6:00AM, Monday morning, that dreadful and loud alarm you set on your phone the night before starts screaming. You immediately wake up feeling exhausted and dead, and you hit the snooze button, so you can get those extra few minutes that you “need.” 6:05AM hits, your alarm goes off again. Still feeling exhausted and dead, you then pick your phone up in a rage, tempted to throw it across your room. But you quickly realize that you paid way too much for your phone to just throw it.
If you’re anything like I used to be, you absolutely despise waking up in the morning. In fact, the absolute last thing you want to do in the morning is wake up to go to work or class. You begin debating if it’s really worth it.
If you know this feeling, let’s talk about how it can affect your team as a leader…
Morning Struggles with my Team:
We’re not just talking about college life here – this is something everyone should consider when going into anything, including your job. There are actually a number of ways in which the mornings can really affect your team.
1. No Morning Meetings
Chances are, if you never schedule a morning meeting unless you absolutely have to, you’re not a morning person. Individuals who wish to be proactive with their work will want to get matters such as meetings out of the way first (like at Swift Kick). This would make the remainder of the day dedicated to strictly working. By choosing morning meetings, it shows your team that you care about certain issues and want to have them addressed immediately. And if you don’t choose morning check-ins…well, we see your priorities.
2. We’re Staying Late Again?…
Forcing your team to stay later than usual just because you’re more productive later in the day is yet another sign. Again, going back to what I said earlier, be proactive! Show your team that you care and want to get things done. Staying late is not always the answer, especially if you could have accomplished it earlier! Respect your teammates’ time – they have personal lives to get to, too.
3. Snapping at People
Are you or someone on your team the type to snap at someone before they’ve finished their coffee? Yet another sign that they’re just not a morning person. It’s as if their coffee is their lifeline- which should never be the case. Although, coffee is definitely not a terrible thing in the morning, don’t be a snapping turtle and blame the lack of Joe. Nobody likes a cranky person, let alone wants to work with them.
Believe it or not, you can really start to enjoy waking up! Waking up is one of my favorite parts of the day now. In our book, “21 Things You NEED To Know When Starting College,” we talk about how you can win the day by winning the morning. So let’s talk about how we can absolutely love waking up in the morning and become better leaders and teammates!
1. Win the Morning, Win the Day Attitude
The simplest way to start off your morning right is to have the proper attitude. You can achieve this through several different methods. My go-to attitude boosters are:
- going to bed excited, happy and with a smile on my face,
- waking up and stating positive affirmations.
2. Get Your Own Natural Dose of Caffeine
Sometimes, it seems coffee is a necessity in order to function throughout the day. For me, that’s not always the case. When I wake up each morning, following reciting my positive affirmations, I drink water. How much water? At least 16 ounces, or a bottle of water. Why drink water first thing in the morning? Well, it’s been proven that water is our body’s natural fuel that we need in order to function at optimal levels. One bottle in the morning will help fire up metabolism, and flush out toxins.
As mentioned in our book, Tom’s dose of caffeine on his 45 minute commute to college was listening to music. Singing along allowed his body to release enough endorphins to give him energy until lunch!
3. Get Your Exercise On
Another great way to kick-start your morning is by getting in some exercise. This can be anything from taking a walk, doing yoga, or weightlifting. Whichever activity you enjoy doing, try implementing it into your morning routine!
4. Write Down What You’re Grateful For
A very easy and simple way to start your morning off right, and to get that positive attitude is to write down what you’re grateful for. Keeping a journal or list of the different positive pieces in your life can put you in a great mood!
5. Make Your Bed Every Day
Lastly, a slightly bizarre one, is to make your bed each morning. A survey was done with 68,000 people, stating that 71% of bedmakers considered themselves happy. While 62% of non-bed-makers admit to being unhappy. So go and make your bed!
These are of course just some of the things you can do to kick your mornings off right. What do you think helps kick-start your own mornings? Leave a comment down below!
