My mom once told me, “if you can’t get up in the morning, you can’t do anything”. Those few words replay in my head every single morning as soon as I open my eyes. If you are a college student who struggles to get up in the morning or always find yourself snoozing your alarms unknowingly, these are my tips for you:
- Go To Bed Early
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We have heard it for years — getting a solid night’s rest is crucial. The average college-age student should be getting 7-9 hours of sleep. Most might think that is impossible with a day full of homework, studying, and everything in between, but it is really not if you go to bed early and get up early. It was really hard at first to go to bed earlier than what I was normally used to, but after 3 or 4 nights of starting my nighttime routine earlier, it got easier.
- Put Away Electronics
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I used to enjoy watching my favorite shows in bed, but then I found myself staying up past the point of exhaustion. It is really tough to find a way to wind down at the end of the day, but I’ve found that reading has been a really good way to relax my brain and make my eyes tired in a good way. Honestly, I have never been too fond of picking up a book by choice, but I made a goal to end my day with one chapter from whatever book I find interesting. Puts me right to sleep every time.
- Invest In A Good Alarm Clock
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I used to be the person who would set 30+ alarms on my phone to get up in the morning (and I still would not get up). It was not the fact that I was just snoozing them, but I was simply sleeping straight through them no matter how loud they were. Thanks to the internet, there is a whole market of alarm clocks for people with the same struggle! I found an alarm clock that has a vibrating disk to put underneath my pillow at night as well as flashing lights and the most annoying alarm tone. An alarm clock like this was a game-changer for me. There is absolutely no sleeping through something like this, so it is a MUST.
- Have Something To Look Forward To In The Morning
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Whether it is a fresh cup of coffee or hot shower, I always try to have something to look forward to in the morning. Sometimes I will make fresh banana bread or fruit salad the night before, so I can use it as an incentive to get up the next day. I always like having something to look forward to in order to set the tone for a good day!
- Open Your Eyes And Just Get Up
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I was finding myself using my first alarm as a warning for my other alarms, but I started making it a point to get up as soon as I first opened my eyes. I am sure that I am not the only one who has given myself 5 more minutes of sleep and then just overslept completely. That is probably the worst feeling when you know that you should have just gotten up in the first place.
It has helped me so much overall to immediately get up first thing in the morning and open my blinds. Even if I have an hour before I actually have to get up, I will make my coffee and turn on a show. That way when it is time for me to start getting things rolling, I am fully awake instead of just rolling out of bed in a hurry.
- Improve Your Mental Well Being
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I honestly was so embarrassed and disappointed in myself that I could not simply wake up on time. I did not want to be the person who was always late and scolded for it, because it is such an easy task. For me, it wasn’t though, so I took responsibility and changed. I didn’t become an early bird overnight, but I started with setting realistic sleeping goals for myself that were easily achievable. It was obviously a first priority to wake up on time for class, but beyond that I started waking up at 7am on weekends — even when I had nothing to do. Waking up and going to bed when I told myself I would and actually following through with it was a big step in the right direction for me. The small task of being able to discipline myself into getting up early made me feel that I accomplished something good to start my days.
Over time, it became easier to get up in the morning because it became my routine. A year ago I would have never believed that I would be excited to get in bed early and wake up feeling well-rested. Making myself a morning person while I am still in college will help me in the long run because, in the real world, I know that showing up to work late every day because I overslept is unacceptable. I realized that it was on me to change — if I wanted to be productive and feel good, it started with feeling rested and ready for the day. I used to be the girl who never saw the sunrise, but now that’s my favorite part of the day.