5 Bad Morning Habits Killing Your Productivity

If you are rolling your eyes at this article because you’re tired of being told that you have to be a morning person to be productive, roll not. I’ve got your back! There are actually genetic differences that separate those who experience peak energy levels at night from those who experience them in the early hours of the day. (Check out this study). I’m not suggesting you change the way you’re programmed- just the way you program your morning! Eliminate these 5 bad morning habits that kill your daily productivity and I assure you will find more enjoyment in the morning time.

Whether morning looks like 5 AM or 11 AM for you, you probably have started your day practicing at least one of these habits.

Keep in mind- it is impossibly difficult to successfully abandon a bad habit if you don’t have another habit to replace it with. Check out 5 Powerful Morning Habits that Skyrocket Productivity for great substitutions that will enhance your productivity and happiness.

1) Checking that dang phone– even worse, going on social media!

Just as it is incredibly tempting to do one last scroll through your phone before hitting the bed, one scroll through social media before getting up out of bed seems equally enticing. Of course, that one last scroll opens the door to a dark hole in which you somehow find yourself on your crush’s ex-girlfriend’s new boyfriend’s ex-girlfriend’s Instagram. As if you had just experienced a bad drug trip, you find yourself wondering how on earth you got there and why you’re doing this at 2 AM. Sound familiar?

I suggest closing all social media apps at least an hour before you unwind for the night. To get optimal sleep, you want to encourage your body to relax. Whether you recognize it or not, scrolling through social media only heightens anxiety and makes you tense- the opposite of what you want to feel before you sleep! By kicking social media to the curb before unwinding at night, you prioritize yourself over the pixelated lives of others. Doesn’t sound like such a bad idea when phrased like that, huh?

2) Drinking coffee before water

Many people rely on coffee as their main motivator to leave their comfy bed each morning. I’ve come across many tidbits of morning advice that encourage people to intentionally set coffee to brew at the time they need to wake up to incentivize them to actually get up. But drinking coffee first thing in the morning can reap negative effects all day. First off, it is dehydrating and an acidifying drink. Our bodies crave hydration in the mornings and drinking coffee first thing only intensifies dehydration.

Instead of reaching for coffee first, I love having a liter of warm lemon water as my first drink of the day. This sizable amount of water complemented with lemon, which has alkalizing effects on the body, is great for detoxifying the body upon waking up. Only after enjoying this refreshing drink do I reach for my coffee mug. I’m not saying don’t drink coffee at all because that would make me the biggest hypocrite…. Just don’t drink it first thing!

3) Getting straight to work

“But if this article is telling me how I’m not being productive in the mornings, how can it suggest that I stop working upon waking up?”- potential reader who makes a valid point. To that, I say that productivity is not as simple as getting the most work done. Think of productivity as the endurance of a marathon runner. If you start out the first three miles of the race faster than your desired pace, boy will you hate yourself around mile 12.

You’ve got to take time to center yourself and get into a productive mindset before trying to be productive. Whether it’s reading Scripture for a bit upon waking up, praying, or meditating, it’s important to implement a routine practice that centers you.

4) Talking to people

Hear me out, ok? Now talking to people in the morning is not inherently detrimental to your productivity….. but doing so before you get a chance to self-reflect and talk to yourself is. Many people are grumpy and irritable towards others during morning time for a reason! And no- it’s not that they woke up on the wrong side of the bed (what side is the wrong side, anyway?); it is almost always because they don’t take time to awaken and align their body, soul, mind, and spirit after hours of slumber. Sound too spiritual?

To run with the previous running analogy (haha pun), we can say that warming up is a vital part of preparing for a race. If you don’t warm up, you can send your muscles and body into shock upon going full force. Before any race, you need to give yourself time to get your blood flowing and your muscles warm. Likewise, before each day begins you need to give yourself time to get centered and aligned!

5) Spending time figuring out what to wear

Don’t make this the first decision of your day, y’all. We know of famous leaders: the late Steve Jobs, former President Barack Obama, Mark Zuckerberg, and Spongebob (lol) who stick to fairly minimalistic and repetitive outfits throughout the week. Their rationale for this is that they make too many more important decisions that they do not want to detract energy from by making inconsequential decisions.

Now I’m not suggesting you do the whole 7 pairs of the same shirt thing……. but definitely prioritize putting out your outfits the night before you wear them. That way you can spend 15 minutes in the morning focusing on something more important and beneficial.

There ya have it, folks! Head over to www.soulfulseedsblog.com for more productivity/health/wellness tips!