Mornings are a crucial part of your day. They set up your mental state, your energy levels, your brain power and capacity for the remainder of your day. This means that your workflow and productivity can be significantly impacted, positively or negatively, depending on your morning routine. 

Harvard Biologist, Cristoph Randler discovered that early risers are more proactive. They are more likely to anticipate and minimise problems efficiently, ultimately leading to increased success at work and in business. A proactive mindset leads to increased productivity, and workflow, a more alert mental state. “A structured morning routine cultivates success”, according to Inc’s “The Scientific Reason Why Being A Morning Person Will Make You More Successful”. 

There’s a reason why high achieving individuals have morning rituals and habits in common. Below are a few things that you can do each morning to help prepare you for the day. 

Plan your day (write your to do list) – the night before 

Setting up your day the night before is crucial to making sure you start the day with a clear and focused mind. You have no distractions of needing to remember what you had to do from the day before, instead it’s all written down and you just need to refer to your diary and tackle your to do list. 

It also sets you up to implement the following productivity tips.  

Wake up early! 

Successful people want to get ahead, so they start their days early (after a good night’s sleep, of course) and take the time for themselves, to get ahead on their emails, meditate or workout. This sets them up for a productive and energised day. 

For early morning wake up inspiration, Apple CEO Tim Cook starts his mornings at 3:45am to get a head start on his emails, Michelle Obama starts working out at 4:30am and Twitter and Square CEO, Jack Dorsey wakes up at 5:30am to meditate and go for a 10km run. 

Visualise 

Take 5-10 minutes every morning to visualise your day, your goals, your ambitions. Take this time to set yourself clear intentions to make your day more efficient, calm and goal focused. 

Exercise  

Phil Allison, the founder and director of Corporate Edge does this! He religiously goes to the gym every morning before work. It helps boost your energy levels, reduces stress and increases your mental clarity, as well as super charge your productivity. 

Tackle the biggest challenges, first up and head on 

First thing in the morning, there a no incoming emails, no phone calls, no immediate actions that need to happen. Your mental reserves are high, meaning you’re also more focused. Tackling the hardest challenges or most important tasks first, will give you a sense of accomplishment before many people even wake up. The mind might be more creative at night, but it is more productive in the morning – so take advantage! 

When are you going to change your morning habits?