You left the house five minutes later than usual and now you have caught every red light between your house and the school and every school bus in the district has stopped in front of you . . . or at least it feels like it today. Some mornings it feels like nothing is going right – you left your kids lunch on the counter and don’t realize it until you are dropping them off at school to only find when you run back home the lunch box was in the car under the seat.

There are some things that are just out of your control. Yet, there are other things that only you can control – like how you start your day. Have you heard of The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod? I read his book a few years ago and his “Miracle Morning Routine” is easy to follow. Hal believes that you can spend as little as the first six minutes of your morning on life S.A.V.ER.S. – silence, affirmations, visualization, scribing, reading and exercise to change your day. Ideally, if you can spend 30 minutes to an hour each morning on your life SAVERS you will start your day off in the right direction (taking care of yourself and your mindset). But, this may not be the season where you have the extra time in the morning.

A big part of what I believe helps get your morning started in a positive way (especially for moms) is your nightly routine. Do you run around in the morning grabbing your clothes out of your closet 5 minutes before you leave the house, making breakfast and lunch (with the occasion crockpot meal for dinner), making sure homework is in backpacks, and ironing clothes? Wow, that’s a lot to be done on any morning. In addition to S.A.V.E.R.S. (from The Miracle Morning), I recommend the following nightly routines (to ease you into your morning routine and successful day):

• Pack lunches (for you and the kids)
• Layout school and work clothes (if absolutely necessary, iron)
• Layout clothes (and shoes) for the gym or a morning run
• Check to make sure your meditation download is ready (on your favorite podcast app)
• Leave your book and journal (with pen) on your nightstand (or by your favorite chair)
• Have kids pack up homework and leave backpack by the door (ready to grab and head to the car or bus the next morning)

You may be thinking who has time to prepare the night before? Well, you do. It only takes about 10 minutes to complete all of these tasks. For us, these are just habits. I can’t go to bed if I know Haddie’s clothes aren’t laid out and lunch packed. It gives me a sense of calm (and yes, control) to know I am prepared and ready for the (next) day. And it will help start your day off to less rushed.

Hal’s research found that the most successful people had a morning routine that they stuck to every day. Hal also determined that this combination of morning routine (S.A.V.E.R.S.) was what gave people the edge to have a successful day. For some, the routine lasted beyond an hour. But as a busy mom, you can probably squeeze in about 15-30 minutes to an hour (before the rumble of the house begins for the day). But, if your current season only allows time for a shorter morning routine – then grab every 5 minutes you have and enjoy just a few minutes of silence and reflection.

Do you already have a morning routine that works? Share your morning routine in the comments, we love sharing with our community. If you don’t have a morning routine, give yourself a challenge to try the life S.A.V.E.R.S. for the next 14 days and see what you think. To create a miracle morning habit, you will have to do commit to the routine for a few months (to form a new habit).

Happy mornings – Nicole