With two years of college under my belt, I can one hundred percent confirm there is nothing I hate more than waking up and going to class early in the morning. I have never been a morning person, but motivating myself to get out of bed every day for those wretched classes that begin before 10 am is almost impossible, especially if the class that is requesting my presence is actually terrible. I thought that coming to London might change this as I would have a more exciting commute to look forward to. One would think the idea of greeting St. Paul’s Cathedral and the London Eye every morning would be motivation enough to arise from slumber, but after a couple of weeks, even the promise of seeing a partially covered up Big Ben lost its thrill before the clock struck noon. So what’s a girl to do?
Music has always offered a helping hand to me in the past, so naturally, I leaned on it again expectantly waiting for it to fix the problem and, as usual, it did not disappoint. About halfway through this semester, I created a morning commute playlist on my phone and honestly, going to class has never been easier. I wake up every Wednesday morning dreading the next three hours of my life, but then I think about how much fun the walk to class will be and some of the pain subsides. Music truly is healing, I swear. If you also struggle to trudge across campus in the mornings and find yourself wishing you had more pep in your step, then take a look down below so you too can strut your stuff and stop hating your morning commute.
1. The Transition Song
You can’t just jump into your music full force right away in the mornings. If you’re like me, you need time to wake up your mind, body, and spirit and starting off with a more peaceful song will help you to do this. “Feel The Rain” by Dream Street is my go-to for this exact reason. The beginning of the tune begins with the sound of rain falling and while the end certainly picks up the pace and the volume, it’s a great introduction to the wonders that lie ahead.
2. The Motivation Song
You’re fully awake and are now wondering exactly why that is the case? Simple answer, because you’re a boss lady and are about to kill the life game! This second song should remind you of how epic your day is going to be so you can keep putting one foot in front of the other all the way to your future (aka a college degree). “Drag Me Down” by One Direction always reminds me to not let anything, even my three hour morning lecture stop me from being amazing. It’s exactly the pep talk I need before taking on the day!
3. The Song that Makes You Think
Be sure to add a song that has some quality lyrics and not just a catchy beat. Including one of these will allow your brain to analyze something before diving head first into your day’s activities. This song will probably change more than the others on your list because you’ll want to keep your mind engaged and interested in what the artist is saying. The last couple of weeks I have put the brilliant song “Strangers Like Me” from Tarzan in this slot because it makes me look at the people around me on my way to class and realize that they have lives and stories to tell just as I do. Listening to this has made me slightly more understanding and less tense when I’m stuck behind a group of slow walkers or cut off by the woman with the stroller AGAIN.
4. The Song that is just a Straight Up BOP
You need a song that makes you feel like you’re living inside of a music video on your list. It is simply a necessity. You’ll feel confident, sassy, and straight up fire when walking down the sidewalks which is exactly what you need early in the morning. I chose “Blank Space” by Taylor Swift for this because it is such an easy song to get into. Every girl has that one guy that has made it onto their list and channeling that emotion and rocking out to self-love and female empowerment to stand up to the negative forces in life is such a jam I can get behind.
5. The Favorite Song
Joy, is one of the best emotions we are given on this Earth, so why would you not do everything in your power to feel that emotion every chance you get? Including your all-time favorite song (or at least one of them) is one way you can assure yourself that, even if it’s only for a brief blip in time, you will feel joyful. For me, this category is filled with the song “Tenerife Sea” by Ed Sheeran. I have loved this song since the moment I heard it and it will always have a special place in my heart.
6. The Hype Song
As you are approaching your class building’s doors, you probably need that one final push to get you to commit to going inside. In my experience, the louder and more exciting the song, the better fit it is for this final slot. You need something that really hypes you up and gets you excited for the day ahead. One final reminder that even though you have class, you can still have an amazing day on the whole. “Living On A Prayer” by Bon Jovi covers this nicely for me. It is the most powerful song I could find on my music app and therefore it was the one that I went with. Every time I walk into my building listening to that song, I truly feel on top of the world and like nothing could possibly bring me down. It’s the perfect way to end my commute to class.
Obviously, this list is not a one size fits all type of deal. Some people have shorter commutes than others, some have much longer. The point of this article is to find something that makes you happy and excited about the day ahead of you. There is nothing worse than spending twenty minutes with yourself and your negative thoughts. So, pop in those headphones and let the music take over, you’ll thank me later.
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