TPP #6: 7 Tips to Help You Jump Out of Bed in the Morning

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UPDATE – I shared these ideas on Periscope. You can watch the replay above. Be sure to follow me on Periscope @paulminors.

As I talk about in the 7-Day Productivity Plan, getting up early is one of the best ways you can start your day productively.

Because I work full-time, the early morning and evenings are the only time I can work on my website and produce content (as I write this, the time is 5:14am) . If you have a side-project or part-time business you're working on, then getting up early can be a great time to spend on these projects.

Actually, I'd like to modify that statement; getting up early is one of the most common traits among highly successful people. Regardless of what you do or what situation you're in, you can benefit from getting up early.

That's better, now you can Tweet that:

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I've already talked about why getting up early is hyper-productive, but in a nutshell:

  1. It's a great way of starting your day with purpose.
  2. It's uninterrupted work time and no one can disturb you.
  3. Your mental power is maximised.
  4. It's great for getting your most important goal out of the way.
  5. It's natural.

I know that getting up early can be difficult for some people. In this episode of The Productivity Podcast I'm going to go through WHAT you can actually do to make getting up early easier.

Make sure you head on over to iTunes and subscribe to the podcast. You can also subscribe via the RSS feed. Are you enjoying The Productivity Podcast? I'd love to hear from you in the comments below with your thoughts and ideas of things you'd like to hear more about!

Okay, let's get into it!

1. GET UP FOR A REASON, GET UP FOR YOU!

I'm gonna get out the big guns straight away because this tip is super important!

The reason a lot of people struggle to get up at all is because they're getting up to go to a job they don't enjoy, or they're getting up to go to the gym, which they're not exactly stoked about.

The best thing you can do to make it easy to get up in the morning is to get up for a reason you care about. Get up for YOU and get up to do something YOU want to do.

For example, the reason I get up is to work on my website, to write this kind of content or to do some other work on my side-business. I have a strong vision for where I want this website/business to be and it's something I care deeply about. For this reason, it's not just easy to get up in the morning; I literally jump out of bed. I know that if I don't get up I'm literally going to cut the amount of time I can work on my website in half.

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Check out this video from Barrett Brooks. He talks about “living for Monday” and the importance of bringing meaning to your work.

2. NEVER HIT THE SNOOZE BUTTON

In his best selling book, The Miracle Morning (check out my book summary for an overview) Author Hal Elrod talks about the danger of hitting the snooze button.

When you hit the snooze button it's like you're saying “no” to waking up to life. Think about it – when the first decision you make on a new day is that you don't want to do something, this encourages a certain way of thinking – a negative way of thinking.

Instead make a commitment to yourself that you will never hit the snooze button. You may think you can get away with hitting snooze just once, but you'll be amazed at how often this fails and you ending up falling asleep again.

3. GET INTO YOUR EXERCISE CLOTHES

If you're planning on getting some exercise as part of your morning routine (I hope you are), then have your exercise clothes ready by your bed to change into as soon as you wake up.

What's the point in this? Really it's to just save time later. I have a bag packed for the gym the night before so when it comes time to leave I can quickly put my computer to sleep, grab my bag and leave. I don't have to go back to my room to get dressed.

By changing out of your PJs into some gym clothes it's also a great way of helping you to change mental state. I think to myself: “I'm done with sleeping. Time for action!”

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4. SPLASH WATER ON YOUR FACE

As soon as you're up, head to the bathroom sink and splash some cold water on your face.

It's amazing how quickly this can wake you up, plus it gets that crusty sleep dust out of your eyes.

5. DRINK SOME WATER & GRAB A COFFEE

When you wake up, you're naturally going to be dehydrated. Often we sweat in our sleep and if you've slept through the night you won't have had a drink for about 7 hours.

Have a bottle of water handy by your bed so you can grab it as soon as you wake up. Start this rehydration process as soon as you wake.

I like to start my day with a coffee. I'm a big fan of the Aeropress Coffee Maker and I use the Porlex Hand Grinder so I can have freshly ground coffee.

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6. MAKE A COMMITMENT TO YOURSELF

Every Sunday I go through a weekly planning process and schedule blocks of time in my calendar for my upcoming goals. For example, when planning to write this blog post I scheduled blocks of time during my week to sit down to write for an hour or so.

Planning and “blocking” your time like this is one of my top tips for improving your productivity.

When you put something in your calendar, you're making a mini promise to yourself that you're going to do something. So when you schedule appointments for 5am or 6am you're making a commitment to yourself that you're going to get up at that time and work on a specific task.

Personally, I find it harder to break these commitments if they're in my calendar. I know that if I stay in bed and miss too many of these blocks I'm not going to be able to publish my blog post on time.

Sunrise Calendar

7. GO TO BED EARLIER

This is pretty straight forward – right?

If you're going to get up earlier, then going to sleep earlier is naturally going to make getting up easier. So if you're planning on getting up at 5am or 6am then try and get to bed by about 10pm.

Sticking to a consistent sleep schedule is highly beneficial as well. We're creatures of habit and your body is going to benefit more from a consistent sleep pattern. So if you're the kind of person who goes to sleep at 11pm or 12am one night and then 9pm or 10pm the next night, it's time to get more disciplined with yourself and commit to a consistent bedtime.

YOUR TURN

Are you an early riser? What tips do you have for making the early rise a little easier?

If not, check out my action steps and start rising early (even just 30 minutes before your normal time). Guaranteed you'll absolutely love it! It's a nice peaceful time to get a stuff done.

ACTION STEPS

  • Bring meaning to your morning routine. Write down some goals and if possible create a vision for your future. Make sure these goals are exciting and are goals you really care about. These goals are going to be why you get up in the morning.
  • Find a bottle to use and keep this handy by your bed each night.
  • Schedule your time and make a commitment to yourself. When you know what you'd like to achieve this week, block out time in your calendar to work on these goals. It's harder to stay in bed after you've made these mini “promises” to yourself.