How to Create
a Flexible Morning Routine

Figuring out a good morning routine – and sticking to it – can be challenging! It can also be discouraging when your grand plans for a productive morning go out the window whether it be due to poor sleep, a fussy child, or an early appointment that has you rushing out the door. Sometimes life happens, we totally get it.

To help future you from feeling the disappointment of not achieving the morning routine you had planned, we’ve come up with a few tips to make your routine flexible so that it can work with you rather than be a source of stress.

For starters, think about what you want your morning to look like, and then look for the areas where you can have a little wiggle room to make your routine quicker and easier depending on your energy levels and the amount of time you have.

Ask yourself a few questions to get started...

• What does my current morning routine look like?
• What parts of it do I think are valuable to me, and what parts are draining my energy or not making the most of my time?
• How much time do I normally have in the mornings?
• Do I often wake up well-rested?

With your answers to these questions in mind, come up with a list of the things you would like to include in your morning routine if you had the time. This can be anything from reading the paper, making your bed, going for a walk, spending quality time with your kids or significant other, stretching, taking a few minutes to drink your coffee without gulping it down as fast as you can - you get the idea!

Once you have you have a list, break it down to see what you really can’t start your day without, what you like doing but don’t always have the time for, and what isn’t essential but you really enjoy.

Now that you can see where each item on the list falls, it’s time to build your routine! Starting with the list of things that you want to make time for but can’t always, you now have the basis of your ideal morning routine when things are really going your way! From there, you can cut a few items for when you have less time, and then a few more items to leave your stripped-down, essential morning routine when you’re running on empty.