What Happens the Night Before… Changes Your Morning
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We are often drawn to coaching because we think the coach is somehow wiser or smarter than we are. This couldn't be further from the truth. I have no problem sharing my belief that most of my clients are smarter and more successful than I am.
But you can safely assume that any effective coach is committed to a set of practices that, over time, have become her operating system. This is not about being smarter, it’s about being consistent.
These practices enable us to live with more ease, clarity, and productivity. The most life-changing one—for myself and for many of my clients—is what I call the Morning Practice.
A Morning Practice lays the foundation for the day. Why does that matter?
Because as Annie Dillard wrote, "How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives."
When we understand that a consistent morning practice gives us real influence over how our day unfolds, we stop seeing it as a chore and start seeing it as a power.
Michael Jordan showed up in full force on the court because of the preparation he committed to beforehand—work that was invisible to the rest of us. This invisible work is the impact of a morning practice.
It’s the one hour that sets up the other 23 hours of our day on purpose, ensuring we move through the rest of the day with focus and intention. It's an operating system that reduces reactivity and keeps us grounded in our creative core.
But here's what most people don't realize: your morning practice begins the night before.
This has been life-changing for me, and it's the part most people want to skip. If I want to wake up early and by my own accord—not by the disturbing ring of an alarm clock—I need to be vigilant about what time I go to sleep. Everyone should experiment and find out exactly how much sleep they need, then work backward to decide their bedtime.
The truth is that no morning practice in the world works if we wake up sleep-deprived. People don't want to accept this because they want the hack. The shortcut. They think the "right" morning practice will give them the energy that only sleep can provide. It won't.
I am incredibly disciplined with my bedtime and all the things I need to do to ensure a good night's sleep—eating early, no alcohol, and the sleep hygiene habits we all know about but conveniently ignore. This is not glamorous. But it's the foundation beneath the foundation.
So what does my morning actually look like?
I wake up naturally, between 5 and 6 a.m. No alarm. First, I go through a set of rituals to ground me in gratitude and optimism for the day ahead. Then I do ten minutes of stretching and mobility to wake up my joints. Then I pray, which takes about fifteen minutes. Then I read something that teaches me something new—this wakes up my brain. It doesn't have to be AP chemistry; a few pages from a book I'm immersed in will do. Then I take my dog for a fifteen-minute walk. Back home, I prepare the one thing I've been looking forward to since last night: my morning latte, just the way I like it. I take my time with this small delicacy, knowing that once it's done, it's off to the races.
It's not complicated. But by the time I start my day, I've already connected with my body, my mind, my spirit, and something I genuinely enjoy. I've made decisions about how I want to show up before anyone else's agenda has a say.
What will be different when you commit to a morning practice?
You'll gain clarity on what matters to you.
Your ability to focus will become deeper and sharper.
You'll make decisions ahead of time about what you deem important and become clear about your "One Thing" for each day.
You'll get your anxieties and negative thoughts out of your head and move forward with less rumination.
You may feel connected to something larger than yourself.
You'll connect with your body—critically important for staying grounded throughout the day.
Social media, email, and texts won't decide your day. You will.
And over time, you'll strengthen your relationship with your Future Self.
The most impactful morning practice incorporates elements—however small—from four areas:
Physical (stretching, breathing, walking, working out)
Emotional (journaling, gratitude, solitude, connecting with someone on the same path)
Spiritual (prayer, meditation, quiet time in nature), and
Mental (reading, writing, planning, deep work).
These are examples, not prescriptions. Start with one element. Experiment. Add others as you go.
And if you're thinking you don't have time for this, start with just five minutes.
That's what most people say at the beginning: five minutes isn't enough, so I'm not even going to start. But then they try it. And they feel better during the day. So they make it ten minutes. Then fifteen. Then they realize that these fifteen morning minutes are making the next fourteen hours more productive, more creative, more pleasant.
Start small. Five minutes. One practice. But remember: your morning practice begins the night before.
