How to Increase Morning Productivity

There aren’t many sounds more unwelcome than an alarm clock ringing in the early morning hours. But the way you react to it — and the way you tackle the rest of your a.m. to-dos — could be the difference between a sluggish day and an accomplished one. Increase morning productivity now to have more pride in yourself.

In order to increase morning productivity, you will have to build a routine that suits you, sparks your energy and is easy enough for you to follow on a daily basis.

The following are five ideas to incorporate into your pre-existing schedule so that you boost your energy, increase morning productivity and keep that rush going all day long.

1. Get Right Out of Bed

When your alarm goes off, how do you react? Do you hop straight out of bed, or do you slap the snooze button and roll back over? If you chose the latter, you might struggle with getting your day rolling — you can’t expect to increase morning productivity if you press pause on actually starting your day.

So, tomorrow, try getting out of bed as soon as you hear your alarm go off. You might have to find a bit of inspiration to get you out of bed on time, such as placing your cell phone on the other side of the room so you have to physically get up to shut off the alarm. The reward will be sweet once you’re on your feet, moving and spiking your productive juices for the rest of the day.

2. Plan Ahead the Night Before

Another great way to get moving in the morning? Get as much done the night before as possible so that you can cruise out of the door quickly. You can’t, for example, put your makeup on or brew your coffee ‘til the sun comes up. You can, however, choose your outfit, prepare your lunch, and maybe even set your coffeemaker to a self-timer so that it’ll be piping hot and ready by the time you’re downstairs. And, with all that taken care of, you’ll be waltzing out of the door and into work earlier and ready to get cracking.

3. Meditate

It may seem counterintuitive to start your extra-productive day by sitting down, closing your eyes and slowly breathing for a few seconds. But a good meditation session will work wonders for the rest of your day.

The practice of meditation helps you to press errant thoughts from your mind so that you remain centered, focused and stress-free. It has many links to productivity because of this, and has been shown to literally strengthen the brain over time. You can only imagine the wonders a strong brain might work on a busy, challenging day at the office — begin your practice soon to reap all of the benefits of mental focus.

4. Eat Your Breakfast

You’ve heard it a million times, and it’s still worth repeating: breakfast is an extremely important part of a healthy morning routine. Eating a meal when you wake up breaks the fast you’ve been on while sleeping and provides you with the energy you need to start your day.

Of course, in order to ensure your meal is as effective as possible in terms of boosting your productivity levels, be sure to prepare a breakfast that’s healthy and filling. Protein, good fats, fruits, veggies, whole grains… all of these potential ingredients will have you feeling ready to take on whatever’s next on your calendar.

5. Start With the Hardest Task, First

Once you get into work, don’t let your wake-up routine slow down. Instead, keep the momentum going by tackling the toughest to-do item first. If you don’t, it will be staring you down all day long, filling you with dread and slowing you down on other tasks as you subconsciously avoid it. If you get it over with ASAP, though, you’ll let those positive vibes power you through all the easier tasks you have yet to do.

And, just like that, your day will be well on its way to a productive, positive finish. By the time you get home, you’ll be ready to relax, recharge and do it all over again for the rest of the week.