Work With Your Mornings
When planning what Habits I wanted to write about first, I figured, “Let’s start with the top of the day: Mornings.”
I know so many of us are not “morning people”. I certainly was not for the first three decades of my life, and I am not ashamed to admit I’m still practicing and evolving my relationship to mornings.
I can only guess that everyone reading this, at least once in their life, has experienced trouble getting out of bed in the morning. Leaving your soft, cozy, warm blankets for the intensity of reality can be both shocking and undesirable. These feelings can arise especially when you’re burnt-out and energetically or physically drained. Perhaps you can never seem to gather enough energy from sleep to actually enjoy your life – you’re just trying to survive.
For me, mornings start just before my eyes open. As my brain signals to awaken my body, there are a few brief moments between dream and lucidity.
Begin by noticing this threshold – you want to work with this energy before your eyes open.
Sometimes, my inner voice says “Ugh, no, that was a good dream, come back!” Or, it grumbles and says “I don’t want to go to work today, I have so much to do…”
Try, if you can, to notice these first thoughts of the day. Leave work and your to-do list out of your mind for just a few moments.
Allow yourself these moments of freedom and peace, before you need to leave your comfy sanctuary. You can soak up these beautiful moments.
As you slowly enter the day’s reality, what senses can you engage? Can you actually feel how warm your blankets and toes are? Where is the sun in the sky? Maybe you’re cold, and need to give yourself a hug in the fetal position.
You can keep your eyes closed here. Take a deep breath and feel the air fill up your lungs – is it cold or warm? Dry or humid?
Think, “Today is a new day. I have another chance to love myself, to love those around me. Today is another day to take a small step forward toward my goals and dreams. I can make today a great day. I am alive. How cool is that?”
Smile to yourself.
Experience the warm fuzzy feelings you can give to yourself. Perhaps you are experiencing gratitude and love.
You don’t have to nail this practice the very first time you try. The cool part is that you can try this every day, again and again! You can truly gain so much practice throughout your life.
I like to do this first thing in the morning, but it is also possible to find brief moments throughout every single day to tap into yourself, to notice the line between your inner and outer worlds, and to cultivate your own peace. You don’t need permission from anyone to do this (although, I am giving you permission!) So, why not start every single day by giving yourself a little treat? A little love? A little space? At the very least, a little smile.
Beginning each day with a fresh and positive mindset will have huge, transformative impacts on the rest of your day. Let’s make it a Habit.
