Niya, a mom of two, has as many as 5 late marks at the office. She wakes up early in the morning to save time. However, with one or the other emergency cropping up, she has failed to minimize her late marks. She even tried skipping workouts and breakfasts but this took a toll on her health. Will she have to quit her dream job now or learn how to save time in the morning?

Are you able to relate with Niya? In fact, you would have already worn her shoes and your thinking cap to help her stick to her dream job. Mornings are hated by many, with all the work it brings. Even the morning personalities fail at a time when it comes to managing kids, kitchen and clutter, all at once. Being a mother of a toddler and a husband who finds it difficult to reach office on time, I can definitely relate with Niya.

To help her, I thought of things that could be done a night before to save time in the morning. Also, there are many things that need not be done in the morning at all. All these things gave me some ‘me-time’ in the morning and definitely, my crankiness reduced. Let’s see how this works out.

1. A Night Before

This is the most important time to have a serene and peaceful morning. While lying down on the bed, I prepare a list of all the things that need to be done in the morning. I also decide the order in which the things are to be done.

For starters, I soak some dry-fruits overnight for a quick snack in the morning. All the members of the house need to stack away from the toys, newspapers, used utensils and arrange the place before hitting the bed. This helps me move around the house in the morning. Or else, half of my time is spent in hopping and skipping above the things. A clean house at night and a list of work to be done in the morning give me a good night’s sleep.

2. Laundry

Laundry is one of the biggest loads that I have on my mind. Many keep this work for the weekends. But, I am not able to see the pile rising and hence, have designed a way out.

Hence, the moment I step down from the bed, I take the laundry and load the machine. Then, I head off to other work. Let the washing machine do the work until I finish the others. The moment I am done, the machine-work is also done and the clothes are ready to be unfurled on the stand.

3. Lunch

Most of the times, not everyone in the family agrees on the same breakfast or lunch. To avoid the mayhem at the time of breakfast, I prepare the set of choices a night before. For lunch, the fare is decided a week before.

I even keep the ingredients stocked so that there are no last-minute problems. When I wake up in the morning, I just need to prepare the stuff rather than think how to begin.

4. Outfit

I like to dress up. However, at times, picking up the right dress and matching it with accessories consumes my precious morning hours. Hence, what I do is decide what to wear before I go to sleep. Everything is set for everyone – my kid, husband and daughter. The pairs are arranged along with matching accessories – tie, handkerchief, watch, earrings for me et al.

I create a walk-in wardrobe sort of situation wherein we just need to walk out of the bathroom and walk in the clothes to be all set for our offices and school.

5. Workout

I agree with you that it is hard to choose between sleep and workout. But, workout is very necessary to stay fit. To make workout easy, I have bought nightwear that doubles up as workout gear. Also, I prepare a sling bag that contains a water bottle, a tiny towel and watch, a night before. So, I am ready to wear my shoes as soon as I wake up in the morning. I grab the sling bag and just move out of the house for a walk or jog.

6. Not-to-Miss Bag

When I return from the office in the evening, I am so tired that I just throw away my bag and keys in whichever direction that deems fit to me. This habit of mine has taken a toll on my morning hours. Either I keep searching for the keys or I entirely forget them and rush back home and waste my time in searching.

If you have the same habit like mine, just make sure that all the essentials are placed together in one place. This includes bag, wallet, keys, office files, belt, etc. When I head out of the door, I repeat the list of valuables in mind – keys, wallet and phone. And make sure that I am carrying them. This has inspired my two-year-old to keep her valuables (read toys) in place as well.

7. How to End the Day

For a great morning, all the things are done a night before. Hence, it is necessary that your evening is power-packed. However, I make sure that I spend quality time with my loved ones when I return after a hectic day at the office.

I plan evening pot-lucks that not only give me some time with my friends and family but I also get to gorge on delicious meals. I will also suggest making minimalist use of gadgets. This will give you more time on hand. At times, we do not realize that we have wasted just an hour to load an app that was not required in the first place.

Keep weekends for catching up on sleep and TV shows or movies that you missed during the week. Pre-plan even your weekends to make the most of them.

I seriously hope that Niya reads this post of mine and does not even think of quitting her dream job.

Do you think you will be able to save time in the morning after reading this article? Leave a comment below with your ideas.

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