How to Become A Morning Person
Yesterday, I “slept in” until 7:30 am.
I’ve officially become a morning person. (Gasp—l’horreur!)
Mornings and I have never really gotten along. We’d fake a smile and speak polite pleasantries to one another, but we’ve never really clicked. I used to consider any waking hour before 9 am as much too early for me.
Then I got a full-time job and was begrudgingly forced into a friendship with mornings.
It’s taken a bit of adjustment, but mornings have now become my favorite time of the day. There’s just something innocently hopeful about the quiet light of morning that I’ve come to fully appreciate.
If I can become a morning person, anyone can.
My biggest tip: Book a trip to London. Upon return, refuse to let your body readjust to American time zones; instead, allow your jet lag to continue waking you up bright-eyed and ready for the day at 6 am.
Okay, okay, I jest (though it is an effective method!)… Here are four realistic suggestions for you:
1. Prepare the night before.
Pick out your outfit for the next day. Organize anything you may need to bring to work/school. Decide what you want for breakfast and pull out whatever ingredients you can. Prepare your coffee so all that is required in the morning is a flip of the switch. Basically, do whatever you can do the night before so that your mornings will be meanders rather than madness.
2. Minimize the grumpies.
I hate alarm clocks. I firmly believe the background noise of Hell is a never-ceasing alarm clock. I think the ring of it is the most grating noise to have ever graced my ears. So I don’t use one anymore. My body naturally wakes up with the light now, so I don’t have to worry about sleeping in late. I don’t close my curtains to ensure that the morning light will refuse to let me sleep in. When I do need to use an alarm clock, I try to pick the least annoying sound possible.
Identify what triggers your morning grouchiness. Is it an alarm clock? People who talk too loudly? Then find a way to avoid these grumpy-triggers so you can start your day off smoothly.
3. Go outside.
I have a dog that I have to take outside every morning. The combination of fresh air plus the sunlight peaking softly over the eastern horizon does wonders at fully waking me. If you don’t have a dog, going outside can be as simple as taking a walk around the block or enjoying your breakfast on your patio or balcony. Just find a way to get outside in the morning, even if for only a few minutes.
4. Give yourself something to look forward to.
What’s the one thing that you wish you had time to do every day? For me, it’s reading and writing. Once I’m home from work in the evening, I’m either spending time with friends or trying to catch up on apartment chores, so simple enjoyments—like reading—get pushed to the side. So I begin my mornings by setting aside an hour solely for this. Coupled with a cup of coffee and a burning candle, this morning hour has truly become the draw that pulls me out of bed every day.
Find something that you enjoy—whether it’s reading, writing, exercising, whatever—and make that part of your morning.
Whether or not these tips actually work for you, there is a truth that took me 22 years to learn: Mornings can actually be pleasant. Promise.
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Last May I graduated college with a student loan balance of $29,000. Being an individual who was always mindful of my spending, this number was daunting. I had never even left a balance on my credit card.
Yet, I could still find relief in knowing that I was below the national average. 2017 graduates average nearly $40,000 in student loan debt. The United States altogether holds $1.48 Trillion in student loan debt. Talk about monstrous. And honestly, I don’t see it declining in the near future.
Even though $29,000 seemed immense, I knew that if I made smart decisions and planned accordingly I could make it work. Fast forward to June of 2018 and I’m officially free of student loan debt.
With graduates taking on increasingly more debt each year, I thought I’d share my story.