3 Morning Habits That Make Waking up Early Incredibly Easy

Coffee is not one of them

5 min readApr 13, 2021

I was never really a morning person for the first quarter of my life. I always struggled to wake up on time, let alone wake up early.

While working a 9-to5, a morning routine never took priority because all I wanted to do was wake up and get to my job. Then the day would take care of itself.

About two years ago, however, when I quit the corporate grind and decided to start working for myself, things changed. Mornings became an integral part of my day. And they impacted more than just my mood. They affected my productivity, my motivation, and my work completion rate throughout the day.

I tried several routines and experiments — from the complicated 3-hour ones to the simple 5-minute ones — before settling for the one I have today.

However, more important than the routine itself are the habits that helped me get there. Without these changes, a routine would be nowhere in the picture. I like to think of these as the fundamentals of having a good morning.

Here’s how you can incorporate them in your life.

Waking up to natural light or better yet sunlight

Almost all species on earth, including humans, have evolved to use the sun’s natural cycle as a guide for their circadian rhythms.

However, our current lifestyle revolves around staying indoors most of the time. That has messed with this natural rhythm. Research shows that reduced exposure to sunlight and increased exposure to artificial light throws our natural rhythm haywire.

I found that one easy way to work around this is to wake up to natural light. I don’t draw the blinds at night and I have east-facing windows. This means that as the sun rises, I get sunlight in my room. And it is the best natural alarm clock.

Waking up early gets easier if you work with your body’s natural rhythm instead of against it. Instead of blocking out morning light, use the sun as your ally and it will become a lot easier.