Becoming an Early Riser as a Lifestyle
“Most of us have two lives. The life we live, and the unlived life within us. Between the two stands resistance.”
This quote made me think about my unlived life. The one I’ve never allowed to happen.
Earlier, I mainly focused on what can be called the foreground: events, my thoughts in relation to them, emotions, actions. With time, I transitioned to focusing on what’s in the background: on the being, on the motives that formed the basis of my actions, on the inner side and texture of the moment.
My keen desire was to find the time when I can go within myself. To enjoy free space that arises inside of me and begins to fill me with light and insights.
I realized the way to enter this state is through having morning time for myself.
What’s funny is that I've never really given my morning rituals a thought before. Delaying waking up until I have to was my permanent way to start the day.
It's resisting life in its pure sense. As if you don’t want to get up and start living the life.
So I wanted to structure my mornings for meaningful things. To do that I had to restructure my habits to be able to keep some rituals in place.
Why get up early at all?
At 5 am the life flows at a slower pace. This is the only time of day that can be set aside for myself. I love my early morning hours. They give me an opportunity to think about life outside of life.
“Ancient Indian scriptures speak of the concept of Brahma Muhurta – this is 1 hour 36 minutes before dawn. It’s believed to be ideal for happiness and spiritual practice. Translated from Sanskrit Brahma means “sacred”, and Muhurta – “moment or period of time.”
I'm sure we can either make the best use of this time or waste it. The trick is to decide in advance how we'll spend it. Instead of thinking about what to do next, flexible routine can decide it for us. Because if you lose ourselves in the morning, then it's very difficult to return to your core throughout the day.
That’s why I try to begin my morning routine with a plan that has focused blocks around preferred activities. (You don't need a huge list of them, a small number will suffice.)
If we go back to how I actually wake up that early, it’s only possible if I had at least 7 hours of sleep at night. As setting the alarm makes me a bit worried, I usually let natural processes guide my body to harmony and wakefulness.
Reclaiming mornings back
No-checking-notifications-in-the-morning rule is probably the newest among the changes of mine. I’ve added it because if I check updates first thing in the morning, I feel like I'm playing catch up. That I'm not in control of my own life because I let other people determine my priorities for the beginning of my day. It doesn't create any influx of additional energy for me.
That's why I’ve also disabled all app notifications. The idea is that the phone answers to my needs rather than the other way around.
Creating and cutting habits
The quality of life depends entirely on our intentions and habits. Living a happy life simply means you've managed to develop habits necessary to achieve and maintain that level.
Keeping that in mind, what I did for my morning routine was:
Making a list of my desired morning rituals.
Determining which rituals are most important depending on my current main goals.
Choosing one of the activities and doing my best to introduce it into a habit.
Then moving on to the next habit I have in the list.
Need to mention that many activities when you start them aren't enjoyable at all. Up until you're actually making some progress with them. The task is to overcome the frustration barrier, and you'll see wonders that a few habits – selected with care – can do for you.
Setting goals and daily priorities
The chances of getting fulfilled in life also depend on how you prioritize your time, energy, and abilities. When you focus on the right things instead of doing more things, only then you're able to top your yesterday’s self.
“If you want to have more, you have to become more. Success is not something you pursue. What you pursue will elude you; it can be like trying to chase butterflies. Success is something you attract by the person you become.”
So I wake up in the morning and start working on my main project for at least 20-30 minutes. I always set myself a goal that seems ridiculously easy. In doing so, I'm kind of trapping myself, so I can do a lot more with time.
‘Always plan your next step, however small’ – I think this is one of the main secrets to accomplish the goal. Most often, however, it's not possible to implement the whole plan precisely because you may pivot with any next step. Because goals are something living and breathing. They change when you change. The key is to move forward, having a full alignment of your steps with a higher purpose you've set for yourself.
You simply map out the way in which your work supports your higher purpose. And then, you're going on intuition, choosing, planning, making decisions, and acting in accordance with that purpose.
Usually, I have one main goal that I want to accomplish in a week. And every morning, I decide what one thing I can do to move myself further towards that goal. Then, if possible, I do that first thing in the morning.
Bringing myself present
As I move through my morning routine, I'm tuning inward to center myself. It’s mainly about settling inside to evoke some inner light that surrounds and protects me.
I love this state of absolute calmness, silence, and clarity. You don't think about anything, you don't do anything, you just stay in the moment and devote your focus entirely to it. It's a joy of aliveness.
I really benefit from the ability to turn off my inner voice. I'm fully aware that this voice is not me at all and that I don't need to constantly analyze things that happen, reflect on the past events, or think about the future. Being soulful, aligned with my Being is what gives me a whole new frequency.
“Breathing in, I calm body and mind. Breathing out, I smile. Dwelling in the present moment I know this is the only moment.”
When the ego goes, the light of the consciousness increases. How true it is! From this silence, from this peace, from this connection with the Being so much is born.
Staying aware of everything without focusing on anything gives me a feeling of open space. I allow myself to be without tension and without all that amount of beliefs that limit my perception, to encompasses the unity of all that exists. It’s the process of establishing the interaction of all things with the source of their being.
When I focus on the whole, on absolute unity, the energy spreads throughout my entire consciousness and body and balances itself. It’s a way to come to a state of stillness.
Readjusting the subconscious for the better
I believe that since we're what we create, it's very important and even necessary that everything, that comes from us, is in harmony with all life everywhere. We must understand that everything we think, feel, and do creates the world in which we then live.
Where the consciousness directs its attention and what intention it has will happen. In other words, what we think about this reality becomes our reality. Because everything is improving, but only in proportion to the extent to which we believe in that improvement.
I don’t emphasize what I want as it may block the free flow of eternal, abundant substance with my limiting thoughts. I want it to express the fullness of the expanding life. This way I open up all paths of expression (not one and the only way) and do not close any. There’s the path of many benefits that we did not recognize.
Quiet time: the morning flow
Most mornings I try to write a bit before I start the rest of the day.
It may be jotting something down in my journal giving free rein to intuition: ideas, insights, stream of consciousness, reflections.
This practice has been gradually transformed into a kind of flowing meditation for me. I follow my narratives and then analyze what was written to reveal the insights. By rereading, I can find out what gives strength and inspiration, what hurts or disturbs me, and where I need to direct attention and care.
Or else, it may be consuming quality information: ebooks, audiobooks, podcasts, talks, blog posts, and inspiring videos. It’s when I intentionally develop skills and get the knowledge I need to achieve the current goal.
Having a renewing morning ritual
I highly recommend everyone to find their morning rituals and love them. It doesn’t mean you need to have the same routine actions each day. Just ask yourself what supports your creativity and inspiration, and remove anything that steers you away from that.
Some people say that daily routines suppress energy. I rather think that they release time for what you love doing without being constantly involved in the thinking process.
Instead of forcing yourself on doing something, it may be good to try to see what you can allow arising. What do you want to manifest in this life during your renewing morning ritual?
Decide on ONE new thing you're going to do in your morning and devote at least several minutes daily to solidify it. Break everything down into small steps that add up to the creation of your new healthy habit.
What does the best version of your morning look like? Will you share?
“Every day, think as you wake up, today I am fortunate to be alive, I have a precious human life, I am not going to waste it. I am going to use all my energies to develop myself, to expand my heart out to others; to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all beings. I am going to have kind thoughts towards others, I am not going to get angry or think badly about others. I am going to benefit others as much as I can.”
