When designing a morning routine, many people fall into the tempting trap of copying what they see online. And no matter how draining it might be, they often stick to the routine because “that’s just how it has to be” or “maybe I’m just not a morning person.”
It’s hard to miss the one major problem with this: that morning routine wasn’t built for you. It was built for someone else, with someone else’s goals and circumstances.
Copying what others do is often the first step for a lot of people before they start doing their own thing. Think of how artists repaint famous paintings to get a hang of techniques, or how producers rebuild tracks from scratch to understand the structure of a song before creating their own unique sound.
With routines and day-to-day life, however, this transition doesn’t always happen. Why?
Because no two people have the same lives, demands, or resources to start with. Following someone else’s path can be three times harder for you but feel effortless for them, and vice versa. Routine planning is more than a “hobby”, it’s a skill made up of other skills, including self-awareness and prioritization. Here’s why self-awareness matters when building habits, according to James Clear, author of Atomic Habits.
Today, we’re covering how you can start developing your routine-planning skills.
Building a Morning Routine That Works Because It’s Yours
Here’s a strategy that teaches you how to design a routine based on your own needs: Instead of starting with habits, start with your outcomes. What do you want your mornings to do for you?
Step 1: Identify three goals
Maybe it’s avoiding immediate screen time upon waking up, or feeling more alert. Maybe it’s something as essential as making it somewhere on time.
When we tried out this strategy ourselves, our goals we’re:
- Staying grounded throughout the morning, instead of rushed
- Making time to work on something personal (before responsibilities take over)
- Starting the day with intention
(Keep reading to see our full reflection on the method!)
Step 2: Match each goal with ONE action
Just one action. The most direct habit or task that helps you reach that goal. Be honest about what you’ll actually do, rather than what sounds good on paper. For example:
Goal: Feel alert → Action: A cold rinse within the first 15 minutes of waking up
Step 3: Organize those actions in an order that makes sense to you
Order matters more than you might think. Starting with something too demanding (like a full workout) or too passive can throw off your energy for the rest of the morning. The flow should feel like a natural transition from sleep to wakefulness for you.
Maybe you’re the kind of person who feels energized right after waking up. Or maybe you need a few minutes (or even hours) before you feel fully alert. You should take these factors seriously when deciding the order of your routine.
It’s normal for this to feel confusing at first. One method that helps is using sticky notes or flashcards. Write one action per note, then rearrange them by hand until the order feels right.
Once you’ve set the order, move on to estimating the time needed for each action to make sure it fits your morning window.
Why does this work?
Because it’s tailored for your needs, rather than copied. You’re creating a routine with a strong base, AKA your goals.
Most people throw together a list of habits without thinking about how they actually affect each other, in terms of order and intensity. This is a really common mistake. But when your routine follows your natural energy levels, it feels smoother, and you’re more likely to keep doing it.
It also makes your mornings easier. When each step flows into the next, you don’t waste energy deciding what to do or forcing yourself through something that feels off.
Credit: Muhtelifane on Pexels
We tried this method for 3 days. Here’s what happened:
Of course, we’re not going to recommend a method without actually testing it.
So we tried it ourselves for three days, using the strategy of building a routine based on specific goals and energy levels.
Building the routine
As mentioned earlier, when we tried out this strategy, our goals were:
- Staying grounded throughout the morning, instead of rushed
- Making time to work on something personal (before responsibilities take over)
- Starting the day with intention
We listed habits that supported each goal, wrote them on sticky notes, and rearranged them until the order felt natural.
Day #1
To be completely honest, the first run of this morning routine felt more clunky than expected. Following the steps still felt like checking boxes more than actually living the routine. It was better than defaulting to chaos, but not quite smooth yet.
Still, it was clear this is normal for any new morning routine. A change takes time to adjust to. It’s like starting a new job and needing to figure out a new commute every day. After the first week, though, it practically becomes second nature.
Day #2
We swapped the order of a few things and shortened our phone-free window to make it more realistic. And it worked. The personal project time finally happened without feeling forced.
It also made working on the project itself easier. There was a kind of subconscious confidence that the rest of the morning had already been planned, so there was no need to worry about it. The rest of the morning felt more focused too.
Day #3
By day three, it was expected for the routine to feel more like second nature.
The biggest change we noticed was actually in the evening, before going to sleep. Knowing that everything had been planned (not in a rigid, overwhelming way, but loosely enough to allow flexibility while still providing structure) created one of the most calming and secure feelings.
Instead of running through a mental checklist at night or feeling anxious about how to start the next day, there was absolutely nothing to figure out. That kind of clarity made winding down easier, and falling asleep took less time than usual.
In the morning, the routine kicked in almost automatically.
This was surprising as this was only the 3rd day. Without overthinking, the first steps came quite naturally. There was more time to be present, and energy wasn’t wasted on decision fatigue.
The main takeaway here is to stop overthinking your morning routine and start focusing on why you’re building it. When you begin with your goals and build habits around them, mornings stop being a struggle and start working for you. Try it for three days and see the difference.