30 Days of Morning Quiet Time
Having a consistent morning routine is always something I’ve valued, but not always something I’ve practiced. How I spent my mornings was dictated much more by how I was feeling, than it was my prioritizing what I needed. When our writing team decided to take on this 30 day habit challenge, I knew that this was the opportunity for me to start being intentional about how I spent my mornings, while also being mindful of figuring out what worked and didn’t work for me.
I also want to mention that I had originally thought about using this month as an exercise it setting better time boundaries with my phone, but quickly realized that focusing on building a solid morning routine was a better approach for me. There’s a quote that says “The secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new.” Rather than trying to stop using my phone in the morning, I decided to start using that time to do other things. For me this was an approach that worked much better, and is part of the reason why this new routine is one I’m excited to stick to!
Once I got clear on what I was looking to create (a consistent morning routine that would set me up to approach the day with peace and clarity) I got excited to jump in. I knew that this was an area of discipline that I had been putting off for too long, and I believed that if I made the decision to commit to it, that I would start to see the fruits of it show up in other areas of my life. My hope was that forming this new habit would allow me to have more joy and steadiness throughout my day, while also drawing me closer to God. (Spoiler: it totally did!)
So here’s an outline of my experience with creating a consistent morning routine that would help me cultivate peace and joy throughout my day!
What It Looked Like:
One thing that was unique about this season of my life, and that I believe enabled me to approach this concept the way I did, was that for the first time in yeeeaaaarrrrssssss I had a more consistent schedule. In the past I have spent a lot of time traveling and working/teaching yoga early in the mornings. This has kept me from investing in a routine the way I wanted to, so I was thankful that I now had the chance to try it out. I say this because I want to encourage you from my mistakes. Just because you might not have the kind of morning consistency that I do now, that doesn’t mean you can’t still cultivate a practice that leads to peace and joy as well. It might look different than the routine I’m going to share with you, but I encourage you to try and find ways to adapt it to fit your own schedule!
My Morning Routine:
Wake up around 6:30-7:00am
Read my bible for 20-30 minutes
Journal (usually writing out a prayer) for 10-15 minutes
Spend sometime on my yoga mat (this wasn’t intended to be a physical practice, but rather was a 10-15 minute time of gently waking up my body and taking deep breaths- usually accompanied by worship music)
Make matcha and breakfast
Sit down to work around 8am
This routine generally took me anywhere between 30-60 minutes, and while it is definitely simple and straight forward, it was SERIOUSLY transformational. I had initially felt pressure to make it more of an elaborate routine, but I knew that my goal was to cultivate something that I could keep up consistently, not just push myself through for a month and then quit. I stuck to this morning routine probably 28 of the 31 days in March, and have continued to do it nearly every day in April. It feels accessible and doesn’t make me feel overwhelmed or like I’ve added a lot to my busy schedule. My goal with this experience, and with writing this blog, was not to develop a life changing routine, but rather to see how a simple, but consistent, one would affect my life. I was expecting good things, but true to fashion, God completely over delivered in blessing this commitment.
How It Felt:
I have always been a morning person, so I was already accustomed to waking up early. One big change I noticed through this process was how much more excited I was when I would wake up. If you’re anything like my husband (who loves sleeping in more than anything else) you probably think I’m crazy for saying I was excited to wake up early, but it’s true! I knew that I had an hour of quiet and stillness waiting for me. Spending the first hour of my day investing in my relationship with God and intentionally creating a space of peace started me off in a great mood most days. Now it’s not a magic pill and that feeling didn’t always carry through the whole day, but I definitely noticed a huge difference in my attitude when I started the day feeling grounded and grateful.
On that same note, when I skipped a day of having my quiet time and instead jumped straight into work when I woke up, I would notice a huge difference in my attitude and energy. Even though I may have slept longer, I often felt more drained by noon than I did when I got up early and had my quiet time. Without my quiet time the whole morning just felt like I was going from one thing to the next, and I didn’t feel as clear minded and focused on the work I was doing. Those work days often were less productive and certainly less enjoyable. I didn’t notice it right away, but after about three weeks I was shocked to notice the impact this routine was having. It was influencing my day far more powerfully than I could have anticipated and I was enjoying it a lot more than I had expected to. When I was getting ready for bed at night, I started getting excited to have my quiet time the following day. I was almost craving the stillness and peace that I knew was waiting for me. As someone who usually goes a mile a minute and is prone to saying yes to too many things, knowing that I had that space of peace in the morning made me feel like I could handle the busyness of the day in front of me.
One thing I realized about 10 days into this experience, was that if my phone was near me during this time it was likely that I would get distracted by it. For me personally, I found that it was much easier to focus and stay on track if I just left my phone in my room after my alarm woke me up. This also led to me getting on my phone much later in the day and even using it less throughout the day. Just another example of the ripple effect of that routine.
I also noticed how helpful it was when I set up my morning space the night before. I would make sure to have my bible, journal and a blanket all set up on my corner of the couch so that when I woke-up I could walk straight there and jump into it. Having to gather my belongings each day would have led to more opportunities to get distracted or skip my quiet time and start working on something else instead.
What I expect moving forward:
After 30 days of focusing on building this routine, I am more excited than ever to continue it! I have seen so clearly the positive influence this has had on my life the past month, and I’m excited to continue enjoying the simplicity and ease of being committed to this routine. One change I want to make is finding a more structured way to spend my time in the Bible. During this experience I was simply reading the word and taking basic notes, but I’m hoping to find a good resource that will help me more deeply study and understand what I’m reading about. Other than that I don’t really plan to adjust the structure. I love that even though it is uncomplicated and straightforward, it help me accomplish my goal of cultivating more peace and joy in life.
So how’s that sound? Do you currently have a morning routine that you stick to? If so, what does it look like? I’d love to get some inspiration from others or to hear about how your morning routine helps you have a better day!
Thanks for reading friends,
Denika