Transform Your Day With A Powerful Morning Routine

How do you start your day? What thoughts and emotions are you experiencing first thing in the morning? Have you ever considered how this may impact the rest of your day? In this talk, we explore transforming your psychology with a powerful morning routine, providing you with a solid framework to create your specific ritual to start the day with intention.

We'll delve into the morning habits of inspiring leaders like Arianna Huffington, Oprah Winfrey, Steve Jobs, Benjamin Franklin, Barack Obama, and Jack Dorsey, and I'll share my own evolving morning routine. By the end of this conversation, you'll have the knowledge and tools to design a morning routine that enhances your productivity, organization, peace, confidence, and calm.

Please note: This track was recorded live and may contain background noises.

Transcript

My name is Anna Grutznar and my intention is to discuss,

Embody and share my learnings in all things psychology,

The human mind,

Mental health and wellness.

This is a platform to refresh my own knowledge and stimulate conversation before I pick up further psychology studies after completing my bachelor nine years ago.

I welcome you on this journey of learning,

Unlearning and relearning psychology and what it means to be in joy.

Welcome to today's conversation on the psychology of a powerful morning routine.

Before we dive into today's conversation,

Take a sit back and think about how you're feeling.

What emotions are coming to mind?

Are you feeling motivated?

Organized?

Are you feeling happy?

Are you feeling a bit flat?

Maybe bored?

Chaotic?

What emotions are coming to mind?

And then think about how you want to feel.

Is there one emotion that you wish you experienced more in your life?

Something you'd really like to bring into your experience.

And think about the gap between those two.

Where you are now and where you want to be.

I am convinced that we can close that gap through a really simple change and that is a powerful morning routine.

A morning routine where you decide how you want to feel and you maintain that as your dominant vibration throughout the day no matter what happens.

Obviously life is going to throw things at you.

People will piss you off.

Things will happen that you're not expecting.

Things won't go to plan.

You will have ups and downs.

But the law of attraction tells us that if you can maintain a dominant vibration of happiness,

Joy,

Success,

Satisfaction,

Whatever it is that you're trying to bring into your life.

If you can bring that in at a subconscious level more than 50% of the time you will attract more situations in line with that emotion into your experience.

It is simple.

It is powerful.

And the best way to tap into this is first thing in the morning.

The topic of today's conversation is how to establish and maintain a really powerful morning routine uniquely tailored to you.

Your own specific recipe to increasing productivity,

Organization,

Inner peace,

Confidence and calm.

It won't be dogmatic.

It won't be a chore.

It will help you find joy and it might even become the highlight of your day.

We will talk about the importance of a morning routine,

The psychological and physiological processes involved.

We will look into the morning rituals of some inspiring people,

Some great leaders.

I will share my own morning routine which is of course a work in progress.

We'll talk about do's and don'ts and you will walk away with the knowledge and a framework to create your own morning routine.

One that I believe can change the course of your life.

In terms of the importance of a morning routine,

It's all about a clean slate.

When you wake up first thing in the morning you're in a theta brainwave state and your subconscious mind is super impressionable.

It's in a state of learning.

So think about what you're currently super learning first thing in the morning without even realizing.

Are you checking TikTok,

Emails,

Instagram,

Are you watching the news and feeling fear about the state of the world,

About the day ahead?

You may actually inadvertently be bringing more of this negative emotion into your day and into your experience because you get more of what you have and what you look for by focusing your attention on it.

So if you start the day off feeling disorganized,

Chaotic,

Negative,

Sad,

You will continue to look for these things and find them in your environment.

And there's actually a brain region that is responsible for this and it's called the reticular activating system.

So the reticular activating system or the RAS is this phenomenon that you may have heard of where let's say you're having a conversation with a friend and you're talking about a red car.

Once you have that conversation you will start to see a red car everywhere in your environment because your reticular activating system has been activated to filter what you tune into from your senses,

From your environment and it will start to pick up red cars.

I bet you now we've had this conversation you will start to see a red car or red cars in your environment today.

So that is a reticular activating system at work and it is essentially a network of neurons located in the brainstem that project anteriorly to the hypothalamus mediating behavior and it also goes into the thalamus.

So essentially it's a bundle of nerves,

It sits in your brainstem and its job is to regulate behavioral arousal,

Consciousness and motivation.

It is also responsible for our ability to focus,

Our flight-or-fight response and how we perceive the world.

So it controls what we perceive in our consciousness and is a gatekeeper of information.

So the way that you can engage your reticular activating system for good is through positive affirmations,

Visualization and goal setting and that really sets you up with that powerful filter for which you interact with and engage with your world.

So that's why it's so important to think about some of these physiological processes involved.

So talk about the red car,

See a red car.

Start your day with clarity,

See clarity throughout your day.

It is really that simple.

If we look into morning routines of some inspiring people,

Great leaders,

You see some similarities and some patterns.

Everyone has their own way of doing things.

So I think when you think about building a morning routine for yourself,

You need to understand what's your intention,

What do you want to bring into your life and how can you engage a sense of that feeling through your morning routine.

And here are some really great ideas.

So we have Ariana Huffington who founded the Huffington Post.

She has a no social media rule and she also has a no alarm clock rule.

She gets eight hours sleep,

She wakes up naturally and this enables her to really relax into her day.

So she takes that time to connect to herself and she also practices gratitude and meditation.

Oprah Winfrey has a cardio workout and healthy breakfast routine.

Steve Jobs used to practice self-reflection every morning through answering a simple question.

If today were the last day of my life,

Would I want to do what I'm about to do today?

And if the answer is no for too many days in a row,

He knows he needed to change something.

Jack Dorsey,

The founder of Twitter,

Does an hour-long meditation session every morning from 6 15 a.

M.

Benjamin Franklin used to journal about what good he would do today from the age of about 20 and Barack Obama reads every morning.

So he uses his early hours to catch up on what's going on in the world,

Reading blogs and books as well as Warren Buffett and Bill Gates all have this same approach,

So more connecting to their world.

So no matter which approach you take,

Something will resonate with you in the morning depending on what you need.

For me,

If I look at the news or world affairs first thing in the morning,

I am just panic station for the rest of the day.

So for me it's about going within and finding space and calm to set myself up for the nice day.

But everyone is different.

So for me it starts with intention.

I actually journal every night and I set an intention for how I want to feel when I wake up.

So this is really to save myself having to think about it in the morning.

So my focus at the moment is feeling grounded.

I'm in a new city,

I'm building a life,

I'm building new foundations and what I'm craving and what I feel like I really need is to feel a sense that my feet are firmly planted on the ground.

So to ground I need structure,

I need consistency,

Stability.

I need that more earth and fire energy as opposed to my more natural feminine flow of water and air.

So I have to do that the night before,

Write down what am I focusing on and at the moment it's grounding.

When I wake up personally I feel my mood very quickly.

So I have an inbuilt emotional wave which 50% of the population do according to human design and there's actually no reason behind this wave.

There's no cause and effect,

It's just pure emotion and it's here to be felt and moved through.

You might want to point to things and reasons as to what's causing this emotional wave but it really is just a wave and it will be felt no matter your circumstances.

The other 50% of the population don't have a built-in emotional wave and you're actually and if you're that kind of person you are someone who absorbs the emotions of people around you and you might actually even amplify those emotions.

So for example I might be feeling fear at a 3 out of 10,

Someone that has that inbuilt emotional wave and you will feel that fear as if it's your own at maybe a 5 or a 6 out of 10.

So it's really important for you to separate what emotions are your own and what emotions are not yours.

So whichever camp you're in,

Whether you believe in this system,

Maybe you're not in either camp,

All we know is that that first minute of your day is crucial for setting up your emotional foundation.

So on my emotional wave some mornings I wake up feeling peaceful,

Relaxed.

Other days I wake up afraid,

Frantic.

Some days I feel sad and gloomy and depressed and I know in the first minute how I'm feeling.

So that actually gives me the opportunity to look at that emotion in the eye and choose again.

And I actually have a rule at the moment while I have so many emotions happening in this new city,

I will not get out of bed until my energy is right.

Sometimes it takes 5 minutes,

The other day it took 45 minutes.

Sometimes I need to go back to sleep and reset,

Hit the snooze button and this might sound like a luxury.

Right now I'm not working in a full-time job,

That comes with its own troubles,

Let me tell you that much.

But you can do it too,

It's just a matter of bringing your alarm forward.

If you need half an hour,

Set half an hour.

If you need a full hour,

Set the full hour.

If you're not sure how long you'll need,

Set the full hour and see how you go.

Anyone can do this.

So I really take the time each morning to get my energy right and when I'm doing it right or on my perfect morning,

Here is my routine.

First of all I wake up grateful to be alive.

I really appreciate and embrace the full sensory experience of being in my warm bed,

Feeling the sheets on my skin,

Feeling cozy and feeling thankful for rest.

Then I usually move into some breath work.

Usually I start off just observing how my breath is and then I start to implement some pranayama or some breath work.

I might even do a separate episode on the exact pranayama and meditation I do,

If anyone's interested,

Because it's a very sort of set routine that I go through and I don't want to take up too much air time here talking about that.

But I do breath work into a body scan so I relax every single part of my body from the tips of my toes all the way up through my limbs,

My stomach,

My spine,

Up and out the crown of my head.

And then that will normally take me 5-10 minutes depending on how much I need and then I write down three things I'm looking forward to that day.

Or I will write down three things that I'm satisfied about because right now I'm obsessed with human design and satisfaction is my my alignment cue.

So when I'm feeling good I'm feeling satisfied.

So it could just be three really basic things.

You know maybe I'm satisfied because there's blue sky outside or because I have a run to look forward to with a friend or maybe I'm satisfied because I got eight hours sleep.

Could be really simple.

I really avoid to-do lists first thing in the morning.

It just gets me into action mode.

I save that for later.

So rather I focus on who or how I want to be today.

And I was super inspired by Ben Crow and he talks about- he's a mindset coach.

He works closely with Ash Barty amongst other incredible people.

And he talks about the importance of how you want to show up in any given day and the importance of a human being rather than a human doing.

So right now I'm focusing on grounding.

Once you decide what you want to focus on in the present tense say or write what that is.

So today I am grounded.

I am stable.

I am steady.

I am non-reactive and I am calm.

Ben Crow also talks about other ways of being.

Maybe you want to be a loving mother or an inspiring leader at work or a dedicated employee.

Build your to-be list.

Write that down.

Have it in your mind.

After that I just have a glass of water.

Really simple.

We lose a lot of fluid during sleep through those autonomic processes that happen through your peripheral nervous system.

So anything that is being regulated involuntarily like heart rate,

Blood pressure,

Respiration,

Digestion,

When we sweat,

When we breathe.

All of these things cause us to become dehydrated and we're not replenishing while sleeping.

So first thing in the morning,

Glass of water.

Rehydrating the body.

Movement is next for me.

So I will do a run and a yoga class and or a yoga class,

Usually both.

And that might sound a bit intense if you don't exercise yet.

So just ease into it and find out what your movement medicine is.

So an entry point into movement might just be stretching.

You could roll around on a mat,

On the ground,

Stretching out your spine,

Cracking the neck from side to side,

Just connecting with your body.

And then you might step it up.

Go for a walk or maybe a slow jog,

Pilates,

A swim.

Maybe you're into high-intensity interval training or weights.

Whatever your medicine is,

Test it out,

Get moving and start your day off in that way.

After movement I usually have a coffee.

Ideally in a really nice environment.

I always treat myself to a coffee in the mornings.

I've tried doing Nespresso's and at-home coffees.

It's just not me.

It's such a ritual and a sacred 45 minutes.

Whether I'm by myself,

With a friend,

It is worth its weight in gold.

So whatever it may be for you,

Maybe it's a tea in the garden,

Maybe it's out for coffee by yourself or with a friend.

Wherever it is,

Really just notice and pay attention to the sensory experience.

So the taste and smell of the coffee,

The temperature,

How you're feeling.

I went for a run this morning around Kensington Gardens Hyde Park.

That's my new local route which is so cool.

And I found this really beautiful cafe that's in the park and it overlooks this beautiful water fountain pond.

And I was sitting there and I was getting all these emails.

I've been messaging my accountant about ATO things that I need to organize.

I'm trying to work out what I do with my health insurance in Australia now that I'm here.

All of this life admin.

And I was sitting there on my phone,

Working away,

Just sending off emails.

And I was like,

What am I doing?

I'm sitting here at this incredible park.

I've got the sun shining on me.

I've got a beautiful coffee.

And I'm like 10% in my present moment.

And the other 90% of me is just like frantically replying to emails and doing all this life admin.

So I became aware of that and I put down my phone and then I just like relaxed into my seat and really soaked up every element of the moment.

So doing or practicing presence in everything that you do in your morning routine is super important.

After my coffee,

I have a shower.

If you can even do a cold shower,

That's incredible.

I go through phases of doing cold showers because I know how good it is.

But I have my weaknesses for sure.

I have that little voice in my head that's like,

No it's too cold this morning.

Just have a warm shower.

Righty-rah.

But if you can commit to a cold shower,

One minute,

Two minutes,

Three minutes is great.

If you're doing an ice bath,

You're meant to do at least three minutes to get the best of the benefits,

Which include improving your immunity,

Circulation,

Your metabolism,

Reduces inflammation,

Prevents muscle soreness,

And it can even relieve symptoms of depression and sadness.

It brings this big shot of adrenaline into your body.

It really wakes you up.

It also focuses or forces you to focus on your breathing because you almost start hyperventilating in this really cold state.

And then when you get out,

You just feel so good.

It's all of this,

I forget what the hormone is,

Nodoxytocin,

Endorphins maybe,

Just flood your system and you just feel so elated and fabulous.

And you also feel this confidence,

Like you've had a cold shower,

Not much else can be that physically hard during your day,

So it just sets you up with this strong foundation where you feel like you can do anything.

So that's my morning routine from waking up to my shower and then the rest of my days ahead.

And it's quite comprehensive and I don't do that every morning.

I'm by no means perfect.

Sometimes maybe I'll just take three big deep breaths,

I'll have half an hour away from my screen,

And I'll just commit to being really present in whatever it is that I'm doing.

Maybe I'll brush my teeth with my left hand just to mix things up and keep things interesting.

That actually stimulates your brain and that's a whole other episode,

We won't go into that,

But just being really present and really into the moment.

So there are some ideas from leaders,

Inspiring people,

My own routine.

Have a think about what resonates with you,

What doesn't,

What do you want to try,

What do you want to pick up,

What do you want to leave behind.

Give yourself this week to explore,

But first get really,

Really clear on what you want to feel.

And just ask one simple question,

What do I need more of in my life?

Do I need more calm?

More clarity?

Do I need more stimulation?

Do I need more organization?

Motivation?

These are all very different intentions.

So start with one and dedicate your morning routine to this intention purely,

Solely for the week.

If you master it,

Once you master it,

You will master it.

You can change it,

You can add to it and you can make it your own.

So when building your morning routine,

Here are some do's and don'ts.

So do,

Start the night before,

Pick your intention,

Save yourself thinking about it in the morning.

Pick a nice sound to wake up to.

When we think about an alarm clock,

Why would we want to wake up alarmed?

That is not how you want to feel first thing in the morning.

Pick a ringtone that is slow,

That is calming or that you love.

I use Helios,

Which is available in the Apple iPhone settings.

First Light is another ripper.

Whatever you're into,

Pick something that resonates.

Another do is to start within.

Try not to involve anyone else in the first 30 minutes,

One hour of your day.

Don't check social media,

Emails,

Don't call a friend,

Connect to yourself.

If you share a bed with someone,

A life with someone,

If you have a kid,

Responsibilities first thing in the morning,

Totally understand and appreciate that.

You've got to make this your own.

Set your alarm 30 minutes earlier.

Be proactive,

Take whatever step you need to to give yourself that time.

And that's another do.

It's about informing the people around you,

Your partner,

Your children.

Explain that you want more you time to set your day up right,

To show up better.

And you could even encourage them to do the same.

It could be a bit of a family ritual.

And then find space,

A room,

A corner of a room that is your own.

Make it your own and make it sacred.

Don't be dogmatic.

If you miss a morning,

Make your intention today self-compassion.

Practice being kind,

Forgiving yourself and starting again tomorrow.

And commit to doing your best and showing up consistently.

Let me know how you go.

So your homework is to decide on an intention,

Thinking about what you need more of in your life right now.

For me,

It's grounding.

Step two is build a morning routine for minimum,

And I'm saying minimum,

Three steps that you will commit to every morning for the next week.

Show up for yourself.

Signal to the world that you are putting in the work and the world will show up better for you.

Lastly,

Keep track of your learnings,

Your wins.

I will be coming for you on Sunday.

Thank you so much for joining me today,

And I can't wait to see you back here next week.