Five morning habits to make your day better

When this time of the year reaches and we are hit by the realisation that a brand new '12 months' is going to start, we start reflecting on the year to determine if we have achieved our goals and how the year has been.

I started 2015 in a bad place emotionally due to some personal issues i had going on. As the year progressed by Gods grace i picked myself up and today i can say i achieved 70% of the goals i had set for myself last year this time.

People always stress the importance of setting 'new years' resolutions and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that but when you think about it why do you have to wait for a new year to start working on your dreams? In my opinion, if you were not able to do something this year, what would make you think you can do it because the date has changed from 2015 to 2016.

I absolutely believe in setting goals because 'without a vision, people perish' but i am not going to wait till 1st January 2016 to make it happen. One of the areas i did not do so well this year is in terms of  consistency in my personal discipline or habits. For me to achieve my goals for 2016 i need to work on improving these habits particularly sleeping too much. HaHaaHaH yes!

Here are Five things i have started doing every morning,

1. Light stretching. I exercise once a week (Yes that is enough for me) however every morning i have been spending 15-20 minutes on light stretching. This includes a few squats  (Yes!i'm trying to grow my small behind bigger. LOL). Physically stretching helps improve posture by relaxing muscles in addition to being a stress buster.
2. Healthy breakfast. Ever since i started having breakfast every morning i'm a happier person. Literally! Breakfast gives you the energy required to start the day and more importantly it keeps you from overeating throughout the day.
3. Gratitude journaling. It is good to start the day with positive vibes. When you self reflect on how good God has been in your life, you'll discover so many reasons to go about the day smiling :)
4. Plan the day. I'm such a believer in living for a purpose. You cant simply exist without any purpose or desires and achieving success is determined by your everyday decisions. Whoever you and and whatever you do, have a purpose. If you're a student think about how far you want to go with that assignment. Even a simple objective like 'doing laundry' counts. Start somewhere.
5. Always start with your most difficult task, as hard as it sounds when you offload the heavier load first you will have so much peace and can go about your day a happier person than when you have that task at the back of your head all day.

Sometimes it has been really hard waking up in the mornings but i've learnt to start 'the night before'. When you go to bed early, you can wake up in the morning well rested to tackle a new day. Something else i have started doing is set my alarm with a scripture which i'm meditating on for that week, that way i am motivated to wake up.

I really encourage you, if you are not doing so already to think if a few things you can do each morning to set the tone of your day to become more positive and that way you can better achieve your goals. Behavioral psychology says it takes 21 days to form a habit, so think of what you can do differently and try it out the entire December, by 2016 it will be a habit :)

Remember to set goals for yourself that are specific and achievable and do reward yourself for small successes!

I'd really love to know what are some of your morning rituals and how they have impacted how your days turn out. Let me know below :)

                                               Thank you for reading!

                                                    Love Nicole. N