Waking Up on the Right Side

I love my new job!

Sunday night when I went to bed, I was too wound up to sleep though. The first day on a new job has got to be the most nerve-wracking thing ever. Plus, I knew I had to cover a story Monday evening, so I was worried about getting enough sleep so that I could make it through the day. I managed to sleep a little, very lightly, with bizarre dreams to add to the pile of things keeping me awake. I think I made it through Monday on raw nerves alone. It was a great day doing what I love to do!

My no-alarm-clock days are over. It's not that freelancing didn't have its demands, it's that news stories happen when they happen, and not usually on any sort of schedule. I took full advantage of sleeping whenever I wanted, and when all was said and done, I would sleep in four hour chunks whenever I laid down. I'd never feel fully rested or ready to take on a big chunk of activity. I was good for intense spurts, and that's about it. That is not exactly leaving me at my best to work during the day and be ready for news that happens in the evenings.

What has happened in the past was having a job that I'd rather not have and fighting with time. The alarm would go off, I'd whack the snooze for an hour, then be faced with rushing through everything just to punch that time clock 30 seconds before I would be considered late. It meant more than a few bad hair days and pushing my luck breaking speed limits. After that kind of adrenaline rush, the rest of the day dragged on and on, and I'd be lucky not to fall asleep driving home.

Good thing there's no time clock to punch now! I love this job, and I love that I don't have to give up writing to do it. The best way to keep loving these two jobs is to make sure I get up in the mornings on the right side of the bed. So, I went searching for tips to do just that. Here's what I ran into:

• Set your alarm to ring with music instead of an irritating, blaring, horrendous noise. I've got to say I agree with this one. Mine can do both, and I will set it back to playing the radio ASAP.
• Don't get up right away. OK, sure. Do you mean before or after that sixth time I've smacked the snooze? Actually, the tip says to stretch and ease yourself out of bed instead of whipping off the covers and flying up onto your feet. 
• Think of the positive things you'll be doing today. For me, this part is easy since I love my job. But, it sure wasn't when I had a job I hated.
• Turn on more and more lights as you go through your morning routine. I guess the point to this one is to mimic a slow sunrise, but my 'routine' calls for lights to come on pretty quickly. With four dogs that tend to sleep in various places that are never the same, it's for their benefit that I don't walk around in the dark!
• Step outside. That real sunrise actually communicates to your body and tells it to wake up. This is one tip I fit in on my walk to my truck from the house every morning.
  
• Do a few minutes of easy exercise. One of the best things for me to return to a regularly scheduled day is that I do exercise. Without a set schedule, I had no time to exercise. My exercise routine takes about 30 minutes, and I can fit it into 20 if I'm a bit behind. For me, nothing is more uplifting than feeling good, and that's what exercise does for me.
• Eat breakfast. This is a tough one. By the time I've done all my morning things, it's time to head out the door. I don't feel particularly hungry either, and I know I flush my vitamins down the loo taking them on an empty stomach. This is one I'll have to work on.

This short list of tips isn't very ground breaking or new by any means. I wonder if there's more? Do you have any tips to share to get the days going without an atomic blast?