Start Your Day Right With A Morning Time Productivity Boosting Checklist
Synergy eTherapy Welcomes Guest Blogger:
Helen Sanders, Chief Editor @HealthAmbition.com
Beginning your day with a morning checklist can help you in a multitude of ways.
Operating off of a list will provide you with accountability, organization, consistency, motivation to reach your goals which will lead to a more productive workday. One of the main reasons that workers are unsuccessful in finishing a task is that they get distracted and lose focus. In this fast-paced work, that’s easy to do. However, you can help set yourself up for success by keeping your checklist in plain site so that you’re more likely to keep your agenda at the forefront of your mind.
Ramping up your workday productivity and keeping it high is essential to conquering your workday, tackling your workload and optimizing your output for the day. It’s not about achieving perfection, but rather taking small steps towards developing a daily morning routine that will prove to be fruitful in regards to producing a better workday.
Short Meditation
Think: slow down to speed up. With deadlines, meetings, big expectations and a full schedule, it seems like the best attack is full speed ahead, all the time. In may seem counter intuitive, but the sustainable solution is quite the opposite. Also, fast paced thinking fuels distraction and can exacerbate any problems you currently face with staying focused.
Simply by beginning to meditate for 5-10 minutes every morning can make huge leaps in your ability to stay on task during the day, face adversity with a calm disposition and remain composed as your to-do list grows. When you think of meditations, perhaps you imagine a serene garden with a person sitting comfortably, completely in zen mode. Though this is wonderful, it’s not realistic for most people. Think outside the box in regards to meditation. You can get into a meditative state while laying in bed or yoga mat, sitting on your couch and even during your morning commute to work.
The key is not to get into a sleep-like state. Instead, the goal is to become aware of your thoughts and gain the ability to witness them without trying to change them. Mediation teaches us about the power of breath, how it impacts mood, and how we can harness it to achieve our desired feeling.
Nowadays it’s easy to find a range of meditation apps right on your smart phone app store. With guided mediations as short as 1 minute, there is no reason why you can’t integrate this into your daily life. If you have trouble beginning, start by playing one of these guided tracks while you get dressed or make coffee in the morning. As you begin to receive the psychological benefits of being mindful, you may find it easier to carve out that time to simply sit and be with yourself.
Morning Elixir
Many of you are likely already seasoned coffee drinkers, with an affinity for that boost of caffeination to get your day started. Outside of just a plain black cup of coffee, there are several other variations that are more suitable for increased focus, sustained energy and achieving a feeling of motivation.
Instead of plain coffee, try making it bulletproof style by adding in some healthy fats. Some good fat sources to play around with are grass fed butter, coconut oil, palm oil and cacao butter. Pairing the fat with the caffeine helps your body to assimilate the caffeine at a slower, sustained rate throughout the morning, rather than giving you a jolty, jittery kick. You can also add a scoop of collagen powder for added gut health benefits. Flavor-wise you can give your coffee an added zip of flavor with cinnamon, pure vanilla extract or nutmeg.
Not a fan of coffee? Matcha tea, ground cacao and mushroom powder are a few power-packed ingredients that you can try instead. Blending any of them with hot water will provide you with a hot coffee alternative in a pinch. If you desire a coffee creamer in your morning drink, opt for a plant-based milk that’s low in sugar. Many cow’s milk based products can cause bodily inflammation and sinus congestion, so it’s best for most individuals to stick to plant-sourced milks.
But okay, I get it, not everyone has time to be experimenting with their morning coffee and squeezing extra nutrients into it is the last thing on their mind. That’s no issue either. Consider taking a daily multivamin. While it will never be able to replicate the nutrition, it will help bring your body into balance in a pinch and set you up for a productive day.
Establish Daily Goals
Whether you write them down or make a mental list, form a list of things that are at the top of your priority list. this portion of your morning checklist may change daily, understandably so. Make your focus to keep it pertaining to what it is that’s important any given day. This will help you stay centered on that thought.
If you get distracted easily or veer off task often, you may find that writing an actual list and keeping it visible can help. You can post this at home on your refrigerator or at your desk next to your computer screen; whatever is most helpful to you. Having a morning time productivity boosting checklist that’s comprised of these items is a great way to take your workday success to the next level. Not only will this benefit your own mental health, peace and clarity, but you’re likely to see it impact your job positively. Ultimately, a happy, balanced worker is a hard worker. Who knows, you may even inspire otter folks in your workplace to take their work day to another level as well.
Helen Sanders is chief editor at HealthAmbition.com. Established in 2012, Health Ambition has grown rapidly in recent years. Our goal is to provide easy-to-understand health and nutrition advice that makes a real impact. We pride ourselves on making sure our actionable advice can be followed by regular people with busy lives.
Dr. Lisa is the founder of Synergy eTherapy and Licensed Psychologist in MN and NY.
To schedule your FREE consultation with her, please click HERE.
