7 Tips To Wake Up Early, Get more done!

Everyone knows that successful people wake up early. Not just 30 minutes earlier than needed but like 5 am early. I’m personally not there yet, but I have been waking up earlier at about 6:30 am. That is two and half hours earlier than I need to be up. I work from home mostly and can simply turn on my computer at 9 am and get to work. Here are my tips for waking up (and staying up) earlier to improve your productivity!

Why You Should Try to Wake Up Earlier

We all have the same amount of hours in the day as Beyonce OK? So that means we can all be great. Of course, she has additional resources but the point is we need to maximize our day and times when there are limited interruptions. This is especially true if you’re trying to work on a blog or side hustle and still work a 9-5 job. Chances are at 6 am your group chat is going crazy and your family isn’t texting you. When you are able to get up and get things done before the day really begins you can execute tasks with a clear mind. For many people, waking up early before their families is the only real “me” time they can get. 

Figure out your ‘Why’

Attempting to wake up early without a real purpose or motivation will lead to failure. You will become disappointed in yourself because you won’t have as great desire to physically get out of the bed. If you’re just up to be up, that’s generally not a good enough reason to get yourself up. I am the best at negotiating with myself to stay in bed for longer. Trust me, get very clear on why you need to be up early and what you need to execute. 

Plan out your morning the night before

Please do not try and wake up at 5:30 am without a plan. You will fail. Not to be negative, but waking up that early without a plan is a setup! Chances are you will not have the brain power to come up with a plan but you’ll be better equipped to follow the steps you previously laid out the night before. I’ve personally been using time blocking to keep my life in order and it helps tremendously. I can just look at my calendar and see what I’m supposed to be doing and for how long. It sounds simple, but it helps to keep me focused. When a random thought to get something else done, I can stay focused on the task at hand and know that I have already blocked out a specific time to do other things. 

Prepare your setup and Layout your tools

You want to essentially eliminate any excuses you could potentially give yourself. Are you waking up to work on a blog or to workout? Have your laptop where it needs to be and your list of tasks waiting for you. If you’re going to workout have your clothes laid out and your pre-workout necessities prepared. Whatever you’re doing in the morning should be streamlined so there is little room to convince yourself to get back in the bed. You can even have your coffee mug out or pre-workout ready to mixed before heading to the gym.

Go to bed early, Period.

So I know this seems pretty obvious. I mean duh, if you’re waking up earlier you need to go to bed earlier. So it seems obvious but I know when I first tried (and failed many times) to wake up early, I was still going to bed around midnight. It didn’t occur to me that the reason why it was impossible to convince my body to get up was that I wasn’t getting enough sleep. You don’t want to compromise your sleep. Sleep is essential to your health and your overall productivity for the whole day. 

Reduce screen time before bed

You’re able to fall asleep quicker when you reduce screen time before you go to bed. So yes, that means no scrolling on Instagram for an extra hour! Being on screens all day can effect our eyes and is constant stimulation. When you get off your phone or computer a little bit before bed it can help your body start to shut down. This can be a great opportunity to read a book for 30 minutes or so before you go to sleep.

If you decide to reduce screen time before bed, this can also be a good opportunity to put your phone away from you where you can’t easily hit the snooze button. I’m still pretty guilty of this at times, but if you have to physically get up to turn off your alarm that is already a good start

Work your way up to your Ideal Wake up time

If you normally wake up at 9 am waking up at 5 am on a consistent basis is going to a struggle. Instead of jumping to 5 am, start with waking up at 8:30, then 8 and eventually 5 am. Once waking up early is a habit it will become easier to move up to the goal time. For me, getting a dog kind of expedited that process lol My dog Kaptain (you can read all about him here) likes to go out around 7:30 am. If we’re not up, he will figure out a way to communicate his needs.

Treat yo Self!

Waking up early is a challenge so when you successfully complete your first week, give yourself a reward! It doesn’t have to be anything big, but maybe treat yourself to your favorite meal or your favorite specialty coffee. You deserve it after waking up early all week to slay your goals!

Are any early bird or a night owl? I hope these tips help you wake up earlier to kill your goals this year! If you want to know how to have the most productive month, I have a post on that here.