Your viable morning blueprint
Here goes! It’s time to put it all together in a finalized plan for a defined day coming up soon. Here’s how.
Learning by doing
Workbook materials
Turn to the workbook to set out version 1 of a new morning you’re actually going to have.
And here’s your planning and tracking experiment diary (in spreadsheet form) to keep you on track as you live your morning.
Journaling prompts
- Yesterday: What made yesterday different from usual, what made it typical?
- My weekday morning through two lenses: Describe your current typical morning weekday routine in two different ways: 1) Describe what you actually do (e.g. what you did this morning, or yesterday morning) with as little extra as possible: no value judgements, no justifications, no embellishments of any kind, just the plain facts (maybe simply in list form). 2) Convey as much about it as you can without mentioning any single thing you actually do (or don’t do). Focus on how you feel or how your mental state tends to be; focus on the states your routines are coexisting with, and the effects they tend to have, without identifying them. Once you have both descriptions, read them through and make a few notes on anything that arises out of the contrast. Would someone be able to guess at your first description from reading your second?
Quick-win challenge
Upping accountability
Tell someone else what you’re doing and why, and directly ask them for some kind of input to make it easier and/or more satisfying for you to do what you intend to. For example, you text them at the end to report on your experience, or (esp for someone living with you) you invite them to join you for some part of it (e.g. breakfast, stretching), or if you’re worried about getting started, ask for a quick phone call soon after you wake up.
Don’t feel bad about asking, and make clear you’d love to do something in return; enjoy knowing you have someone who knows what you’re doing and wants you to succeed.
Start by sketching out a simple plan in your journal too.