During this troubling time of war, conflict, and political unrest it can sometimes feel like our differences are tearing us apart; like our disagreements are insurmountable and like finding any sort of harmony in this cruel world is an impossible task. However, despite all our differences, I think something which unites all mankind, and something which we can all relate to is the struggle of waking up early during these cold winter mornings. The all too familiar feeling of having to part with your warm and cozy bed to have your feet met by the hard, cold floor, then to open your curtains only to see the dark, damp, depressing fog hovering over the morning dew. It’s tragic but, I’m afraid, like many things, it’s an unavoidable part of life and so it is with this in mind that I bring to you today my top tips for becoming a morning person.

Now, before I begin, let me first set the records straight; as I have probably made abundantly clear, I am not, and never will be a natural morning person. I am that person who loves staying up all night, watching ‘just one more episode’ until suddenly it’s three in the morning and I’m cursing myself and my poor life decisions so, in no way, is this article a way for me to preach my wisdom gained from a life time of early mornings, no, in fact it is quite the opposite; in this article I will share with you the tips that actually work from someone who has tried and failed to use ninety per cent of them.

1)No phone before bed.

Now, I am the worlds worst for this but, if you want an early night, you truly do need to stop staring at screens until the early hours. To start winding down to sleep you need to give your body signals that you’re ready for bed so get off TikTok and for god’s sake get a book out- it’ll do you no end of good.

2) Spread those curtains wide.

First thing you need to do after switching off that incessant alarm is to open your curtains and let the light into your room. In the winter this light may by minimal and it may look like a horrendously gloomy day outside, but you need to get into the habit of exposing yourself to the light; it’ll wake you up and make sure you won’t drift back off to sleep again.

3)Put your alarm further than an arm’s reach away.

Something which really made me up my early morning game was the decision to stop using my phone as an alarm and to get a physical alarm clock which I placed on the opposite side of the room from my bed. This means that now, every morning, I have two choices; 1, I can lie in bed and listen to the harrowing sound of ringing which, if I want my flatmates to continue talking to me isn’t really an option or 2, I can get out of bed, stop the noise, and get a rush of pride as I have beaten my desire to be a slugger bed yet again.

4)Don’t you just love a routine?

That’s right, my fellow ‘to do list’ makers, get excited, I am giving you permission to get your notepads out and make a morning routine. Do something every morning that makes you happy and carve out some time for yourself which will make you look forward to your early get ups. For me, it’s making a cozy hot chocolate with my breakfast whilst listening to my favourite podcast, but it could be anything from watching a show, to meditating, to going on a walk if you’d like- the early morning world truly is your oyster.

5)Consistency is Key.

Yes, it is good for you that you got out of bed before nine once but, for it to become a habit, you need to be doing it every single day, and yes, I even mean on the weekends. This is a tough life lesson and one that took me a long time to learn but, trust me, in the long run, your early mornings will become easier if you stick at it and keep with a consistent routine. You don’t have to be getting up at five everyday (I would rather die) but just come up with a realistic routine and try your best to keep at it the best you can.

Featured Image: Acharaporn Kamornboonyarush on Pexels with Licence.