We’re all busy. I know. Having and managing a business is HARD. This I also know. Sometimes we just don’t have the time! And it’s a never-ending cycle. We get things added to our to-do list, and many important things just keep getting pushed back. We don’t even have time to think about how to have time. What you need is to increase your productivity.
Little by little, our business starts to feel impossible, and our personal life feels so neglected that we start spinning out of control with all the things we need to get done.
Let’s break that cycle. You don’t have to have a lot of time to start being productive with your business… You just need a Pre-Morning Routine! This is what I did.
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How I increased my productivity with my business
I was DROWNING. Just as a preview of what my every day looks like: I work in Marketing part-time, I own this happy business with my husband, AND I’m studying for my 2nd Master’s Degree (I also have about a million passion projects on the side).
I knew I needed to make a change when I, being the over-thinker emotional being that I am, created a little map of the years of life I could potentially have to do all the things that God has put in my heart to do.
I’ll make this bigger so it’s clear: No, I’m not trying to be morbid. I’m just trying to get a realistic overview and to lay some tough love on you like I much needed myself that day.
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Analyzing this image just hit home for me. I had read Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod, and I kiiind of felt motivated to react in some sort of way that manifested in my life, but my body had always felt like it wasn’t a morning “being.” I literally felt like having a morning routine did not apply to me because I “wasn’t a morning person”!
It was a (false) thought that I’d had in my mind—a result of all the negative feelings that I’d accumulated in my brain for years. I always heard my classmates, teachers, and beloved family members complaining about the “morning” and how “they were just NOT morning people. Naturally, I just kind of falsely adopted this notion that it was not okay to be a morning person.
So I did it.
Benefits of a Pre-Morning Routine
I set my alarm 1 hour earlier than I usually wake up, and I started implementing a Pre-Morning Routine that worked for me. When I say it worked for me, I DO mean for ME. My Pre-Morning Routine is for ME, myself, and I. It’s an hour of my day that I decide to dedicate to my self-care and to do the things that bring joy to my life. It’s actually the hour when I’m writing this blog post! I’ll get more in detail in a bit.
You can have the perfect office space, the best equipment, and a small army of employees but still not achieve your goals. All that hard work is wasted if you have a bad routine. No matter your goal, if you are constantly distracted, no matter how many hours you work, you won’t get anything done. Having a set Pre-Morning Routine does WONDERS for your life:
- It boosts your energy level for the rest of the day
- Considerably reduces your stress
- It helps you develop healthy life-long habits
- BOOSTS YOUR MOOD – and your quality of life and relationships follows this!
Tips for a great Pre-Morning Routine (that works for YOU)
Of course, there are so many people that will try to make you adopt their own Pre-Morning Routine, almost convincing you that THEIRS is the best one ever.
Tell them to go away.
Nobody can tell you what to do specifically, but I CAN give you some tips on building the routine you need.
1– Set your alarm at least half an hour earlier
You want to be clear from all distractions, so your Pre-Morning Routine needs to happen before the day kicks in! Remember, this is the time when you’ll get to work on YOUR projects. On the things that will bring YOU growth and joy. (I have now progressively set my alarm 1 hour 30 min before my usual wake-up time and I couldn’t be happier!). There is no way of increasing productivity without changing your habits.
2– Keep a glass of water next to your bed
After the beautiful rest time we spend sleeping, our bodies become dehydrated. This causes us to feel groggy and dry. To help tackle this first-hand, always keep a glass of water on your nightstand and drink at least half as soon as you wake up! (I’m not big on spills so I have a water bottle– which I fill up the night before– that I use throughout the day.)
3– Write down tangible goals you have (these may or may not be business-related)
Think of all the things you want to do. Write down a list of goals that you want to achieve in life. These might be something like:
- Run a marathon
- Create a painting for the undecorated corner of your home
- Delegate “X” in my business (I should spend my energy elsewhere)
- Converse in a new language
Make sure it’s something tangible in the sense that you could actually “check it off” once you’re done. The way of knowing that you increased your productivity is having checks instead of crosses or empty checkboxes.
Note that I wrote:
✔︎ Create a painting for the undecorated corner of your home
instead of:
❌ Learn to paint
When we write “learn to paint,” it’s hard to see an end-goal to it; therefore, it makes it harder to work towards that specific “goal” because we don’t really have a clear destination. When can you ever finish learning to paint? All artists will say: NEVER. We want something achievable that gets us moving! Increase your productivity one step at a time. Set easy goals that allow you to be consistent. The secret is on the consistency and not on the quantity.
Designing your Pre-Morning Routine
Divide it into 3 stages :
1. Meditation
This can be in the form of guided meditation, filling out a lovely Morning Journal, or any type of journaling that you feel comfortable with. Increasing productivity should not be stressful.
2. Exercise
Mario and I LOVE yoga because it regularly allows you to meditate as you’re strengthening your body, working on your mobility, AND your flexibility. Yoga has become a part of our daily life and hopefully, we will never let go! You can of course also go for a jog, do some pushups or jumping jacks. Exercise makes you achieve short-term goals and increasing productivity is measured by reaching goals.
Heck, start with only 20 jumping jacks per day and see how it FUELS your energy!
3. Nurture
This is your golden time. Use it to:
- take that crocheting class you’ve been meaning to take
- write the training guidelines for your virtual assistant of the things that you want to hand off to them
- write that blog post that’s been on the back of your mind
- Practice your singing
- Work towards a specific goal (that we mentioned in the previous section)
Basically what I mean is do ANYTHING that will allow you to tap into your creativity. And remember– creativity ISN’T just “artsy” things. Creativity is anything that helps you get out of your regular-thinking box. Opening your fridge to only 3 things in there and making breakfast anyway is ALSO CREATIVITY.
In conclusion
The way of increasing your productivity is to give yourself time. Remember that your Pre-Morning Routine is the time of the day when your brain is clear. It’s still unbothered and unpressured by all the other pesky thoughts of a busy life. This is your prime time for your creative self to SHINE. You can do it!
If you want an extra push for this, download our free Nailing your Pre-Morning Routine: Affirmations for Purposeful Business Owners resource! We have created this amazing free resource to help you fill your mindset with positivity and love so it can overflow into the rest of your life– both business AND family life. Download it here:
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