My colleague at work asked me how I always look so relaxed despite all the work and challenges we have to deal with. That started me thinking about what I do that helps me to feel more relaxed and reduce stress. In this article, I wanted to share with you three morning rituals that I believe, will make a true impact in your life to feel less stressed and exhausted throughout your day.

Start positive self-talk from the moment you get up. My alarm bell rings at 5am. I try not to look at my phone at all and get into a positive mindset right away. I am curious about my thoughts that come up and talk to myself in a positive way. Sometimes, my first thoughts are negative. My mind talks about all the tasks that I am late for, all the challenges I had to face and issues. Instead, I start my positive self-talk and shift my focus to the environment I see. I look at the trees and appreciate them, see the sun rising, and think about the beautiful new day that I will have. I recall what I am grateful for like the health that I have, the morning coffee and the friends I have in my life.

Exercise. I go for a walk with my dogs for around 45 minutes. The streets are still empty. I hear the birds chirping and enjoy the trees and calmness. Exercise is critical to feel more detached from my thoughts and mind. I also feel more connected and balanced between my body and mind. Exercise helps me to start my day in an active and powerful way. I was always someone who woke up late only to rush to the office or my appointment. This new morning routine means I already scheduled me-time in an active way, that sets up my day on a positive note.

Meditation. I started meditating three years ago and went from being able to sit still for 2 minutes to 30 minutes. There is something powerful about sitting still. In the beginning, it might feel painful and uncomfortable. Once you do it over long periods of time, it is a powerful tool to organize your mind. I truly believe that we should treat our brain as the most important organ. As much as we feed our bellies, we equally need to feed our brain and take care of it. Meditation helps us to sit back and observe the thoughts coming in rather than acting upon them – which hacks our default programming.

These powerful morning routines have truly changed my life fundamentally. My day starts in a more balanced, calm way, which helps me handle stress and challenges much better. Rather than being tossed around by them, I am able to chose how to handle and address them with a calm mind. Don’t try to adopt all of them. Take micro steps because we have our old habits that are stubborn and won’t change tomorrow. Don’t let your mind convince you this is too much work or not easy to adapt. Try it out and let me know what the impact is. If I can do it, you can do it too.