I have to admit, I'm not a morning person. Not at all. I like to stay up late and then sleep in till 11a.m., at least. Sadly, staying in bed till noon is not always possible, when there are classes and meetings (mostly with friends) to attend. I'm pretty lucky, as my lectures never start before 9.45am and I have free friday's. However, the fact that I have to be at university at 11am or later doesn't change much about my unpunctuality. I am pretty sure my problems with getting out of bed and indecision concerning my outfit are to blame.
I did a little reasearch and found some tips on how to wake up faster and start your day with more energy. There are many things you could do, but most of them are just not going to work for me in the long term. I figured I should list some of them anyway, because they might help some of you.
To avoid stress in the morning, do as many things as possible at night, before you go to bed. Take a shower, pack your bag and plan an outfit. Make sure to try it on and see if it looks good. How often have I thought of what I would wear the next day, imagining how cute it would look, only to realise it looks bad on me right before I had to head out. You could also plan a breakfast, so you don't have to spend 10 minutes in front of you refrigerator deciding what you want to eat. And the most important thing - don't forget to set your alarm clock, or even a couple of them. I always set three - the first one an hour before the time I actually have to get up, the second half an hour before and the last 5 minutes before. This way I can mentally prepare of getting out of bed and I have the spare 5 minutes to check instagram, facebook and twitter. Also - decide how long you are going to need to get ready in the morning, for me it is 45 minutes to 1 hour.
When my alarm rings the first thing I do (after checking all my social media, obviously) is wash my face. Use cold water and a gentle wash and moistruize your face right afterwards. In a nutshell - just do your skincare outine. After that, I would recommend eating breakfast, as it's better to skip a few not-so-neccessary make up steps than to eat in a rush. Choose something that is light, but will still give you energy for the whole day. I prefer something salty over sweet, but choose whatever you like. There are many quick, yet healthy options for both, but I'm gonna make a seperate post on that, hopefully next week. Before I start preparing my dish I always make a cup of tea, that I then drink during my whole getting ready process. It's better to focus completely on your meal, but I like to look for inspiration for what I'm going to wear (No, I don't pick my outfit in the evening. Yes, I end up with a huge pile of clothes on my bed.). I check polyvore and my favourite fashion blogger's instagrams.
Anyway, after breakfast is the time to do your make up and hair, get dressed and head out out the door. I always double check if I've turned my straightener and stove off, so I don't have to worry about that later.
We did it! Let's just hope public transport does not give out (it does way to often here in Warsaw).
Now if my morning routine is nothing for you, here are some tips which I think could be useful:
- Keep a glass of cold water next to your bed, and drink it right after getting up. It will help you wake up.
- If you just can't fall asleep at night try the app "White Noise" (avaible in the app store). You can choose from various sounds like a fan, rain or clock. Concentrate on them and they will help blend out all the other noises.
- Try putting your alarm clock/phone across the room, so you have to get up to turn it off.
- Take a few deep breaths - this doesn't cost you any effort, but wakes up your brain. You could also open the window and breath some fresh air, which is even better for you.
- If you have an important meeting in the morning as somone to wake you up in the morning. If you live alone ask a friend to call you in the morning. Talking to somone is a good start - even if it's just a "Leave me alone!".
- There are not only apps that help you fall asleep, but also ones, that help you wake up. For example sleep cycle apps (like "Sleep Cycle alarm clock"), which gradually get louder and louder or alarm clocks which only shut up when you win a game of tic-tac-toe ("Game Up Alarm Clock")
I hope this will help you being on time in the morning. I think punctuality is important, especially when you're meeting somone. Making them wait is kind of rude. With school it is a little bit different for me. Of course I try to be punctual, but the teacher does not have to wait for me and if I'm late I miss a couple minutes of class, which is rather bad for me than for anyone else. I hope you get what I'm trying to say here.
