5 Tips for Waking Up Earlier

The time that you choose to wake up in the morning can have a profound effect on things in your life, and if you want to accomplish certain tasks, timing can create a variety of barriers to progress. Time will keep on moving forward even if you don’t, so if you’re looking to make some major changes to the way your life has worked until now, then getting up at an earlier time can be a huge change from what you’ve known. Here are some helpful tips for waking up earlier.

1 //Prepare the Night Before

A lot of people underestimate the power of planning. One of the easiest ways to help yourself to get up earlier would be to take some time to prepare a few elements of the next day. Instead of simply going to bed, you can try doing things like putting out a fresh outfit so it can be accessible as soon as you need to get dressed. That’ll cut down on the time that it takes to look through clothing. When you wake up, having tasks completed can shave time off and make it a more relaxing morning.

Think of other ways to prepare as well, from deciding on your morning workout and breakfast the night before, and even prepping some of the food. There aren’t many excuses when half the work is already done for you.

2// Stop Hitting Snooze

Snooze is a very tricky button. It tricks you into thinking you can sleep just a few minutes. But when you keep pushing it over and over again, you never get up as early as you intend. That can result in your being late for work and other obligations. Keeping your alarm clock far away from your reach in the morning can go a long way to preventing the multitude of uncomfortable conversations that have to be had after you’ve come 2 hours late to a shift. Aside from all of these things, studies have shown that snooze buttons are more disruptive than helpful when it comes to your daily sleep needs.

3// Know Your Intentions

It can help a lot to understand WHY you want to wake up earlier. Set some intentions, whether that is because you want to fit in a morning workout, have alone time in the morning before your family wakes up, or for focus and productivity purposes.

Think about your intentions – and write them down! Keep them somewhere that is easy for you to access as well.

4// Make it a Habit

One easy way to make sure that you make the change to getting up earlier would be to make sure that it's built into your daily routine. Make it into something that you revisit on a daily basis until it becomes second nature, but remember to start off small with something easy. The more frequently you make this time, the more comfortable you will be with making it a part of your day.

5// Make It a Focus

Keep track of your habits and be sure that you aren’t doing something that can make sleep difficult. That means no computers or devices of any kind after a certain time of day, and being sure to let your body go into a rest state naturally. Pick a good book that you can read and enjoy in the late hours. Turn off all of your screens and turn over to sleep.