A thread on
BUILDING A
MORNING
ROUTINE
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.
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 get 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 choose 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
at 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
minutes 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 minutes.
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.
SCHEDULE THOSE THINGS,
4
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.
MEASURE PROGRESS IN TERMS
5
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.
DO NOT HAVE A ROUTINE
6
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
5:15 am (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 7 am wake-
up time to 4:30ish 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 10 mins (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.
A routine isn't discipline around tasks.
It is discipline 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 choose 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
