5-minute morning routines that can make your whole day better

If you feel a twinge of jealousy each time you read about another successful person who wakes up at 4 a.m. to meditate, jog, read a novel, and eat two grapefruits, take heart.You don't have to add three leisurely hours to your morning routine to be happy or productive.In fact, plenty of the habitsthat can help you start your day take five minutes or less.Several of those habits are listed under the Quora thread, "What can I do in 5 minutes in the morning to make my whole day better'"Below, find some of the simplest routines totackleyour day feeling refreshed and ready to tackle whatever challenges come your way.SEE ALSO:7 things not to do when you first wake up1. Write down three things you're grateful forQuora user Nela Canovic suggests writing down three things you're grateful for every morning."Think about what you already have in your life," she writes. "Don't focus only on material things (such as a car or computer), but rather think in more simple or basic terms." For example, you might express gratitude for friends, family, or your education.This strategy is similar to the "three good things" exercise recommended by Martin Seligman, a professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania and one of the founders of the positive psychology movement.Seligman and colleagues advise people to take time each night to write down three positive developments that happened that day, along with an explanation for why they did. You can, however, easily adapt this exercise for the morning and think about three things you're grateful for in general.2. Think about what would make today greatCanovic recommends another, more prospective exercise: "Write one sentence about something that, if it were to happen, would make you feel like today will be a positive, productive, unique day."It can be something as simple as going to bed before midnight or spending an hour doing something you love, she says.Once you figure out exactly what would make you feel happy and accomplished, you can go about making it happen.3. MeditateScience suggests meditation has myriad benefits, from helping you deal with stress and negative emotions, to boosting your memory, to strengthening your immune system.But meditation doesn't necessarily mean sitting in silence for hours on end. As Ariel Banayan points out, "sitting for five minutes to detach from the thoughts of your mind will have a profound impact on your day."If you're unsure how to get started, the UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center offers some free guided meditations, some of them five minutes or shorter.See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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