Blog

100 Ways to Hack Your Morning and Change Your Life

June 29th, 2010

Your morning approach can impact your entire day. If you wake up and hit the ground running, you can set the tone for an incredibly productive and pleasant day each morning. Want to find out how? Read on, and learn how to hack your morning for better days.

General

Follow these general tips for a pleasant start to your day.

1. Teach your kids to get ready: If you have little ones, take the time to set your kids up on their own routines so they can get ready without your help.
2. Give yourself more time: Wake up earlier to give yourself time for the things you’d really like to do in the morning.
3. Get a dog: A dog with a weak bladder will get you up in the morning.
4. Establish good routines: Get in the habit of going to sleep and waking up at the same time each day.
5. Keep important items by the door: Keep your shoes, bag, and keys all right near your door.
6. Cut out aggravations: Replace your broken coffee maker, switch to an alarm clock you don’t hate, and replace your car’s windshield wipers to add small improvements to you day.
7. Prepare the night before: Simplify your mornings by taking care of details the night before.
8. Wake up early: Think about what you’d like to do each morning and make it part of your routine.
9. Stay organized: With a clean, organized living space you’ll know where everything important is.

Getting Up

Use these tricks to get out of bed and get alert.

10. Wake up at the same time: By waking up at the same time each day, you will train your body to stop producing melatonin at the same time and make you more regularly alert.
11. Drink a glass of water first thing: Drinking water right away can help ward off dehydration and make your body more efficient.
12. Exercise: Do something physical at the start of your morning to shake sleepiness.
13. Make your bed every morning: As soon as you get out of bed, be sure to make it so that your room will be tidy and you’ll have an instant wakeup call.
14. Forget the snooze: One 10 minute snooze is sure to turn into another, so don’t even start it.
15. Put your alarm clock across the room: Stick an alarm clock across the room, or even in another one so you have to get up and turn it off.
16. Jump out of bed: Jump out of bed immediately, getting yourself out of the comforts of your bed, so you’re more likely to stay up.
17. Open your curtains first thing: When you wake up, open your curtains or blinds to get sunshine in and signal to your body that the day is starting.
18. Listen to something: Turn on music or your favorite morning show to keep you company and alert during your morning routine.
19. Have something to look forward to: Having a purpose to get up will keep you from sleeping in.
20. Have an engaging conversation: Shake morning grogginess with an engaging conversation that gets your brain going.
21. Set two different alarms: Make sure you get up by setting a second alarm.
22. Do a wake up stretch: Get up and moving with the help of music and stretching.

Grooming

Shave some time off your grooming routine and make things more pleasant using these hacks.

23. Use a two-in-one shampoo and conditioner: A two in one shampoo and conditioner can help you save time in the shower.
24. Get rid of fuzz: Use a roller to get rid of pet hair and fuzz on your clothes.
25. Use aromatherapy: Put a few drops of aromatherapy oil in your bath or shower for an energizing scent.
26. Recycle shower water: Reuse thermal energy from your shower to save.
27. Use smart smells: Make use of stimulating scents to wake you up during your morning shower.
28. Use a small amount of toothpaste: You don’t need as much toothpaste as they show on TV-a pea sized droplet is enough
29. Pack your toothbrush: If you eat in the car, bring your toothbrush with you so that you can brush at work or school.
30. Turn off the water: When shaving or brushing your teeth, turn off the water when it’s not necessary.
31. Line it up: Line up your grooming products like deodorant and moisturizer so they can be applied in rapid succession.
32. Shower only every other day: Most people do not need to shower every day.
33. Shave the night before: Men can shave before bed and live with a little overnight stubble the next day.
34. Avoid shaving creams: Instead of shaving creams, use other household lubricants like olive oil.
35. Brush your teeth in the shower: Store a toothbrush and toothpaste in your shower to take care of this task while you’re washing everything else.
36. De-grease your hair: If you didn’t have time to wash your hair, use baby powder to soak up the oil.
37. Limit your shower time: Take shorter showers, and you’ll save both money and time.
38. Bathe the night before: Avoid taking a long morning shower by getting clean at night.

Breakfast

Make breakfast your most important meal with these hacks.

39. Eat breakfast last: Take care of the absolute essentials like showering first, and save breakfast for last-it’s expendable and can be taken on the road.
40. Never skip breakfast: Avoid skipping meals, which can mess up your metabolism and leave you feeling drained for the day.
41. Choose a quick breakfast: By making a quick breakfast, you’ll save time and make it less likely that you’ll skip this important meal.
42. Finish off a jar with oatmeal: If you have just a bit of peanut butter or jam left in a jar, just put your morning oatmeal in it to get a quick treat and finish it off.
43. Make a breakfast machine: A machine that can fry your eggs and brew your coffee will save you time in the morning.
44. Get your Vitamin B: Vitamin B will give you energy and boost your adrenal hormones.
45. Make your eggs in a bag: Boil eggs in a Ziploc bag for an easy breakfast without any mess.
46. Use single-serve coffee machines for oatmeal: Make instant coffee even more instant using hot water from single-serve coffee machines.
47. Bring your coffee pot to work: Make your coffee with your own pot to avoid having to drink gross office coffee.
48. Drink a cup of green tea: Making a cup of green tea first thing in the morning can help you wake up.
49. Preset your coffeemaker: Fill and set your coffeemaker the night before so it’s ready to go in the morning.
50. Eat while walking: Save a few minutes of breakfast time by eating on the go.
51. Prepare as much as you can at night: Place ingredients on a plate together so they’re ready to go in the morning.

Clothing

Use these hacks to make getting dressed as easy as possible.

52. Set out your clothes the night before: To save time and frustration in the morning, pick out your clothes at night and set them out to be ready to go.
53. Keep a left to right closet: Better rotate your clothes by rotating them from left to right.
54. Learn how to tie: Check out diagrams or ask for help to learn how to put your tie together.
55. Take care of ironing in advance: Iron your clothes either as they come out of the dryer or the night before you plan to wear them.
56. Polish your shoes: Make your shoes look crisp with the help of polish.

Sleep

These hacks will help you get the most out of your sleep.

57. Sleep effectively: Find a good mattress that will help you get a great night’s sleep.
58. Eat a snack at night: A snack of low-glycemic foods can keep your blood sugar steady through the night.
59. Avoid eating for several hours: If you stop eating during a 12-16 hour period when you want to be awake, you’ll reset your internal clock to the time when you start eating again as morning.
60. Take an ice bath: Take ice baths before bed to improve sleep regularity.
61. Nap if necessary: Grab a few minutes or an hour to make it through to bedtime if you’ve stayed up too late.
62. Eat your meals on time: Eating your meals at a regular time can regulate your sleep hormones.
63. Get a good night’s sleep: It’s obvious, but committing to a sound sleep at night will do wonders for your morning.
64. Get enough sleep: It will be difficult to get up in the morning if you don’t sleep enough at night.
65. Convince yourself you slept enough: To make the most of what you’ve got, believe that you have spent a good night sleeping.

Commuting

Make the trek to work or school better using these hacks.

66. Get comfortable: Take the time to get your coat off, turn on your radio, and take your wallet out of your pocket.
67. Bike to work: Get exercise and enjoy your commute by biking.
68. Use your smartphone: If you ride the bus, train, or subway, use that time to be productive on your smartphone.
69. Look up the best gas prices: Use websites to find the best local gas prices.
70. Avoid the doors on the train: If you’re on the train for more than one station, move towards the center where less people will be.
71. Get in a carpool: Start a carpool to save money and avoid having to drive into work on your own.
72. Never drive home on empty: Fill up your car’s gas tank on the way home instead of waiting until the morning.
73. Keep your car maintained: Keep up with car maintenance to be sure you won’t run into trouble on the way to work.
74. Read: Use your time on your bus or train commute to catch up on your reading.
75. Bring refreshment: Bring water, coffee, or a snack to keep you occupied during your trip.
76. Mark your territory: Keep your arms wider, make room with your backpack, and make large gestures to establish your personal space.
77. Drive with the windows open: Shake off grogginess by putting the windows down on your morning commute.
78. Know alternate routes: In case of accidents or roadwork, know other ways to go so that you can get to work on time.
79. Find entertainment: Listen to podcasts, talk radio, or books on CD.
80. Gas up in the morning: Buy gas in the morning for denser gas.
81. Be a courteous driver: No one wants to be stuck in traffic any more than you, so make it more pleasant for yourself and others by being polite on the road.
82. Leave a little earlier: Save yourself the stress of rush hour by making it to work before it’s an issue.
83. Stay in the middle lane: The middle lane is generally the fastest and easiest lane to drive in during traffic times.
84. Learn traffic patterns: Know when it’s a good idea to avoid traffic.

Work

Get started the right way at work.

85. Plan something important for the morning: Have something you must do each morning to get you going.
86. Clean off your desk: Get focused by cleaning off distractions each morning.
87. Use Morning Coffee: Set up Morning Coffee to open specific sites on certain days to keep up on your routine reading.
88. Skip email for a couple hours: Avoid email first thing in the morning-attack higher priority items before email.
89. Establish your most important tasks: Think about what you want to accomplish each day, and set your most important tasks first thing in the morning.
90. Do unpleasant work first: Take care of work you don’t want to do so you can get it out of the way.
91. Do active work early: Start your day with work that engages your mind.
92. Get to work early: You can work fewer hours if you begin your work day in the quiet morning hours.
93. Designate your daily tasks in the morning: Spend a few minutes each morning to take a look at your tasks for the day.
94. Take on a second job early in the morning: Get up a couple hours earlier and take on freelance assignments for extra cash.
95. Start a browser session: Let your computer fetch your favorite pages each morning.

Night Prep

Get things done the night before to save time in the morning.

96. Set your table for breakfast: Get ready for breakfast in the morning starting the night before.
97. Pack your bag: Pack your bag the night before so you’ll be ready to just pick it up in the morning.
98. Pack up leftovers after dinner: As you’re cleaning up dinner, put away small portions to take for lunch the next day.
99. Use your dishwasher’s delay function: Set your dishwasher on delay so that they’ll be clean and ready after your kids have had their baths and put in bed.
100. Pack lunches: Pack your lunch as well as your kids’ the night before.

Did you enjoy this article?