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The 5-Step Snooze-Proof Wake Up Strategy (For the Snooze-aholics)

If you really think about it, hitting the snooze button in the morning doesn’t even make sense. It’s like saying, ‘I hate getting up in the morning—so I do it over… and over… and over again.’ —DEMETRIUS MARTIN

I’d like mornings better if they started later. —UNKNOWN

First, let me just say that if it wasn’t for this strategy that I’m about to share with you, I would still be sleeping—or snoozing—through my alarm clock every morning, and what’s even more detrimental, I would still adhere to my old limiting belief, claiming that I was not a “morning person.”

It’s been said that nobody actually likes waking up early, but everyone loves the feeling of having woken up early. Kind of like exercising—many of us struggle to get ourselves to the gym, but all of us love the feeling of having gone to the gym. Waking up early, especially when done with purpose, always starts you off feeling empowered for your day.

Increasing Your Wake-Up-Motivation-Level (WUML)

For most of us, when the alarm clock sounds each morning, we are woken from a dead sleep. Leaving the comfort of our beds is the least appealing thing to do. If you were to rate your level of motivation as it pertained to waking up—a.k.a. your Wake Up Motivation Level (WUML)—at the moment the alarm clock starts incessantly beeping, on a scale of 1-10 (“10” being ready to wake up and embrace the day, and “1” meaning you want nothing more than to go back to sleep), most of us would probably rate our WUML close to a one or a two. It’s perfectly natural, when you’re still half asleep, to want to hit the snooze button and keep on sleeping.

The challenge is, how do you give yourself the motivation you need to wake up early and create an extraordinary day, when your Wake Up Motivation Level is only at a one or two when your alarm clock sounds?

The answer is simple: one step at a time. Here are my five simple, snooze-proof steps to making waking up in the morning—even early in the morning—easier than ever before.

Step #1: Set Your Intentions Before Bed

The first key to waking up is to remember this: Your first thought in the morning is usually the last thought you had before you went to bed. For example, we’ve all had nights where we could hardly fall asleep because we are so excited about waking up the next morning. Whether it was Christmas Eve, or you were going on vacation, or starting a new job—as soon as the alarm clock sounds, you open your eyes with enthusiasm to get out of bed and embrace the day.

On the other hand, if your last thought before bed was something like, “Oh man, I can’t believe I have to get up in six hours—I’m going to be exhausted in the morning!” then your first thought when the alarm clock goes off is likely to be something along the lines of, “Oh my gosh, it’s already been six hours?? Nooo! I just want to keep sleeping!”

So, the key is to consciously decide every night to actively and mindfully create a positive expectation for the next morning. For help on this and to get the precise words to say before bed to create your powerful intentions, download The Miracle Morning “Bedtime Affirmation” free at www.TMMBook.com. Step #2: Move Your Alarm Clock Across The Room

If you haven’t already, move your alarm clock across the room. This forces you to get out of bed and engage your body in movement. Motion creates energy, so when you get up and out of bed it naturally helps you wake up.

If you keep your alarm clock next to your bed, then you are still in a partial sleep-state when the alarm goes off, and it makes it much more difficult to wake yourself up. I’m sure you can probably relate to rolling over—still half-asleep—and turning the alarm clock off without even realizing that it went off. I know that on many occasions I’ve even convinced myself that my alarm clock was merely part of the dream I was having.

Simply forcing yourself to get out of bed to turn off the alarm clock will instantly take your Wake Up Motivation Level from a WUML-1, to a WUML-2 or WUML-3. However, you’ll still likely be feeling more sleepy than not. So…

Step #3: Brush Your Teeth

As soon as you’ve gotten out of bed and turned off your alarm clock, go directly to the bathroom sink to brush your teeth, and while you’re at it, splash some warm (or cold) water on your face. This simple activity will increase your Wake Up Motivation Level from a WUML-2 or 3 to a WUML-3 or 4. Now that your mouth is fresh, it’s time to…

Step #4: Drink a Full Glass of Water

It’s crucial that you hydrate yourself first thing every morning. After 6-8 hours without water, you’ll naturally be mildly dehydrated, and dehydration causes fatigue. Often when people feel tired—at any time of the day—what they really need is more water, not more sleep.

Start by getting a glass of water (or you can do what I do, and fill it up the night before so it’s already there for you in the morning), and drink it as fast as is comfortable for you. The objective is to rehydrate your body and mind as fast as possible, to replace the water you were deprived of during the hours you slept.

When you drink a glass of water and hydrate yourself, your Wake Up Motivation Level goes from a WUML-3 to a WUML-4 or WUML-5.

Step #5: Get Dressed or Jump In the Shower

The fourth step has two options: Option #1 is to get dressed in your exercise clothes, so you’re ready to leave your bedroom and immediately engage in your Miracle Morning.

Option #2 is to jump in the shower. Personally, I like to just change into my exercise clothes, since I’ll probably need a shower afterwards anyway, but a lot of people prefer the morning shower because it helps wake you up and gives you a “fresh” start to the day. It’s really whichever you prefer.

Regardless of which option you choose, by the time you’ve executed these five Simple Steps, you should be at a WUML-5 or WUML-6, and then it requires very little discipline to stay awake for your Miracle Morning. If you were to try and make that commitment at the time your alarm clock went off—while you were at a WUML1—it would be a much more difficult decision to make.

Here’s a quick review of the 5-Step Snooze-Proof Wake Up Strategy to significantly increase your Wake Up Motivation Level (WUML):

1. Set Your Intentions the Night Before. This is the most important step. Remember: your first thought in the morning is usually the last thought you had before bed, so take responsibility for creating genuine excitement for the next morning, every night before bed.2. Keep Your Alarm Clock Across the Room. Remember: Movement creates energy! 3. Brush Your Teeth. Use an antiseptic mouthwash to add extra umph! 4. Drink a Full Glass of Water. Hydrate yourself, ASAP! 5. Get Dressed. Or jump in the shower.

Miracle Morning Bonus Wake Up Tips

Keep in mind that although this strategy has proven to be work for thousands of people, these 5-steps are not the only way to make waking up in the morning easier. Here are a few other tips I’ve heard from fellow Miracle Morning practitioners:

Ö TMM Bedtime Affirmations: If you haven’t done this yet, be sure to take a moment now to go to www.TMMbook.com and download the re-energizing, intention-setting Miracle Morning Bedtime Affirmations, for free. Ö Set a timer for your bedroom lights: One of our Miracle Morning community members sets his bedroom lights on a timer (you can buy an “appliance timer” online or at your local hardware store.) As his alarm goes off, the lights come on in the room. What a great idea. It’s a lot easier to fall back asleep when it’s dark, so having the lights come on tells your mind and body that it’s time to wake up. Regardless of whether or not you use a timer, be sure to turn your light on first thing when your alarm goes off. Ö Set a timer for your bedroom heater: Another fan of The Miracle Morning said that in the winter, she kept a bedroom heater on an appliance timer set to go off 15 minutes before she woke up. She kept it cold at night, but warm for waking up so that she wouldn’t be tempted to crawl back under her covers to avoid the cold. She said this made a huge difference! Ö MyWakeUPCallTM (Motivational Alarm Clock Messages): While doing research for this book, I came across an extraordinary woman with a really cool idea—Robin Palmer, President and Co-founder of My Successables, Inc. and the creator of MyWakeUPCallTM Motivational Alarm ClockTM Messages. These are unique, pre-recorded motivational messages designed to wake people up positively each day. Every morning, you start your day with patented, five-minute, motivating messages from famous authors, like Jack Canfield and Marci Schimoff. You can download a few free sample messages for at www.mywakeupcalls.net.

Feel free to add to or customize your Snooze-Proof Wake Up Strategy, and if you have any tips you’re open to sharing, I’d love to hear them. Please feel free to contact me directly through my blog at www.MiracleMorningBlog.com, or at www.MyTMMCommunity.com.

It’s all about having an effective, pre-determined, step-by-step strategy to increase your Wake Up Motivation Level in the morning. Don’t wait to try this! Start tonight by reading the Miracle Morning Bedtime Affirmation, moving your alarm clock across the room, setting a glass of water on your nightstand, and committing to the other two steps for the morning.