The Framework for a Morning Routine You’ll Actually Stick To

Time ManagementSelf-Worth LoveBusiness Tips and Tools

Feb 17

Written By brandmerry

The Framework for a Morning Routine You’ll Actually Stick To

BY MICHELLE KNIGHT

To be honest I had a little resistance in writing this blog because I have a whole beef about morning routines.

Then I thought, you probably have the same beef when you hear the term morning routines. You want one, but the information is just too much.

I know the whole concept of morning routines can be very fluffy. If you've ever worked with me in my coaching, I don't do fluffy. I like action. I like actionable, deep work. So let's do a new spin on the morning routine. Shall we?

Let's start with the beef. When I first started my business, Brandmerry.com in 2016 I was just one month postpartum. So there already wasn't much of a morning routine happening at that point because we were just surviving.

However, at the same time of going through this postpartum period, I also started building my business and exploring this whole idea of entrepreneurship.

Shortly into doing that, I felt like I was bombarded with information on coming up with a morning routine. This isn't new, right? People have been talking about this forever, but to me, it was this new concept because I used to just, get up, brush my teeth and go to work. There was no morning routine happening.

I was looking for stability at that time because I was in the midst of being a new mother and that incredible fog and uncertainty, so I started consuming all the content about morning routines.

Fast forward to September of that same year and I was leaving my nine to five to pursue my business full time.

I remember saying, “Okay, I'm about to work from home. I'm about to change my whole entire schedule with my kiddo.” So I started seeking out support inside of Facebook Groups on how to juggle the work from home life.

I asked them, “What do you recommend doing as you transition from working a nine to five then switching to running a business at home with a kiddo?” Everyone was like, “You must have your morning routine!”

Everyone was giving me all of this feedback on the morning routine:

“I meditate for 45 minutes.”
“I like to go for a 30-minute walk and go to the coffee shop.”
“I have a 20-minute skincare routine.”

And I remember thinking that this must be the secret sauce, so I dove headfirst into creating a morning routine that looked like everyone else.

And I failed miserably.

I realize now that I wasn't actually failing. I had set crazy unrealistic expectations for what was happening in my life.

I was letting someone else tell me how my morning routine should go and what I should do. And then thinking that I would just mirror that and suddenly it would be all great.

THE TRUTH ABOUT MORNING ROUTINES

Morning routines aren’t the end all be all and they won’t make or break your success, but here is the thing that I later learned: Having that morning routine sets you up for success.

It gets you in the mindset, the focus and grounded so that you can then take on all of the things that come your way throughout the day. There's always a rollercoaster ride of things throughout the day and being prepared (aka starting off on the right foot) is essential when handling them.

But the trouble with morning routines is when we hear other people talk about their morning routines, we try to parallel them.

Rather than asking ourselves, “What do I need?” We assume if it worked for her, it will work for me and that's doing a disservice to your life, your season and your expectations.

So rather than looking on Pinterest or another podcast, that tells you to do these five things every single day and then setting yourself up for something that might not work with your life, it’s important to have a framework, not an end all be all rule book.

MORNING ROUTINES ARE SELF CARE

Actively choosing your morning routine is just another opportunity for you to make choices for yourself and do things that serve you and your family at the highest level.

Doing things that serve you and the life that you are building and making choices that are aligned with your goals.

Making those decisions first and foremost is important. And then taking action and creating habits around them and doing them in the morning so that you're setting yourself up; that's the whole point of the morning routine.

There's no secret.

It's this trifecta of choosing the things that are going to serve you, committing to them and making them a habit, which is one of my favorite things to talk about.

On my podcast, The Beautiful Climb, episode 14 dives into the importance of habits, not just in a morning routine, but throughout the day as well.

YOUR ROUTINE SHOULD EVOLVE

There’s absolutely no shame in having a routine that evolves.

You are a human. You are evolving every single day. You're learning new things about yourself. The outside world is changing and impacting what you can and can't do.

Your routines, including the ones you do in the morning, should mirror that.

I have learned rather than to be rigid with exactly what I'm doing, that every time I feel like something's off, or I need something new, I go back to the framework I’m about to share with you.

I like to ask myself and encourage you to do the same...

What do I need during this time?
What would support me most during this season of life?
What are the pieces that I'm committing to doing daily?

And then implementing them.

It's all in the habits.

It's not in the specific thing that you do.

It's in the fact that you are making it a recurring routine that you are committing to first thing in the morning to set yourself up for success and alignment throughout the day.

My morning routine has changed so much over the years as a mother, wife, entrepreneur, woman, daughter, etc...Every season demands something new from me and I must be willing to adapt to that while still honoring my habits and boundaries.

If you want to head my entire journey with morning routines, including what I’ve done and what I do today, head over to Episode 34 of The Beautiful Climb podcast and have a listen.

THE FRAMEWORK FOR A MORNING ROUTINE YOU’LL STICK TO

What I have found through my journey, working with my clients and chatting with my friends is that people really struggle with, “but what do I do?”

And it’s because they're not asking themselves, “What do I need?” And then creating a routine that best supports that need.

So the framework I’m about to share with you is just that, a framework. I encourage you to explore and fill in with the things that you personally need.

Today my morning routine is so different, then when I first started. My life has changed. My son has gone from crawling to walking to being more self-sufficient. My business has grown. My husband has retired and in each of those seasons I was forced to ask myself, “What do I need right now?”

You can absolutely make your morning routine your own and one that serves you at the highest level.

For the framework, I recommend focusing on the big three. Choosing three main areas to focus on every morning. This typically looks like Mind, Body and Soul, but can be any combination you need most.

At this stage of my life, it's a focus on my fitness with high-intensity workouts, followed by getting myself ready mentally and then nourishing my soul. This looks like a 20-30 minute workout or rides on my Peloton, getting dressed in pants that button (no yoga pants here) and then making myself a healthy breakfast to start my day.

I used to journal for 30 minutes, I’ve meditated for 10, I used to not work out daily, and that’s the point I want to make; your routine will change, but if you focus on the big three you’ll find you’re always giving yourself a well-rounded start to the day.

What I encourage you to do is think about three things that you could do every morning that maybe take 15 minutes.

If you’ve got more time, then great!
Maybe you need to wake up a bit earlier (no 5 a.m.’s necessary) to give yourself a full 30 minutes.
Maybe you've got even more time and can take it nice and slow. Every season will be different!

Focus on the three core things you need most in this season, fitting them into a time frame that works for you and I promise it will be so empowering.

And that's what I want you to remember. It's about listening to yourself, identifying what you need, making a plan for that, creating a habit and then taking action.

Rinse and repeat.

A SUCCESSFUL MORNING ROUTINE IS IN THE HABIT

The last thing that I'll share about setting up a morning routine is that it's all in the habits.

If you haven't read Atomic Habits yet, it's one of my favorite books and there is a quote in there that says, “You do not rise to the level of your goals, you fall to the level of your systems.”

And that's why having systems for how you’re going to achieve something and taking daily action is so important.

Setting the intention is amazing; it’s the first step, but then you have to look and say “Well, what am I going to do to get there?”

And then you have to honor that.

You deserve healthy habits in your life, and they are the secret to getting to your goals, and an excellent place to start is with your morning routine.

I know the days when I fall off track, there will be days when nothing seems to be going right. You just want to sleep in.
And you're thinking about how your legs hurt so maybe you’ll skip moving your body and just shower.
Or, maybe I’ll just get to work and check those emails to save some time.

But, I’ve noticed on those days it’s more important than ever to honor myself and start the day on the right foot and this includes setting boundaries not only with yourself but also with others.

You need to set boundaries. If you are thinking, “I don't have time in the morning, Michelle, to have a morning routine,” I need you to create time.

And one of the ways that you can create time without waking up at the butt crack of dawn is to have conversations with people in your life and get support.

If you find that when you try to work out at home, everybody is in your business and won't leave you alone, then you need to get out of the house and figure out how you can do that.

If you’ve got a kid, bring them with you. Go for a walk or just have a conversation with them and say, this is what I need to do. Invite them to join you as you workout and set the tone with them that this time is sacred.

Get them in the habit of creating morning routines as well. I love that my son Cal has his morning routine. This kid has created almost his own morning routine on accident because I have created mine and he's watched that happen.

Talk with your spouse, your kids, your roommate and let them know what you need to make this happen! And honor your boundaries with yourself by scheduling your morning routine, honoring your commitments and taking action.

You deserve it!

Set yourself up for success.

Get your systems in place.

Honor yourself.

Check-in with yourself and rock your morning.

Branding and Business Coach | Michelle Knight of Brandmerry

P.S. Have you tuned in to The Beautiful Climb podcast? I release new episodes every other Friday on topics around productivity, motherhood, habits, goals and going after the life of your dreams! Check out past episodes and be sure to subscribe at thebeautifulclimb.com