Morning Ritual

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 the intention behind the action, and having the awareness of it, that makes the difference.

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.

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 then 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.

After this, I'll move onto my skincare and supplements (I take a pre- and pro-biotic and a collagen builder supplement each morning from the BCorp, Arbonne)… and then it's all the usual morning stuff - shower, breakfast etc.

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).

Do you have a morning practice, and what does it entail?

What would your ideal morning look & feel like?

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.

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