Best Morning Routine: How to Have a Productive Day

Sharing with you my tips for the best morning routine to set your day right. During the first quarantine in France, I lost any sense of time. My days had no purpose, I had no routine, I slacked on my skincare and on my Instagram page. Nothing mattered. This was topped by my depression too.

I learned from my mistakes, and as France is entering the second quarantine (after catastrophic failure to keep the pandemic under control), I will try and bring purpose to my days.

There is no pressure for you to do the same. It’s ok if sometimes all you do is just exist. Don’t feel compelled to come out of this a better version of yourself, pick up a new skill, or learn a new language. The times are uncertain, just do your own best and yours only.

My best morning routine

Wake up on the right foot

Easier said than done.

The first thing I usually do when I wake up is to think of all the things I have to do that day, and I dread it. It is a work in progress. My solution is to set one thing that I will look forward to the next day. For example, the night before chose a few pages I want to read to better my blogging skills.

Take your time

I personally found this to be the most soothing part of my morning.

When I was working far away from my home, I had to wake up at 6 am and rush my way through the morning and to the bus to then not miss my train. It built an enormous amount of stress that I still feel sometimes when my bus is late, even though I don’t have anywhere to be.

I kept that habit for a long while, almost a year, even if it was just to go to the gym. There was pressure to do everything fast. But one day, it suddenly hit me that there is no more urgency. Now I try to take my time, savour my breakfast and my skincare routine. This has helped me built a soothing atmosphere to my morning, where instead of stressing out I distress.

So next time you wake up, don’t hit snooze. Take your time and enjoy that one thing, whether it is your breakfast, your skincare, your makeup, or journaling.

Stretch

During the first quarantine, it was my goal to get more flexible, and I miserably failed. But I did find the experience to be soothing. This can add up to the previous point, taking your time.

In an ideal world, my best morning routine would include a little stretch. Or at least a foam roller to get some blood going through my stiff muscles. It is relaxing, and usually, you just concentrate on the movement so there is no place for intrusive thoughts.

Put on your best atire

It might seem silly, but even putting on some nice loungewear around the house will make you feel high class.

I ordered some off of Asos, because of 24h delivery and such a large choice. I find the pieces to be very comfortable and affordable. But most of all these make me feel like I put some effort into it.

Do something you like

Compared to the “take your time” point, this is solely dedicated to something that uplifts your mood that you wouldn’t usually do in the morning. For me, it would be to read a few pages on my kindle or note something in my bullet journal.

Make a list

Make a physical list of your tasks, and be realistic about it. A few will suffice, you don’t need to overload yourself in order to feel productive. Mine usually has 5-6 points that need to be done no matter what, and the rest can wait.

There is an unbeatable sense of achievement whenever you physically cross those tasks off your list.

Whether I will stick to this routine is another matter, but in an ideal world, this is how my best morning routine would look like. And you bet I will try and stick to it because another depressive episode is out of the question. I don’t want to slack off of what’s now important for me, which is to focus on my health.

I hope that this gave you some ideas to perfect your own morning routine, and that quarantine will not knock you down, wherever you are in the world.

Happy quaratining!

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