13 Things Successful People Do Every Morning

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While there are many factors that influence a person's success, those who have discussed their preferred habits or have documented their own tricks of the trade seem to have several common denominators when it comes to reaching their goals. Many of these commonalities involve the morning routine. (See also: Habits of the Financially Successful)

Here are 13 things that successful people do every morning.

1. Do Prep Work at Night

To create a peaceful morning routine, start preparing for the next day the night before. Select your outfit, pack your lunch, and arrange everything that needs to go with you in the morning near the door. This gives you time to incorporate more productive elements into your morning rather a chaotic morning day after day. Every night, make a to-do list for the next day so you can focus only on what matters.

2. Rise and Shine Earlier

By resetting your internal alarm clock to awaken earlier than your usual time, you can accomplish many things on your to-do list even before you head to work. This allows you to feel a sense of accomplishment early on, and there can be less stress when facing the rest of the day. (See also: 5 Things to Start the Day Off Right)

3. Make Me Time

By rising earlier, you can give yourself some needed "me time" before the rest of the family wakes up. This time of quiet allows you to focus on what needs to be done to achieve your daily goals. It also allows you an opportunity to get in touch with your inner self, so you'll know what you want in life. If mornings are not conducive to quiet time, allot at least 30 minutes in the day for uninterrupted quiet time.

4. Get Into a Positive Mindset

The old adage "mind over matter" is true. If you start each morning by thinking positive thoughts and visualizing your successes for the day, you'll be more likely to bring those things to fruition. Wake up thinking about a new day and not lamenting yesterday's mistakes.

5. Get Your Blood Pumping

Exercise is a vital part of overall good health and mental well-being. By rising early and fitting in 20-30 minutes of exercise before starting your day, you can get your blood pumping, your brain functioning, and your focus refined for the day's activities.

6. Eat Breakfast

A healthy breakfast provides the body with the nutrients and energy necessary to stay alert and on top of your game throughout the day. Not eating a good breakfast can cause you to experience a draggy feeling that leaves you feeling drained and too tired to actually get things done. Plan an overall healthy menu for breakfast, lunch, and dinner to help sustain your concentration and energy throughout the day. (See also: 10 Healthy Breakfasts for People on the Go)

7. Tidy Up Your Space

Before you leave your house each morning, make your bed, put dirty laundry where it belongs, and load the dishwasher. When you come home to a more organized living space, it will give you more time to focus on things that matter to your personal success than stressing over all the little things that needs to be done.

8. Make Time Your New BFF

Forget hoping for more hours in the day. Instead, calculate how you spend your time using your to-do list as a tracking tool. This will help you gauge what can be accomplished during your hours awake and help you prioritize what needs to be done within your day. It can also help to set a specific period of time to get tasks done to keep yourself from wasting time. (See also: Simple Hacks to Make Your To-Do List More Effective)

9. Get Some Sunshine

If the majority of the tasks you accomplish are inside your office or your home, make a point of taking some time to go outside into the fresh air and sun. Sunshine has health benefits so find ways to get out and enjoy it during your daily exercise routine or your introspective "me" time.

10. Forget How to Procrastinate

The tendency to procrastinate is pretty common, but you can overcome it and be more efficient every day. When you are utilizing a to-do list, you may be less likely to put certain tasks off. Become proactive about taking care of business when it comes up no matter how unmotivated you feel. By tackling the things you don't really feel like doing, you'll have a much bigger sense of accomplishment and confidence before you even leave for the office.

11. Take a Step Outside of Your Comfort Zone

Many of the most successful people have risen to the top because they took risks. Make a commitment to doing at least one thing outside of your comfort zone every day — no matter how big or small the step is. You'll build your confidence and likely discover more opportunities than you may have otherwise. Think about what steps you'd like to take during your commute to work. (See also: Break These Habits to Be More Confident)

12. Read More

Successful people stay on top of things. Read the newspaper, read magazines, read autobiographies, or read fiction — whatever you can use to keep growing your mind and your perspective. Read for at least 30 minutes a day. Get a jump start by reading the paper while walking on the treadmill or while eating breakfast.

13. Be Grateful

As you have smoothed out your morning routine, you have more time to think about what you are grateful to already have in your life. This goes along with adopting a more positive mindset first thing in the morning. Strengthen your gratitude by writing down on thing you are grateful for each morning when you wake up. Use this list as a reference when you are feeling burnt out, frustrated, or ready to give up.

What does your morning routine look like? Is it helping or is it holding you back?

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