Creating a winning morning routine with the PASTE Morning Method

Jul 31

How you choose to spend the first few moments of your morning set the tone for the entire day. Maybe you’ve heard of Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod or the Phone Charger Challenge by Ben Meer but when it comes to creating a successful morning routine, I take a slightly different approach.

You’ll notice some common threads and while I love many of the other morning routines out there, none have impacted me as much as the P.A.S.T.E method has, which is exactly why I’m going to share it with you today.

Why is a morning routine important?

Because good days begin with good mornings. Science has proven it, and so have the personal testimonies of countless leaders and celebrities – successful people have morning routines. Implementing a morning routine is crucial for starting your day on the right foot and setting the tone for a successful and productive day ahead. Without a structured morning routine, you might find yourself stumbling through the early hours, feeling rushed and unprepared. Personally, the days that I skip my morning routine because of a change in schedule, or running behind, or just not feeling like it - I feel the effects of it all day long.

By establishing a morning routine, you can take control of your mornings, boost your overall well-being, and create a positive impact on your daily life.

What makes for a good morning routine?

A good morning routine is a set of intentional practices that you incorporate into your mornings to improve your physical, mental, and emotional well-being. One of the biggest misconceptions I’ve heard surrounding morning routines is that you have to be part of the 5am alarm clock crew in order for it to work. If there’s one thing you take away from this blog, it should be you don’t have to be a morning person to have a successful and meaningful morning routine. Your morning routine can be successful and have a positive impact on your day whether it’s done at 5am or 9am.

Before diving into the PASTE Morning Method, it's essential to understand the core components of a successful morning routine. A good morning routine is intentional, purposeful, personal and consistent and formed based on habits.

You can create intentionality with your routine by asking “what is it that I hope to gain by implementing this routine?” or “what habits help set me up for success throughout my day?”. To make sure that your morning routine is purposeful, create a specific plan for your morning routine based on your answers to the intentionality questions. For example, if your morning routine includes exercise, decide what exercise you will do. By planning ahead you minimize the margin for excuses. Set yourself up for a successful morning by preparing some elements the night before.

Next, a good morning routine is personal. Today I’m going to share my framework for a winning morning routine. It includes five general elements, but you should evaluate and fine tune each of those elements to fit your lifestyle and goals. To create consistency in your routine, decide on a schedule for your morning routine. Set a specific wake-up time and be sure to set aside more than enough time for each activity in your routine. Consistency helps train your body and mind to adapt to the routine more easily.

The PASTE Morning Method

So, now that you know why a morning routine is so important and what makes for a successful one. I want to share the P.A.S.T.E Morning Method with you. It’s a simple yet effective framework to structure your mornings for success. P.A.S.T.E stands for prayer/meditation, affirmations, scripture (or seek wisdom), texting gratitude, and exercise.

Prayer and Meditation

Start your morning routine with prayer and meditation to cultivate a sense of peace, grounding, and focus. Take a few moments to connect with your spiritual beliefs or inner self. Find a quiet space, close your eyes, and take deep breaths to clear your mind. As a spiritual practice you can spend this time praying, or you can simply quiet your mind and meditate. If this practice is new to you, you may want to find a written prayer you can recite or a guided meditation you can follow until you feel more comfortable winging it. As a bonus, you may wish to do this in nature for added grounding and health benefits.

Affirmations

Affirmations are simply positive statements that you repeat to yourself (out loud), influencing your conscious and subconscious thoughts and beliefs. They are extremely powerful to counteract negative self-talk and self-doubt. If you’re new to affirmations and aren’t sure what to recite, go to Pinterest and search affirmations for [thing you would like to achieve, or doubt/fear you would like to overcome], find a few that resonate deeply with you, and write them down.

Scripture (or Seek Wisdom)

Nourish your mind with wisdom and inspiration by reading spiritual texts or other motivating writings. In this step, you’re beginning your day with inspiration which can ignite your subconscious to look for more opportunities and blessings as well as learning something new, which will provide mental clarity, purpose, and motivation to tackle challenges that lie ahead for the day.

Text Gratitude

This is one of my favorite steps (although I have to say, I love them all), because it takes gratitude a step further. Many morning routines mention expressing gratitude, but so many simply encourage you to write it down and reflect on it. In the P.A.S.T.E method, I encourage you to not only reflect on it, but to share it. Consider jotting down a few things you are thankful for in a gratitude journal and then sending text messages or emails to five people expressing how much you appreciate them. Doing this will foster a more positive outlook on your day, improve your relationships, and attract more positivity into your life.

Exercise

This is the element you’ll find in every successful morning routine, because our bodies need movement to stay healthy. Whether it’s cardio, cycling, weight lifting, or pilates, some type of exercise is so important in setting your day up for success. From a physiological standpoint, morning exercise is proven to kickstart your metabolism and increase blood flow, and provide a natural energy boost to start your day with vitality and alertness.

From a mental health standpoint, completing a morning exercise session can give you a sense of accomplishment and sets a positive tone for the rest of the day, motivating you to continue making healthy choices. It also triggers the release of endorphins, also known as your "feel-good" hormones, which means it can improve your mood and reduce feelings of stress and anxiety.

Summary

By implementing the P.A.S.T.E Morning Method, you can create a morning routine that enhances your overall well-being and sets the stage for a successful day. Each element, from prayer and meditation to exercise, plays a vital role in preparing your mind and body for the challenges and opportunities ahead. So now, the only left to do is put it into action – make a commitment right now to begin your morning routine. You’re worth it!

In case this is the first time we’re connecting, I’m Jill, an entrepreneur, speaker, author, and leader inspiring other women to live out their God given purpose by helping them overcome physical, mental, and financial hardships. If you liked this blog post and want more where that came from, here are a few ways we can work together:

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