When booking a massage a few months ago my massage therapist, she is also a good friend, only had a morning opening. She told me to not bother to get dressed up or anything, just roll out of bed and come in. It seems most people have picked up on the fact that I’m not a morning person.
Not being a morning person would be fine if the rest of the world was set up for night owls but it’s not. Sadly, most of us night owls end up having to deal with mornings.
I’ve felt stressed and behind for the last, well year or two, maybe more? And I’m tired of it. If I want to be able to enjoy evenings with my husband I need to be done with work and housework by the time he is done with work and the gym. So the last couple of months have been all about me finding a schedule and ways to deal with mornings better.
You will find lots of articles about having better mornings out there but it seems like a lot of them come from people that are naturally morning people. And morning people may need help with there mornings as well but night owls have a special hate for mornings and we need more help! So here are some tips to make your mornings better from a night owl.
Stop Hating Your Mornings
- Go to bed at least 7-8 hours before you have to get up. This is hard for some of us but just keep at it. It gets easier overtime.
- Set up a nighttime routine. Who wants to get out of bed when they know they will be greeted by a messy house and sink full of dishes? At least pick up and wash the dishes. If you have a lot of energy at night also consider prepping your breakfast, setting out your clothes, and maybe a few other chores.
- Set aside time for yourself in the morning. My new favorite thing is to take a cup of tea outside, read Simple Abundance and spend a bit of time on myself. This may not be something you would enjoy but find something that makes you happy. It’s not selfish to take care of yourself. When you are happier and less stressed everyone around you will benefit.
- Do the hardest thing first. I hate talking on the phone so when I have phone calls I try to make them first thing in the morning. If you have something you are dreading, get it over with. It will relieve some stress and make you feel like you have already accomplished a lot.
- Write shorter to-do lists. We only have 24 hours in a day and 7-9 of them should be spent sleeping. Putting 50 things on your list is setting yourself up for failure. If you need to, put times next to each item to make sure they don’t add up to more time than you have. Consider making a running to-do list with non-time sensitive things. DON’T look at it unless you end up with some extra time after doing the time sensitive things on your list. Your family does need clean clothes but they will survive just fine without you painting the living.
- Take the Make Over Your Morning course. This has been key to making my mornings better. I didn’t think it would make a huge difference but I had heard so many people raving about it. When I saw you could try out day one for free I knew I had nothing to lose. The moment I finished day one I bought the whole course. Try out the free day and see if it’s the right fit for you. And don’t worry the course is not about waking up early! *scroll down to the bottom of the page to get the free day* You can also check out my homemaker morning routine for ideas on making your own.
These are the things I’ve been finding helpful. I’m still on this journey of not hating mornings but I’ve made a lot of progress. I’m getting so much more done and it’s really helping my stress levels.
I’d love to hear what you do to make your mornings better. And are you a night owl or morning person?
I am not a morning person, but I’ve been able to make mornings much more tolerable by taking more time for myself and moving slower in the morning. I uses to wait until the last minute to get up. However, getting 7-8 hours of sleep is pretty much impossible for me for many reasons. Even when a miracle happens, and I sleep well, I am still offended by mornings. They are so bright … And instusive. I will always love the night. I dream of a world where we get to sleep during the day. In a a dark room.
I avoided trying to be more of a mornings person for a long time but it got to where I just needed more time to get things done. Still not a morning person but they are getting a bit easier haha.
I’m totally with you on hating mornings, haha. I minimized my getting-ready-and-out-the-door time to about 10 minutes for the sole purpose of getting to sleep in as much as possible. ._. These are really good tips! :]
That’s impressive! Thanks for coming by!
Thank you for the tips. I’m also a night owl who hates mornings. I’ve learned to do as much the night before (including picking out my clothes) as possible. I have a morning routine that I could go through in my sleep (and often pretty much do). As long as I don’t deviate (as in my husband having the nerve to come into the bathroom and talk to me while I’m trying to remember if I’ve put on deodorant or not), I do pretty well.
It does help doesn’t it? Some quiet time is important for me in the morning because I still would rather not see people when it’s early, ha.
I have always been a morning person, but the past few years I’ve found myself having to amend how I say that to people.
Because there’s morning… and then there’s EARLY morning. And I’m the latter. Most morning people I know like to be up at 7 or 8.
My days typically start before 6 am (unless I’m exhausted), but I’m happily in bed at 9/9:30 at night. However, I think no matter if you’re an early bird or a night owl, getting the dishes done before bed definitely makes for better rest, and more productivity the next day!
Yeah before 6 seems pretty unreachable to me right now. I’m proud of myself to be getting up at 6:30-7. 🙂
I LOVED the Makeover Your Mornings Course. Crystal is amazing! I was also a night owl by nature, but now I actually do enjoy waking up early to get a nice start to my day 🙂
Isn’t it a great course? Thanks for coming by.
Massive, lifelong night owl here, so mornings or whenever I wake up, is rarely my cup of tea. I really agree with the tip to throw yourself in the hardest/busiest task first if you can to help kick start that day. Once I’ve done a bit of meditation or even just deep breathing to help center myself for the day, that is often my approach, too.
? Jessica
Yeah it doesn’t seem fun when you are thinking about it but it’s always nice the rest of the day to have it done.
thanks for this! I think we are long lost sisters! I love massages, hate mornings and hate talking on the phone!! 🙂
haha! Glad you liked it!