How To Wake Up At Early

I decided to start waking up at 5 am to see if it would make a difference in my day. 

It was very surprising to see what I could get done by waking up a little earlier than usual.  While trying to wake up early, I came up with five tips to help with the early-rising process.

Throughout my entire life, I have heard people say they don’t have time to do certain things.  I was one of these people.  These “things” might be getting in shape or learning a new skill.

I watched a video that talked about time, and one thing stood out and really stuck in my mind.  Everyone has the same amount of time each day.  If I have the same amount of time as Oprah, why am I not getting more done?

I think it is easy to use time as an excuse for why we can’t get certain things accomplished.  I know I have done this in the past, but the truth is, if you want something bad enough, you will make time.

By waking up at 5 am, I am gaining 2 hours every day to do something productive.

Why not stay up 2 hours later? That is what I have always thought!

There is a big difference between how we feel in the morning vs. at night. At night, we are usually tired and running out of energy. But keep in mind, it is impossible to stay up late and wake up early.

What do most successful people have in common?  They wake up early, and they have routines.  Read more here (if interested)

The Wake Up at 5 am Experiment

When I started this experiment I was really unsure if I could or would wake up at 5 am.  What I quickly realized is that there is something magical about waking up before everyone else.  Getting a lot done in the morning sets the tone for the entire day.

I was able to accomplish 2 hours of tasks that normally wouldn’t get done until late at night.  By feeling accomplished in the morning, I was able to go through the rest of my day knowing I had been productive.

One saying I like to use is that clutter attracts more clutter, but the same could be said of being productive. 

Productivity attracts more productivity.  Such a small change led to many larger changes.

After waking up early and getting some of my business things done, I realized it was a snowball effect for the rest of my day.

I found myself accomplishing more every day I woke up early!

Have a Goal

It’s much easier to wake up early if you have a goal. One of my goals was to learn how to make this blog and get it up and running. After that, I tacked on other things I wanted to learn.

In these extra 2 morning hours, I learned how to make websites, write this blog, make YouTube videos, and edit photos.  After waking up at 5 am for a month, I am a converted early riser.

Being a stay-at-home mom makes this the only time in my day when I am alone.  I can work on things that I want to learn with a fresh, clear mind.

Read: How I prepare for a 5 am wake-up call

After a month of waking up at 5 am, this is what I learned:

Pick A Bed Time for Rising Early

I quickly realized I can’t stay up till 12 am and wake up at 5 am!  That is not enough sleep for me.  I decided 10 pm was the best bedtime because that gave me 7 hours of sleep.

I can function really well on 7 hours of sleep.  Some people may need more or less sleep. 

I would suggest a little trial and error to figure this out.

On my iPhone click the clock button, then there is a button called bedtime, this is where you can choose your bedtime and wake time. 

I found this to be so helpful because it reminds me every night that it is time to go to bed.

When the weekend comes along, I still wake up early and go to bed early.  I found it hard to switch my schedule during the week because, over time, I naturally wanted to go to bed early and wake up early.

There have been times when I might wake up at 6 am, but most of the time I keep the 5 am wake time.

HAVE A 5 am GOAL or Reason to Wake Up Early

The most important step to waking up early is having a reason for getting out of bed.  I think this is why I have never been able to wake up early before: I never had a reason. 

My reason right now is that I am learning a new skill, but that is not enough.

I like to break this goal down on paper each night.  I write out a list of exactly what I plan to do when I wake up in the morning. 

If I don’t write this list out, I will get sidetracked and the next thing I know, I am on Facebook.

Get very specific with your morning plan.  I like to write down three really simple tasks to get the ball rolling. 

Starting with the most enjoyable task.

Once one item is checked off my list, I feel like I have accomplished something, and therefore, waking up early was worth the effort. 

Getting Up Early Makes Me Thirsty

The best way for me to wake myself up is to drink some water.

So again, I am getting ready the night before, by putting my cup next to my bed for the morning.  Once I am up and drinking water there is no way I am going back to bed.

 

Set an Alarm or Two

I like to set 2 alarms.  My first alarm goes off at 5 am, and my next alarm goes off at 530 am. 

My biggest trick to get started is to put the alarm far enough away that you are forced to get out of bed to turn it off.

When I was in college, I always had to do this because I had no reason to get up. Therefore, I would turn off the alarm and forget!  If you can’t trust yourself, put the alarm out of reach.

Obviously, if you live with other people and they have a different sleep schedule then you might have to do something else, but this works great for me.

Prepare for Getting Up Early or You Won’t

Be prepared with a plan of what to do in the morning.  If the plan is to work on the computer, have everything you need set up and ready.  If your plan is to work out, put your clothes out the night before.

No matter how you spend your time, make sure you are not wasting that extra time wandering around your house looking for things in the dark.  One thing I realized I needed on the first morning was some soft light to let my eyes adjust.

I also turned my computer to a more yellow color from 9:45 pm till 7 am, so that my eyes are able to adjust more easily to the brightness.

These simple preparations made me more productive and, in turn, made waking up easier.

Benefits of Waking Up Early

I have found so many benefits to waking up early, and a lot of them were surprising!

1. More energy throughout the day
2. It is easier to get to sleep at night
3. Getting more done in the morning when I have a clear mind.  Throughout the day our minds fill up with everything going on and the conversations we have.  I love having a clean slate each morning.
4. Quiet!  With three young kids, it is rarely quiet during the day.
5. Fewer interruptions.  Very few people are up at 5 am texting, calling, or putting things up on the internet.  It is great to really focus on what needs to get done.

Waking up at 5 am: Conclusion

Waking up at 5 am was much easier than it initially seemed.  Once I got into a routine using the tips I shared, it became very easy to wake up early.  Within those 30 days, I was able to set up this blog and finish the course I was taking!

Let me know in the comments if you like waking up early and if any of these tips have helped.  

Pin How to Wake Up at 5 AM: