Making the most of mornings leads to increased productivity, heightened efficiency, better health, and, probably, improved happiness, too. Personal and professional development gurus – from Robin Sharma to these ridiculous entrepreneurs – argue that our potential is best realized with a focused and engaged early start to our days, but many of these speakers and writers leave out a pretty important audience in their work: parents, and more specifically, parents of young children who care about wellbeing. I get up really early every day – even on weekends – because I have a 10-month-old baby. So I am an authority on how parents can maximize mornings.
This idea started a few months ago when I shared a Inc article by Oscar Raymundo that focused on “the bright-and-early potential” of the day’s first two hours. Highlighting research from Dan Ariely, a Duke professor of psychology, Raymundo outlined how people often waste time and brainpower on mundane tasks like social media or reading the newspaper.
To be honest, I didn’t think much of the article and took away what I needed from it: in the morning, think about big problems and how to solve them.
My friend and digital role model (and, apparently, also my muse!), Alexandra Samuel, had a different (and smart and hilarious) opinion:
What’s missing from this article: “Too many people make the critical mistake of having children,” says Duke Professor Dan Ariely. “These children require things like food and hugs during what would otherwise be the two most productive hours of your day, or worse yet, wake you prematurely so that you miss those hours altogether. That’s why the most productive people get a dog that can wait until 10 am for its first pee, or better yet, a nice cactus.” No, he didn’t say it. But he should have.
My hunch is that it was this line that irked Alex: “The first things we cross off our list in the mornings are the mindless tasks to prepare for the day ahead.”
For example, one of the first things that I “cross off my list” in the morning is “changing my son’s diaper”. One of the other things that I cross off is “feeding him”.
Inspired by Alex, and many other early-rising, professionally-driven parents, here are three tips for achieving bright-and-early potential as a mom or dad.
Be Present
As a responsible human parent you must feed, clothe and generally care for your human child or children. Consequently, the morning might not be the best time to dig into that report or whiteboard a potential new product, unless of course the markers are non-toxic and your child can collaborate.
Being present means being responsible (watching your child, not your phone) and organized (managing meals, clothes, stimulation, transportation, and messes requires incredible logistical gymnastics). By eliminating distractions, fostering deep engagement with another person, and organizing an effective routine you are keeping a person alive and building incredible professional skills!
Be Mindful
So there you are. It’s 4:30am, but instead of planning your next corporate acquisition you’re trapped under a sleeping infant who will wake with any significant movement and your mobile device is out of reach. Congratulations! You’re ready to experience mindfulness.
I agree with Raymundo that the morning is not time for scrolling through Twitter – and this is a bad habit that I’m trying to break! Whether you’re forced or you embrace it, mindfulness can increase focus and productivity and help you actively notice new things. Research suggests that being mindful changes your brain for the better, too.
Quietly cuddle. Take a walk on an empty street or in a waking forest. Observe your child at play. Being mindful is simple. Once you put the phone down, anyway.
Be Playful
The creative minds at IDEO have one piece of advice when it comes to being more innovative: think like a kid. Kids are masters of creativity. They also say and do hilarious and inspiring things when they play. And, as IDEO’s Tim Brown attests, play is core to creativity and innovation.
Not only does playing with your child foster creativity, but it also increases fun-levels, resulting in happiness, relaxation and a higher probability of arriving at your first meeting of the day in an excellent mood and, perhaps, with a delightful anecdote that will inspire colleagues towards a novel business solution.