Today's musing - Can spoiling yourself be the key to building a lasting morning routine?
I spent most of my life hitting the snooze button. Good mornings were the ones where I rolled out of bed at 11am. I just LOVE to sleep but hated the guilty feelings that would bubble up. I mean, how could you not with articles like 'Daily Habits of Exceptionally Successful People' (hint: there's always theme about rising early). After a decade of trying, what method has genuinely stuck with me for the last 6 months?
What are Morning Pages?
Write 3 pages, long hand, of your stream of consciousness first thing in the morning.
That's it. No computer. No censoring. No re-reading what you've written. It's the foundation practice for The Artist's Way. I started this 6 months ago and continue to this day.
What's the secret?
It really boiled down to spoiling myself for this 'special' occasion.
I used this beautiful, leather journal that had been sitting on my shelf for 3 years. I got an old fountain pen that was in the family for 100 years. Every morning, I'd pull on my cosiest socks, stumble downstairs and light my favorite lavender candle.
I was pragmatic enough to set mini milestones. I woke up 15 mins early and wrote like a mad woman. After 2 weeks, I pushed it another 15 mins and so forth.
Over the months, I added other luxuries to my routine. I set our speakers to wake me up with tranquil, Tibetan chants. I bought fresh flowers for my table every week. I forced myself to get into bed at 9pm - no expectation to sleep right away but being in bed was enough to start the habit.
These days, I wake up at 6am alert and ready to go. I spend 30 mins on my Morning Pages with the house still blissfully asleep. If there's time, I sneak in a quick 10 mins of meditation with Headspace.
This morning routine has been transformative in ways I can't eloquently explain. Things like feeling patient, grounded and taken care of even before I left the house. My stress levels stayed low despite the terrifying abyss of burn out I was approaching. I really think there is power to using your morning creatively. Give it a try one week.
What would spoiling yourself in the morning look like?