)

A - Affirmations

V - Visualisation

E - Exercise

R - Reading

S - Scribing (Journaling)

My morning ritual

My ideal morning has me wake an hour before the children, I make my way downstairs and mindfully prepare a mug of tea to bring back to bed. 

I’ll check-in with myself, and determine what would best suit my mood or what I think would serve me best that morning. And sometimes, that looks like dozing in bed for an extra 30 minutes if I’m particularly tired, and on some mornings the first thing I do is get up and out for a run. 

More often than not I’ll sit with my journal and spill out onto the pages the thoughts in my head, I will write out what I am most grateful for and take time to create some affirmations for the day. If I've time I might do some future journaling, where I write about the future as if it's already happened.

Before putting my journal aside, I will write my intention for the day and how I want to feel. 

I'll then pick up the book from my bedside table, and read for 10 minutes. 

I don't look at my phone until my ritual is complete.

And then it's back to routine, and my other usual morning activities like showering, breakfast etc. 

Starting out my day with some time just for me is really powerful, and it sets the tone for the rest of the day. I could very easily use that time for chores (occasionally I do, but I always regret it!!) or doing things for other people; but I think it’s important to prioritise my own self care.

Magnetic mornings

For the month of March, I've signed up for Lynette's Magnetic Mornings 🧲… where Lynette guides the group through a morning ritual of meditation, affirmations & gratitude, movement and journaling. It's really helping me get back into the habit of my morning ritual, and I would thoroughly recommend it (Lynette runs these groups regularly; best place to find out more information is on her Instagram here).

One of the nuggets of wisdom that stood out for me was a comment that we want to respond to life, not to react. My morning practice sets me up for the day, and allows me to do just that.

Edit: Lynette is no longer running her morning sessions, but there are a few other groups that do similar morning calls together, including the Be Well Club (which is run by Arbonne consultants).

Creating your own morning ritual

Here are some journal prompts to consider as you think about your own productive morning ritual.

• Take a moment to reflect on your current morning routine or ritual. What aspects do you enjoy, and are there any areas you’d like to change?

• How do you typically feel in the mornings; are you energised or a bit sluggish? And reflect on how you would like to feel. Consider the types of activities that will support the way you wish to feel.

• Check-in with your priorities for this season; what activities would be in alignment with these?

• Explore different morning rituals, this could be journaling, mindfulness or a workout routine. What are you most drawn to?

If you want to start a morning practice, be patient and compassionate with yourself as you do so - changing a habit takes time. However, the key is repetition.

Your body is made up of cells. Neurons are brain cells; these cells process and transmit information either electronically or chemically. Each neuron can be connected with as many as 15,000 other neurons. Think of two people throwing a ball back and forth... the people are the cells and the ball is the chemical signal (neurotransmitter). To begin with, the passing might be slow and clunky - the ball might even get dropped. However, the more the action is repeated and the more the people communicate, the quicker they get. The more you repeat the desired behaviour, the more your neurons will fire in your brain, again and again, and they form a stronger and stronger connection - essentially they rewire to replace the old behaviour. Once the desired behaviour becomes habit, it will be easier.

A tip to embed a new habit is to try habit stacking, where you pair a new habit you want to create with an existing habit. For example, if you have a habit of making a coffee each morning you could try writing in your journal as you drink your morning coffee.

It's also helpful to keep track of your progress when first starting out. You can download my Habit Tracker template here. This tracker is ideal for embedding a new morning ritual.

And if you’d like tailored support, I offer one-to-one coaching, you can find out more about working with me here.