Good Morning!

Is the morning good or you are going to be good to the morning? The first few hours in the morning are considered to be the most productive. Most of us are now used to seeing the time in our mobile phones and from there our day starts and is defined by others. My suggestion here is to experiment for a week. Try not seeing your phone for initial few hours when you wake up and see the difference. In all probability, you might be in one of the below 3 categories right now.

Category 1: I wake up in the morning and immediately see my mobile phone. I quickly go through all the whatsapp messages, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram notifications. Or maybe, it's the work email!

Category 2: I wake up but don't see the phone immediately. I start off with my some of my daily chores and park my breakfast time, time in the washroom or travel time for checking through all the messages and notifications.

Category 3: I wake up in the morning and do not see my phone till I have my own plan for the day. I ponder through my own world and my own work before letting others sneak into it and take control.

If you are in category 3, that's awesome! If you are not, please give it a try for a week and see the difference for yourself! Increase the time of not seeing your phone slowly everyday. I started doing this in an attempt to recollect my dreams. And I see a lot of them!. So I spend the first half hour doing some regular chores which do not require conscious thinking. And that's when I start to think what was I seeing in my dreams. And it worked wonders. Spending this time with yourself also makes you realize your physical and mental strengths. It doesn't matter if you are a student, a parent or a retired person. The rule does not change if you are a working professional with a 9-5 job, working in shifts, a home maker, or in the present situation working from home. Also it does not matter if you are single, committed, just broken up or in between!  Spend that time focusing on yourself and decide. If the day does not bring any surprises, what all would you like to do? If it is a weekend or your day off, still create that list of things you want to watch on Netflix or Hotstar! It's all about letting yourself rule the day with some permissible modifications from others. It should not be the other way round.

Do not allow yourself to see the phone till you have created a to-do for yourself. If it is too difficult for you to avoid the temptation, take help from somebody or self bribe to start with. Some extra calories to start this off wouldn't be too bad :) Also do not create a to-do in your mind or use any technology for it. Do it using pen & paper and place it next to your bedside. Yes, it makes a difference.

I will not dwell too much on the benefits of doing it. It will vary from person to person and is something one needs to experience. If the question is will this benefit you, I can confidently say YES.