Human beings are habitual by nature. We thrive on consistency and process. There’s something comforting about knowing what to expect before it happens. This plays out in dozens of areas of our lives but is perhaps most commonly seen in our morning routines.
A morning routine doesn’t just impact your morning. It also influences the rest of the day. So by speeding up your morning routine and making it more efficient, you can set yourself up for superior results in other areas of your life.
7 Tips for a Faster Morning Routine
You don’t want your morning to feel rushed, but there’s also no sense in wasting time. The more efficient you are with your morning routine, the higher your potential is on any given day. Keeping this in mind, let’s explore some of the different ways you can optimize your mornings for maximum efficiency.
1. Plan Your Outfit the Night Before
Choosing an outfit for work can be tough. You have to think about the weather, what’s appropriate, and what you’ve worn recently. Thus, there’s something to be said for planning and setting out your outfit the night before.
“If you waste a considerable amount of time combing through your closet, picking out an outfit the night before is a definite time-saver,” entrepreneur Kelsey Mulvey writes. “Plus, you’ll stay alert on what’s clean, what needs to be altered, and what could use a quick steam or iron.”
2. Pack Your Lunch the Night Before
If you bring your lunch to work, this is another task you can check off your list ahead of time so that you don’t have to deal with it during the busyness of your morning.
Try prepping and packing your meals so that you simply reach into the refrigerator and pull it out before hopping in the car. Wraps, sandwiches, and soups are easy items to fix ahead of time.
3. Wake Up on Time
Nothing slows down a morning quite like hitting the snooze button a few too many times. If you want to be efficient with your time and not feel rushed, get in the habit of waking up on time.
Waking up on time is difficult for many, but it can be made easier by doing the small things well. This includes going to bed on time, shortening the time between snooze cycles, and using some sort of automated lighting solution to mimic the sunrise. (You can actually find alarm clocks that do this for you.)
4. Eat the Same Breakfast
You have a limited capacity for decision-making. Every time you make a small choice, it drains your supply. Something as small as choosing what to eat in the morning contributes to decision fatigue. By eating the same thing every day for breakfast, you can eliminate at least one choice and speed up your morning in the process.
5. Buy Important Items Ahead of Time
Not having what you need is a good way to slow down your morning routine. You can make your mornings much more efficient by purchasing frequently used items in bulk.
For example, you can sign for a monthly subscription of razor blades from Shave.net. This ensures you’re always ready with a sharp, new blade and don’t have to slow down your routine to stop and scrounge for a new razor. The same goes for things like rock salt for melting ice and snow. By purchasing big 25 pound bags in advance, you’ll have them ready whenever inclement weather strikes.
6. Avoid Technology
Technology should be avoided at all costs during the first couple hours of the morning. Try not to check email, social media, or news websites. All it takes is one sensational headline or alarming email to throw your morning into disarray. Technology can wait until you get into the office.
7. Delegate Responsibilities
If you have kids, there’s no reason you should have to get everyone in the family ready each morning. By delegating age-appropriate responsibilities, you can take some of the time-consuming details off your plate and focus on what really matters. (Something as simple as having your seven-year-old feed the dog is a time-saver.)
Regain Control Over Your Mornings
Stop letting your mornings control you and start taking charge of how you spend your time. By developing smart and consistent processes, you can restore efficiency, maximize productivity, and set yourself up for success throughout the day. Good luck!