My Morning Routine

Morning routines are one of those productivity things that get talked about a lot. The idea being that your morning starts you off, so if you want a great day, you start with a great morning routine.

Morning routines can vary widely with some people putting an emphasis on getting a jump on the day and some people emphasizing the mindset they want to cultivate, and everything in between. I also feel like early rising gets talked about a lot in this space, which makes sense if you’re talking about morning routines.

Myself, I am not an early riser. I typically get up around 9 am, which for many years now, has been my preferred waking hour (even if I wasn’t always able to adhere to it). Also, I don’t set an alarm. I don’t like using them if I don’t have to and I find that I naturally open my eyes sometime around 8:30 or so and make my way out of bed by 9.

The first thing I do when I go downstairs is make some lemon and honey water. Lemon juice from half of a lemon in a glass, squeeze some honey in there (maybe a teaspoon) and then fill it up with warm water from the tap and stir. I find that the warm water dissolves the honey better than cool and for some reason I like it warm in the morning. Not totally sure why.

I read about starting your day with lemon/honey water years ago and while I can’t remember the specific benefits, I do know that lemon juice is good for your system. I like hydrating this way first thing in the morning.

Next I make coffee, and then I spend 5-20 minutes having meditation time. This could actually involve a number of activities–breathing exercises, a little yoga, stretching or qi gong, a mindfulness meditation (typically I follow my breath) or a guided meditation.

I like this meditation time because it’s calming. It puts my mind at ease, which is good, because I wake up pretty energetic and with a lot of thoughts. If I’m not careful, I can start with too much mental activity right away and then never quite be able to leave it behind for the rest of the day. Makes me feel a little frantic.

Starting with meditation time puts the focus more on my body and gives me a sense of calm and feeling centered. That goes a long way.

After that I pour a cup of coffee and sit quietly and drink it for a little while. I may read a little, or look out the window or just see what thoughts arise (but I try not to get overly involved with them). I like having this time to do nothing and be quiet. I might even skim through some email or social media messages, but, again, I try not to get real involved with that.

I’ll have something to eat too. Just something little as I’m not usually real hungry in the mornings and then I’ll head upstairs to my office and get to work.

Typically, there’s about an hour between when I get out of bed and when I head to my office. It could be a little longer, it could be a little less, but I like the flexibility.

So there you have it. That’s what my mornings are like. What are yours like?

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Amanda Linehan is the author of North, about a young woman on the run from her past, the law and an old adversary out to get her. Her newest release is Bored To Death: A Vampire Thriller, about a 300-year-old vampire trying to restore the balance between life and death. She has published five novels. Get a free short story every month when you sign up for her newsletter.