Morning Makeovers – Is it even Necessary?
Welcome to the Elegant Podcast, where we talk about using elegance, grace and poise to live full, passionate lives. Today’s episode, we’re talking about making over our mornings.
Some links here are affiliate links. Which means I might make a small commission if you were to click and purchase.
Morning Makeovers
Your mornings have more of an impact on your life than you think, I’ve heard it referred to as “your rudder” and I thought how clever this was! It’s so small, but has the ability to drive your day into either a good one or a bad one. Learning good morning habits can help with this!
I was reading this book, called “Miracle Mornings”, and it was about how anyone can transform their mornings to be more productive. It opens your eyes to be the person that you want to be and not have anyone else to blame but yourself if you fail or succeed. It gives you the tools and you decide what to do with them.
The book talks about mediocrity and how we often settle for it, even when we shouldn’t. I think back on this and wonder if I’m settling for living a mediocre life. But what does that even mean?
It’s quite subjective and what I find exciting you might find boring. But this isn’t to compare yourself to anyone else.
I found this book to open my eyes to become the best version of myself by taking each morning and rethinking it. I thought how this could really relate to living an elegant life because it is your mornings where everything starts.
He says to begin your day by stating your intentions. If you begin it by saying out loud or writing them down that you will do everything in your power to be elegant and do things that will only enhance your beauty, mystery and grace then it makes everything else so much easier.
State your Intentions
When you wake up every morning, think of it as a blank slate. You get a new day and a fresh start. To be honest, this can be done the night before — I thought how smart of an idea that is. I already like to prepare for everything the night before, so why would my intentions be any different?
My favorite way to do this is to have a designated notebook where I like to jot down my thoughts, intentions, aspirations and dreams. It’s nice to see all of this together. Before I go to bed, I write a few thoughts of gratitude, and what tomorrow will bring. I also like to read a few quotes in the morning, like here!
In the book, Hal talks about setting your intention for waking up early and telling yourself that it will be perfect and put your focus on that you will get enough restful sleep instead of obsessing on the time that’s passing by and how you’re still not asleep.
I’ve done it now for a while and at first I didn’t see a difference, but slowly I am noticing that when I wake up early, I’m not as tired. It’s very interesting and I see how this can improve my life.
Improve on Something
Every single one of us struggles with something. Whether that is talking to people in public, carrying on a small conversation without effort or feeling confident when you are alone in a store. Regardless of what it is, you need to be able to see improvement.
What is life anyways if you’re not working on yourself?
Nobody’s perfect and it’s a great humbling experience to look back at yourself with a critical eye. This practice is not necessarily about changing one’s appearance — but going deeper.
Ask yourself the questions, “What do you want to be better at?”, “What characteristics could you adopt in order to live the elegant life?”, “Who is your role model? Where are the similarities? The differences?”
It’s best to do this in the mornings because you can set the intentions for the day and remind yourself when you feel like you’re straying off.
This leads me to my next point.
Affirmations and Visualize it
When you write out your intentions the night before, it gives you more time in the morning to visualize them. Combine visualizing with affirmations, you can make incredible progress.
I am still using the affirmations and visualization in my morning routine, and to be honest I felt so silly at first. It seemed a little desperate or pathetic, but that’s just me blocking myself from my true potential. I like getting a pep talk by my husband or friends, so why wouldn’t I want to hear it from myself?
It raises your confidence and can prepare you for whatever the day has to offer. If you can visualize what you want from the day, what you will need to work on and how to make it happen – it will all come together. It will surprise you!
When trying to wake up early, I struggle with this — I change my affirmation and remind myself that I got enough sleep and I will have more than enough energy to have a wonderful day. We have this ability to tell ourselves such negative thoughts about our lives, but why can’t we be more positive?
I have seen a difference in my life when I change the narrative from a frustrated or irritated one to a more happier and positive one. I remind myself that life can be easy.
Move Your Body
This doesn’t need to be a full on workout, but it can be some stretching just to get the blood flowing and your body a little warmed up.
Since what I do in the morning sets a precedent for the rest of the day. Movement is essential. When I move my body in the morning, it helps me get my head on straight and focus on my family and my health for the rest of the day.
This gives me the energy and the momentum to cook healthier meals and drink more water. It really does run into other parts of my life.
Sometimes when I’m not in the mood to do any exercise, I’ll do a little stretching or yoga and that still gets me in the right mind frame.
I noticed a difference in myself when I woke up late or didn’t feel like it. I find this part of my morning is essential and always make time for it.
Start with a Simple Pleasure
You know by now that I love my simple pleasures. They are what I enjoy most in my day because they are like mini vacations. Without them, I feel overworked and overburdened and that leads me to lose my patience more easily. Not very elegant. I need a pause every now and then.
By having one in the morning, I am sure that I will find even more moments when I’m able to add them throughout the day. It gets my mind ready and relaxed.
How you act in the morning can truly be a reflection on the rest of your day. It can set you up for some amazing productivity or make you feel beautiful — or it can do the opposite and just make it unpleasant.
I realize this was not doing the book justice, and I also included a couple of my thoughts but if you’re interested in this book, I’ll leave the link below or go onto my corresponding blog post and there will be a link there!
It really has the ability to transform your life one morning at a time.
Morning Makeover Conclusion
I hope you don’t compare your morning with mine or anyone else’s because what I do is irrelevant to your life. We all have different responsibilities and jobs. You want to work with your life, and how to become a better version of yourself.
This doesn’t happen overnight and I am still finding my proper rhythm and what works best for me. This is trial and error but what makes someone successful is not giving up. That’s what we are talking about next on the Elegant Podcast.
Is there anything you like to include in your morning routine? Let me know!
Thank you so much and I’ll see you next time on the Elegant Podcast. Live today with elegance and passion
You can listen to The Elegant Podcast episode : Make Over Your Mornings on
The book “Miracle Mornings”
My Shop
The eBook : 200 Ways of an Elegant Woman – similar to the 101 Ways of an Elegant Woman post, with 100 MORE tips and explanations on all 200 ways.
Course for setting goals! Setting New Year’s Resolutions – and Actually Doing Them– great for any time of the year and wanting to achieve goals to make them your reality
Free eBook to get started! Beginner’s Guide to Elegance– my FREE introductory eBook to help you live your best life
Social
Join the Facebook group – Elegant Living for Elegant Women– a community for women who enjoy elegant living to ask questions, share stories and learn new ways that you can add elegance to your day.
Follow me on Twitter
Wednesday 11th of August 2021
You are Amazing ..Thank you so Much for this .
Wednesday 11th of August 2021
you are Amazing ..thank you so Much .