For many busy mothers, getting out the door faster, fed and dressed can seem like a constant struggle.
A recent survey conducted by Today Show/AOL found that women spend an average of 6.4 hours per week working on their appearance in the morning while men spend an average of 4.5 hours each week.
That’s 42% longer!
There are several habits or small tasks that can waste your time in the morning.
For example, most people don’t realize that they waste a lot of time checking their social media accounts in the morning before leaving the house.
Here are five easy ways you can save time every morning.
1. Do some preparation the night before
To increase your chances of getting out of the house at the same time every day, make a habit of preparing for the day before you go to bed. This helps to minimize the number of things you have on your to-do list every morning.
Are you a workout warrior? Or maybe you want to be but just can’t push yourself to do it? Prepare yourself psychologically by keeping your workout gear by your bed.
Set up the coffee machine so that with a flick of a switch in the morning you can have your coffee and head out without wasting any time. You can even set your automatic coffee machine to start brewing a few minutes after the alarm goes off. Or if you prefer, some coffee makers like the BUNN Velocity Brew series can brew a whole pot at lightning speed so you aren’t waiting for a slow drip coffee machine.
If you always have trouble getting out of bed in the morning, the smell of the coffee will give you that extra push.
2. Organize your closet
Ensure that all the clothes in your closet are organized and separated by color and type.
This makes it easier to find what you want to wear. (That is, if you didn’t do it the night before!)
Also, you should watch the weather forecast to plan better and pick the right attire in advance.
It’s even easier to pick out, iron and set aside the clothes you intend to wear for the whole week. You can use a separate rack from which you can easily grab them in the morning.
3. Prepare your food beforehand
Breakfast is crucial for kick-starting your metabolism in the morning and ensuring high energy levels throughout the day. You can fix a nutritious breakfast by throwing some yogurt, granola, and fruits in a bowl or blending a quick smoothie before you leave.
With smoothies, you can prepare them the night before by combining all ingredients in the blender bottle in the fridge and then just doing the actual blending in the morning.
You don’t need to prepare for your lunches if you eat out, but if you want to live a frugal and healthy lifestyle, you should pack your lunch the night before. Leftovers are easy to make and can be packaged the evening before.
4. Have a designated location for accessories
Certain tasks can needlessly waste a lot of time in the morning, such as hunting for your car keys or handbag.
You can have a basket and a designated location right by your door where you place such items. And, if you bring a backpack to work or school, try to pack it the night before with everything you will need for the day.
This simple stuff will help you to be more organized because the morning rush might cause you to forget certain things such as pens, library books, or a shopping list.
5. Get yourself and your kids ready
If you have kids, have a habit of getting to them to bed early. A good night’s sleep for your kids may even be more important because well-rested kids are more likely to be cooperative in the. Wake up a few minutes before your kids to get enough time to shower and prepare without distractions. You can easily avoid falling behind schedule and be a motivation to your kids when you prepare before they get up.
Use your morning time to bond with your children and hold their hands since children get accustomed to affection in the morning. And, instead of dropping your kids off at school every morning, you can save a lot of time by letting them take a bus or create a carpool with other parents in your neighborhood.
Final thoughts about morning preparation
Always set a predetermined time to leave the house. That will keep you honest and perhaps force you to hurry whenever you fall behind schedule.
Set a time by which you are supposed to have finished doing each individual task. You don’t have to get all scientific and time yourself, but you could! You can even write down your tasks and tape them on your door if you have trouble keeping time. Consult it regularly to ensure you are sticking to your goals.
The route you usually take to get to work or school could be longer than you thought. Keep up to date on any construction in your area and adapt to your route as needed and avoid unnecessary traffic jams in getting to your destination as quick as possible. Try having a few backup routes in mind in case an unexpected traffic jam slows you down.
The Center for Disease Control recently affirmed that insufficient sleep is now a public health epidemic affecting most Americans, so anything that you can do to get sufficient sleep instead of wasting a lot of time preparing yourself for the day is good for your health and your state of mind.