How to Become a Morning Person

It’s early and dark. The alarm sounds, and you reach over to switch it off. After a short pause, you sit up. You swing your legs off the bed, touch the floor with your feet, and reach for your phone. You sit quietly while your phone’s screen illuminates the dark bedroom. There are a few notifications waiting—new emails, a Twitter reply, a prediction of rain. You look at your messages, the news, and the weather. “I’m half asleep,” you think. “I’ll just look at Twitter while I wake up.” Ten minutes pass, then another five. You’re not asleep, but you’re not really awake either.


If you want to wake up early and enjoy the morning, maybe you can follow the following tips:

Don’t underestimate the importance of light in waking up. We’re hard-wired to wake up when it’s light and get sleepy when it’s dark. You can’t wait for sunrise and wake up early, so you need artificial light. When you wake up, you can turn on every light in your apartment. And you try to always watch the sunrise, even if it’s an hour or two after you get up.

Having something to do is part of “how to wake up early." That can be writing or editing, sometimes email, a little design work or something else. Exercise is a great morning activity. Even doing dishes, ironing shirts, or straightening up the apartment helps you wake up and feel productive before the day has started. 

Even with coffee, light, and something to do, it’s tough to wake up early without making some adjustments to your evening routine.

The nights before

Be honest about how much sleep you need, and how much you get.

Pay attention to how food and drink affect your sleep. There’s plenty of evidence that alcohol does not improve sleep quality, even though it might feel that way—and it particularly impairs REM sleep. (Want to fill the drink in a personalized mug? Come to snapmade.com to create by yourself.)

Please, enjoy your mornings.