Motivation

These Morning Rituals are Eating up More of Your Most Productive Hours than You Realize

April 3, 2022

Scientists say that the first two hours after you wake up are your most valuable. It’s the time when your mind is the freshest before the many distractions you’ll face throughout the day take their toll.

Unfortunately, time mismanagement can prevent you from reaping the benefits of these precious two hours. It’s often the case that we unknowingly waste time on unimportant tasks.

These are the morning activities you should be more mindful of spending time on.

Hitting the Snooze Button

leungchopan/Shutterstock | Instead of setting multiple alarms just set one at the exact time you really need to wake up

A lot of people have learned to rely on the snooze button every morning. This is one habit you should unlearn though if you want to make your day more productive.

According to sleep specialist Dr. Robert S. Rosenberg, hitting snooze multiple times fragments your sleep quality. Worse, you start a new sleep cycle that you won't likely get to finish whenever you snooze your alarm.

This would only result in you feeling groggy for the rest of the day due to sleep inertia.

Checking Email and Social Media

Research has found that four out of five smartphone users check their phones shortly after waking up. Typically, they spend their time checking emails or scrolling through social media.

While this seems like a great way to get caught up, doing this first thing in the morning would only ruin an otherwise peaceful time with distractions. It’s best if you wait until you’re at your desk to start reading emails and messages.

Writing a To-Do List

Rawpixel.com/Shutterstock | Begin thinking about the next day’s agenda the night before

Writing a to-do list is always a productive task, that is unless you jot it down in the morning. Task listing should be done the night before as you wrap up your day.

Putting it off would take up precious morning time as you scramble to figure out what thing to do first. Having the list prepared would make your day go more smoothly

Getting Dressed

Another thing you should do the night before is picking your outfit for the day. That way you won’t have to spend time thinking about and trying out clothes that go together.

Research says that women spend almost five months of their work life choosing which clothes to wear. Cut that time by planning your look before you drift off to sleep.

Having Breakfast

antoniodiaz/Shutterstock | Cut down on cooking time by choosing easy-to-make foods like smoothies

Making and eating breakfast is part of many people’s morning routines. And while you don’t have to fully cut this out of your schedule, you can decrease the amount of time you spend on the activity every morning by making your breakfast the night before.

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