I believe deep down, every witch wants to have some sort of witchy morning routine. Living in today’s world, life can get hectic and busy (work, kids, dinner, friends, family, etc.). This causes us to lose track of the day, and as we lay our heads down on the pillow at night, we feel this hint of guilt for not doing anything in our practice.
For me, doing little things in the morning really set my mood for the day. Knowing that I have taken some time, not a lot of time, but some time to myself and do a little something for myself (which doesn’t happen sometimes if I don’t make time for it). Because I know for me and I’m sure maybe even you too, when I come home from work, it’s all hands-on deck to get things done, all of that mundane stuff.
Now I know some of you, mornings will not do it for you. Maybe you work nights, or you have a baby. That’s ok! If you work nights, do this when you wake up before getting ready for work. You might have to get up a little earlier. If your schedule is unpredictable like it is when you have a baby, try to find a spots in your day where you can do 1-2 things on your morning routine checklist.
Getting Started
The first thing and the hardest thing to do with any routine is getting started. For me, it was waking up a little bit earlier than usual. In the beginning, I wanted to start slow. I wanted to make sure I was going to succeed in what I was doing without being mentally and physically drained throughout the day.
For the first month or so of starting my routine, I woke up 30 minutes before I normally would. If that is too much time for you, that’s ok! Try waking up 10 minutes to start if that makes it easier. You can always go to 20 or 30 minutes after you get used to the 10 minutes.
I used to wake up at 7am (when I’m supposed to wake up my kids for school), quickly get myself and them ready to be out the door by 7:30am. This meant NO TIME for literally anything outside of getting ready (and we only have one bathroom). And I’m not going to lie; there were days that I was never fully ready for work and just had to deal and go through my day as is. That’s horrible for your mental state! You should ALWAYS make time for yourself!
DO NOT feel pressured into following this routine to the letter. It is ok to make changes to something to fit your lifestyle. This is your life and you get to make the rules. I’m just here to give some guidelines for those who need it.
You may have to go to bed earlier to wake up earlier. I know this is what no one wants to hear, but sleep is so important, and the amount we sleep sets the tone for the following day. I heard this quote on The Minimalists Podcast, “going to bed early is the same thing as waking up early”. What does this mean? We all try to stay awake at the end of the night because we want some “me time”. It feels like this is the only time we have for ourselves. But, if you get into the habit of getting up early, you can have the same time, but you may find yourself more productive and able to do the things you have been wanting to do.
What’s Next?
Now that you are up earlier, what’s next? Honestly, anything you want that will fill your magical cup. Don’t worry, I will give you some ideas if you are stumped.
What is it in your practice that you want to accomplish? Make a list of things and hang it up somewhere that you see it every day. Hang it up next to your bed, or in the bathroom, or keep a list on your phone (if you will remember to check it instead of getting distracted with other things on your phone).
What you put on that list is a great starting point. Is there a witchy book you have been dying to read, but can’t find any time to do it? A bunch of witchy notes spread out all over, just waiting for you to “have time” to put it in your BOS? Time to work out? Or maybe you just need some time in your day for some quiet. Now it the time to do those things.
My Witchy Morning Routine Checklist
I start my day off by getting up 1 hour before I used to. It used to be 30 minutes, but I have now graduated to 1 hour. One day I would like it to be 1.5 hours, but I am not there yet.
After I get out of bed, I give myself about 10 minutes to wake up. During this time, I use the bathroom, brush my teeth, get dressed, and drink some water. This helps wake the body up. If you drink tea or coffee, before doing this step, make sure your pot of coffee or kettle is heating up or brewing as you are doing your 10 minutes of wake-up time. However, I do recommend drinking water before drinking anything else. Water is important!
Next, I would take not even 2 minutes to do some sit ups. Yes, I know it’s not “witchy”, but exercise (even small amounts) is good for not just your body, but your mental health as well. You don’t have to do sit ups. Do any small workout. Walk up and down your stairs for 2 minutes or do 10 squats. Do whatever your body can handle as long as you are moving your body. And if you only have the mental bandwidth to do 1 minute, that’s ok!
Once I finish my quick little workout, I do at least 10 minutes of yoga. Again, not “witchy: but good for the body and mind. And when your body and mind feel more connected, it gives you space to feel more connected with your practice. Now, when I woke up 30 minutes earlier, I only did 5 minutes. Do what you can. I will link my favorite yoga channel here.
After my yoga session, I am starting to feel more motivated, so sometimes I will do a few more sit ups (but not every day). Again, not even 2 minutes. And if you are like me and have been wanting to work out more, but never can find time, even this little bit is a great starter point. It will help lift your mindset and give you the momentum to start making healthier decisions throughout your day.
Now, this next one I will admit, I do not do every day. I am still trying to make this a must do in my morning practice, but I haven’t gotten it down to a daily thing yet. This is to do at least 2 minutes of meditation. Although I am not perfect at this, I still try to do it, and if I don’t then that is ok.
The last thing I do is a daily oracle card draw. Some days I have a specific question, but for the majority of the days I ask my oracle deck what I can expect for the day ahead. This helps me get some insight about what I need to prepare for. You can opt to do your daily draw before doing any meditation and use that time to meditate with your card.
If I have any remaining time before my kids wake up, I will use this time to read, journal, or go outside to ground myself and connect with nature. Feeling the fresh air, feeling the ground, really trying to soak up that natural energy that we rarely stop and take the time to do throughout the day.
Why follow this routine?
I know some of you are scratching your heads and saying, “what is so witchy about this routine?”. And to be honest, written out, it doesn’t seem witchy at all. But believe me, once you do it, you will feel it.
Most of us are so bogged down with the everyday grind, that we forget about the most important thing in our lives. Ourselves.
Taking time to put our body and our mind first before everything else will change the tone for the day. When you find the time to do a quick spell or a ritual, your magic will not be strong enough or will not work at all if you are not connected to yourself. Your power comes from you! You are the most powerful tool you have and if you are not nourishing your body and mind, how will you have the energy to put into your spells and rituals?
Ideas for your morning routine checklist:
- Read
- Journal
- Gratitude
- Dream
- Daily Life
- Brain dump
- Reflect
- Work in BOS
- Check the moon phase for the day
- Ground yourself
- Center yourself
- Visualize your day
- Light a candle
- Light an incense
- Use oil diffuser
- Meditate
- Yoga
- Stand/ sit outside
- Go for walk (if able)
- Walk your dog if you have one, great for everyone!
- Hang out in your garden
- Cut some fresh flowers
- Pull an Oracle card
- Do a 1-3 card Tarot draw
- Work with your altar
- Clean (clean space, clear mind)
- Connect with your ancestors or Deities
- Decorate for the Sabbat
- Cleanse yourself
- Take a quick ritual bath or shower
- Sit with a cleansing crystal
- Wash your face
- Glamour Magic (do while applying your makeup)
- Set Intentions
- Write them down
- Stir into your coffee or tea
- Protect yourself for the day
- Wear any enchanted jewelry
- Use a protection tincture
- Draw protection sigils on yourself
- Don’t want someone to see it?
- use water
- draw on a piece of paper and stick it in your shoe
- Don’t want someone to see it?
Tips on sticking to your morning routine
- Get Started. I put this at number one because it is the biggest and most important tip I can give. You can spend time planning and preparing for setting up this routine, but you won’t get anywhere if you do not start. Taking that first step is always the hardest. And remember, every new habit gets easier over time. So don’t give up!
- Start Off Small. Starting a new routine can be overwhelming. Starting off with something small may help give you the momentum that you need.
- Ease New Things into the Routine. When you have gotten to a point where you have your routine down, and you are finding some extra time where you might want to add something new, ease into it. Schedule this new part for 1-2 times a week. Try it out and see how it feels. Don’t feel obligated to do it every day right away. And after a while, if it’s too much stress on you and your mind, don’t do this new routine. Try to put it somewhere else in your day or swap it out with another routine practice you already do.
- Make the Routine Your Own. I know how easy it is to see someone else’s routines written out for you and you feel like they have the answer you are looking for. So, you try their routines, only to find yourself failing. This is because you are not them. Their life is not yours. It’s ok to see how others do their routines, but you have to make your, well, yours.
- Make Adjustments. Your routine doesn’t have to be set in stone. In fact, it shouldn’t be. Our lives are always changing, and we need to be able to adjust to these changes when they arise. Some days you may have to cut something out of the routine or have to not do your routine all together. It’s going to happen, and that’s ok.
- Do Not Overwhelm Yourself. This tip goes along with Tip #2 and #5. If you feel yourself getting overwhelmed, then it is time to stop and reevaluate. The whole goal of this is to find time for you. And that is sacred time. This time should not be stressful in any way. (Example: if waking up 30 minutes earlier is too much, then try getting up 10 or 20 minutes earlier instead.)
- Stop Looking for Perfection. This is such a great tip for everything, not just routines. I too struggle with wanting everything to be perfect. It takes work to not do this, I know it’s hard! But this is so necessary. When we try to make everything perfect, we tend to try it once or twice and then never again. Perfection is where we fail. In our minds, if we can’t do it perfect then we shouldn’t do it at all. We need to remind ourselves that it’s ok that it isn’t done perfectly every time. Perfection is an illusion.
- Be Consistent. I know I above that not every day will go the way you want it to. And even though this is true, we have to remember to keep doing the routine every morning. You need to show up for yourself to really home in on this time for you.