Building a morning routine.
A thread...
Yesterday, in response to a question, I shared my morning routine on Twitter.
Post that I got a lot of DMs about it. Questions on how to build it, how does it work, why does it look so regimented etc.
I try and answer some questions in this thread.
twitter.com/warikoo/status/1516993274447237120?s=20&t=dQUH29pMwXEgm0skINBaLw
First, why does (any) routine work?
To have a routine is to train your mind and body on a repeated process.
Once the mind and body gets used to it, and begins to experience a sense of progress, it requires lesser and lesser motivation to repeat the same task.
For the longest time, I was an inconsistent riser.
School was 6am (school bus was early), college was 7am (had to reach campus by 830), work was 8am (rushed to reach office by 9).
It was only when I became an entrepreneur, that I settled into a routine.
And I chose morning.
You can chose your time.
Let nobody guilt trip you into waking up early.
If nights are productive for you, build a routine around that.
It is far more important to have a routine for your day, than to force yourself to wake up early.
Here are 9 steps towards building a morning routine, if that's what you wish to do
1. Sleep on time
The key to a morning routine, is to wake up the same time everyday.
The single biggest determinant of that, is your sleeping time.
If you sleep sporadically, you will struggle to wake up consistently at the same time.
1a. Try and have your meals at least 2 hours and preferably 4 hours earlier than you sleep
1b. Try and not have any screen time for 30 mins before you sleep
1c. Try and not get your mind excited by any activity (for instance, thriller fiction books). Instead calm it down.
2. Wake up slowly
Kids are often a good reflection of how we should behave as adults.
How they wake up is something we should learn.
Kids rarely jump out of their bed.
They stretch, slowly open their eyes, don't start talking, instead reply in humming sounds.
Do the same.
Take your time to wake up.
What works for me is sipping a glass of water for 10 mins.
Just me.
No phone, no person, no book, nothing.
The key is NOT to activate all your senses instantly.
Take it slow.
3. Do things that GIVE you energy
The key to a routine, is to recharge yourself.
To gather energy.
Either from within or external sources.
For me, it is meditating and riyaaz (singing).
For my wife, it is tennis and gardening.
Identify what it is for you.
4. Schedule those things, as a process
Once you have identified the things that give you energy, set a process.
It may seem boring, clinical, robotic, but remember, these things give you energy.
You do not have to do them.
You WANT to do them.
5. Measure progress in terms of energy, not goals
It is hard to quantify the impact of activities such as meditation, reading, walking, painting etc
And thus its easy to conclude that they do not move you towards a goal.
That may not be the right metric.
Instead...
...ask yourself, how do these things make me feel?
The key is to do things for yourself, that give you energy, so that you have enough to dispense on things that you will have to do for others.
6. Do not have a routine in isolation
It becomes hard if your routine is in conflict with those you live with.
Bring them along.
Adjust if you have to.
Request them to as well.
What may seem like a compromise is still far better than not having a routine at all.
My wife, for instance, goes to play tennis at 515am (under the lights), while I meditate, sing and get the kids ready for school.
Once she is back, I leave for my tennis while she drops the kids to the bus stop and goes to the gym.
Works for both of us.
7. Give it time
Routines are planned overnight.
They happen over years.
Be patient with them.
If you feel a sense of progress, you will need lesser and lesser motivation to persist.
Set no deadline to make a routine happen.
I have been on this morning routine for 5+ years now, ever since I started actively meditating and playing tennis.
It took me 3+ years to go from 7am wake-up time to 430ish wake-up time (improving by ~10mins every 3 weeks)
8. You will change. Thus, your routine needs to as well.
A routine is not a destination.
It is a tool for you to become a better version of yourself.
And as you walk on that path, the tools you require will also change.
Be aware of that change.
I used to read early morning.
Now I read right before I go to bed.
I used to play tennis and workout alternate days.
Now I do it everyday.
I used to meditate for 10mins (for 2+ years)
Now I meditate for 30+ mins
Time you spend on yourself, is energy you give yourself.
9. A routine will be costly.
When you do things as per a routine, you are also in some saying no to spontaneity.
That needn't be an entirely bad thing, but could feel bad often.
The emotional cost of sticking to a routine is high.
Because I sleep early, I have consciously said no to a gazillion dinners and events.
That was a price I was more than willing to pay.
But it is still a price I have to pay.
And you will have to too.
Assess the price.
If ok, great.
If not, reassess the routine.
This video by @jordanbpeterson beautifully describes why we should all have a routine.
Short clip - give it a watch.
youtu.be/ss3Vt6xKPqU?t=134
A routine isn't discipline around tasks.
It is disciple around emotions.
The most successful people have a routine.
That doesn't mean they are always working, or have things lined up back to back.
It means, they know which tasks make them feel what way.
And...
...they consciously chose to do the things that make them feel good, in a repeated fashion.
The most brilliant artists have what might look like no routine.
They wake up, do something, take a nap, wake up, do their work, go for a walk.
Might not look like a routine.
But it is.
Hit me up with any questions you have on this. Happy to answer through my experience and the little I know.
"You'll never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret to your success is found in your daily routine."
- John Maxwell
Every Friday I write a thread on personal growth, failures, startups, organization building and more.
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twitter.com/warikoo/status/1300042004810944513?s=20