Getting up in the morning has always been a painful experience for me, even as a child. Something about noise to wake me up when in the deepest of sleeps annoys me; I want to wake up when my body is fully rested, not because I have to. Alas, this is not a reality yet and I have to do the daily grind. Growing older has put my body into somewhat of a routine though, I rarely find myself staying out till the sun comes up and waking up when the sun sets, as was the case only a few years ago.

Even with a better routine, there are still lists of things you can do for yourself to make your morning a bit more enjoyable and start your day right. These are things I have been and am trying to do that have led me to a better morning.

  1. Go to bed earlier. Simply put, you won’t have such a hard time waking up in the morning if you are more rested from the night before. My co-workers know if they seem me in the morning with a large Dunkin Donuts coffee in my hand while I shun the light from my eyes with a hand while squinting, don’t talk to me because I had a rough night. Going to bed 3 hours before you need to get up isn’t going to make anyone happy. Similarly, go to bed around the same time, every night. Even on days off and weekends, get in the habit of going to bed around the same time. Conditioning your body to sleep and wake takes time (years for me), and while I still enjoy a late night out with friends, it happens much less now.
  2. Keep your bedroom for sleeping (and other adult activities). I’ve had a TV in my room since before I was a teenager. It was my escape from watching whatever my Mom was and it gave me my own independence. Televisions, reading, doing work, surfing the internet on your laptop or anything else but sleeping (and other select adult activities) in your bed will disassociate your mind from the true task which your bed was made for, sleep. Trust me when I say I am not a new-age tree hugging hippie, but since moving into my new place a year and a half ago, I haven’t had a television in my room. To be honest, there isn’t even furniture in my room. A very large mirror in the corner, some art on the walls and usually some dirty clothing on the floor, that’s it (I have a walk in closet for all clothing, no need for dressers or anything). Having a near empty room and only going in there to sleep has made me sleep better now then I have in the last 10 years.
  3. If you are not asleep within 20-30 minutes of crawling in bed, get out of it. Go into another room, watch TV, read a book, take the dog for a short walk, something. Lying in your bed and not sleeping is the same as above, it disassociates your body from knowing that is where it goes to rest. For me, I may only be on the couch for 20 minutes before I’m ready to pass out again.
  4. Set your alarm clock to the real time. Setting clocks ahead has never worked for me, if anything it pisses me off. If I wake up late, I want to know how late, not figure out if my clock was set 15 minutes fast minus the time it is.
  5. Set your alarm clock to something you want to hear when you wake up. Those flowing water or gentle wake clocks have never done it for me; I use a $5 alarm clock from a local store. It beeps. It is not obnoxiously loud though, it is just enough to wake me. The radio if anything pisses me off even more, listening to some disk jockey or music I don’t want to. One day I’ll upgrade to one of those fancy iPod alarm clock things, but that would mean I’d have to buy an end table, for now the alarm clock sits on the corner of my bed.
  6. Set your alarm clock for a realistic wake up time. If you know it takes you 30 minutes to get ready in the morning and get out the door, don’t set your alarm clock for 30 minutes before you need leave. Set it for 40-50 minutes, give yourself enough time to hit the snooze button now and again, allow for traffic or spend 5 more minutes with your dog (or kid if you have one of those).
  7. Don’t set your alarm clock for an hour earlier then you normally get up because you need to cram for some meeting, test or finish homework that you should have done the night before. When you first wake up, you are in no condition to get your brain going full steam. Finish it the night before.
  8. Get your clothing ready the night before. For me, this is a work in progress. Hunting for matching socks or a sweater because it’s colder out then I thought it would be last minute sucks. Getting your outfit ready the night before will allow you to roll through your morning more fluidly.
  9. Put your daily used items in the same location. My house keys, glasses, cell phone and wallet always go in the same place, along with the dog collar and leash. I’ve seen friends of mine tear apart their house, yell at the dog and blame me for loosing their keys. Get in the habit of putting them in the same location, it will make leaving in the morning that much easier.
  10. Automatic coffee maker is your savior. I still don’t drink coffee on a regular basis, occasionally I’ll stop and get some on the way to work or drink what we have at work, but some people, such as my Mother, need a cup or two before work or while driving in. Using a coffee maker that has a timer built in will save you some time, brewing while you are in the shower or getting ready. Make sure you clean it and set it up the night before though.

That is my list, mostly, but there are a few other things that I don’t personally do that can help you out.

  • If you eat breakfast in the morning at home (which I don’t), keep it simple and prepare it the night before if you can. If eggs are your choice, consider egg substitutes, they are usually lower in cholesterol and will save you some time fighting with egg shells.
  • Pack your lunch the night before; put it in the same spot in the fridge. I don’t pack a lunch daily, but if you do, this is a huge time savor, keeping it in the same place in the fridge will be eliminate searching through the cold box while you are still rubbing your eyes.
  • Don’t get sidetracked. I don’t turn the TV on in the morning, but if you do, for weather, news, whatever, don’t get sidetracked by a good interview, story or breaking news event. Next thing you know, you are in front of the television in your undies for 15 minutes burning time away. Exceptions to this would be school delays (if you have kids) or traffic updates (if you live in a congested part of town).

I’m still not a huge fan of waking up in the morning, but these steps have made my life a little easier and a lot less stressful for me. Try them out. Better yet, tell me what you do to make your mornings a bit better.

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