Wake Up in the Morning and be Happy

A Fresh Start

Do you think about waking up every morning? Most of us dread hearing the alarm clock. I know I do. But there’s something amazing about our bodies’ routine ability to wake up and remind us that we’re alive. I’m glad our bodies wake up because, well, otherwise we’d be dead.

Each day, we’re given a fresh start. After a night of sleeping and recharging for the next day, we thrust ourselves into a new 24 hour cycle of life. Sometimes we forget this, and then every morning turns into a bad morning, which ruins the rest of our day. We slog through the morning to barely make it to the afternoon, and by the evening, we’re exhausted.

Some of us have schedules that constantly abuse our bodies, causing us to be tired every day. For the rest of us (that’s you and me), it’s all a mind game.

Beating the Mind Game

People suggest waking up to exercise as motivation. I tried that for a while. I hate it. For me, it’s not a true incentive to wake up, and I’m exhausted for the rest of the day. When the alarm goes off, and I have to pick between getting more sleep and running a few miles, you can guess who wins the battle more often. I like exercising, but not in the morning.

Recently, I’ve tried a different tactic. Pick something that you love to do. It can be writing, playing computer games, eating cake, surfing blogs, drinking coffee/tea or whatever. Just pick something. Then, when you wake up, do that thing that you love. Do it for 5 minutes, 30 minutes, or an hour – pick a length of time that will motivate you to get out of bed.

Now, instead of scrambling through showering and getting ready, I roll out of bed and heat up a pot of tea. I stretch a little, and then I sit down at my desk to write. Waking up becomes something that I look forward to, and for the rest of my day, I’m a little happier because I started with something that I love doing.

What Kind of Day Will It Be?

And when you wake up, decide that you’re going to have a good day. I know, it’s nothing more profound than asking whether you woke up on the “right” side of the bed, but take a couple seconds in the morning and appreciate the fact that you’re alive and get your mind set for the rest of the day. As Lincoln said, “most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” Make up your mind to be a happy person.

Maybe you have a lot planned for the day. Don’t think about that when you first get out of bed. Give your mind a clean slate to work with, take a little time to do something you love, and then embrace the rest of your day. Carpe diem!