For several years, I have been the crazy person that works several jobs, takes care of most things around our house, and the mother of my crazy, I mean awesome, children. It’s not that I like to be busy, it truly is how I am wired. God has given me the blessing (I used to think it was a curse, but now I see things differently) of being able to have a lot on my plate at one time. Actually, I THRIVE on this. Not the busyness, but having order and things all in place to get a lot done. I think there needs to be a distinction about this. Being BUSY helps nobody. Being PRODUCTIVE helps everybody.
One question I get asked a lot is:
“How do you get everything done??”
There are several different things that I do but this post is about the main one (basically, if you do this one thing, you will have a more productive day):
GET UP EARLY!!
Now, I know that some of you about to click the X right now. You are tired of hearing this all the time and you just aren’t a morning person.
I get this.
This was my excuse for a long time. I could get the same stuff done late at night. I can talk to God after I get to work. God understands that I need sleep. The laundry can wait.
I found that I was not productive at night. I could barely just clean up after dinner and get the kids to bed. AND I wanted to relax at the end of my day and be able to sleep that night.
Also, I have found that I NEED to start my day with Jesus. HE is the only reason that I can get so much done in a day. It is not by my own strength, stubbornness, or craziness….but by what He enables me to do.
I also need the time to get up and just “be” in my house before everyone else wakes up and starts needing me!
Here is what my schedule looks like in the mornings:
5am – Wake Up; let dogs out and feed them; throw in a load of laundry
5:15am – Quiet Time
5:45am – Work out and then move clothes to the dryer
6:30am – Shower
7am – Ready for kids to wake up
8:15am – Walk out the door
*Some days I do not do laundry. Some days I don’t work out. If I don’t have time, I will not do those things but quiet time always takes priority.
Now, for a long time, this did not happen. I was getting up close to 7am most days. I had to gradually work my way into this. I started for 1 week getting up at 6:30am, then I backed it up to 6am, and then so on until I got into the habit of 5am.
Do I sleep in some days?? Absolutely. Usually I have a harder time getting out of bed in the winter time!! I hate being cold!!
So, if you want a more productive day.
If you want a better morning that isn’t filled with yelling at your spouse and kids.
If you want to get a better handle on your day.
GET UP EARLY!!
And remember – do whatever works best for YOU and your family. Your morning routine will look different than mine. The biggest thing is to try some different things out and find that morning routine that works best for you.
What does your morning routine look like?? Leave it in the comments!
