How to Build a Morning Routine That Sticks, With a Free Routine App

What is a morning routine?

A morning routine is a set of actions you do in the same order at the start of your day. It can be five minutes or an hour, and it is not about doing more: it is about deciding once what comes first, so you stop spending morning energy on choices. When the order is fixed, getting started gets easier, and that is where the benefit comes from.

The National Alliance on Mental Illness notes on its blog that a morning routine can increase your energy, productivity and positivity, and that it builds momentum for the rest of the day. That is the practical case for it: a small, reliable start gives you something to build on.

How do you build a morning routine in 7 steps?

1. Choose your reason. Write one sentence about what the routine is for: more energy, a calmer start, time to work on a goal. A reason you care about keeps you going on slow days.
2. Pick a wake-up time you can keep. Choose a time you can hit on most days, including weekends if possible. Consistency matters more than an early hour.
3. Choose three to five habits. Start small. A short list you finish beats a long one you drop.
4. Put them in order. Place the easiest habit first so the routine starts with a win, and the most important habit early, before the day crowds it out.
5. Prepare the night before. Lay out clothes, set up the kitchen and write tomorrow’s top task, so the morning needs no decisions.
6. Start small and add slowly. Run the same short routine for a week or two before you add anything.
7. Track every day. Check each habit off. Seeing a run of completed days is a powerful reason to keep it going.

Step seven is where most routines succeed or fail, and it is exactly what the free app below is built for: you set the routine once, and it tracks your progress as you check items off.

What should be in a morning routine?

There is no single right list. Choose from four categories and keep the ones that fit your life:

If you have read Napoleon Hill, a popular “mind” habit is to read your written goal aloud each morning. Our Think and Grow Rich guide explains the principle behind it.

What are some morning routine examples?

Pick the row that fits your mornings today, not the one you wish you had. You can always move up a row after a few weeks.

What is the 20/20/20 rule for mornings?

The 20/20/20 rule comes from Robin Sharma’s book The 5 AM Club. It splits the first hour of the day into three twenty-minute blocks: move, reflect and grow. Move means exercise, reflect means journaling or quiet thinking, and grow means learning something new. It is a neat template if you want a structured hour, and each block can be shortened to fit a smaller routine.

What is the What’s Your Morning Routine app?

What’s Your Morning Routine is a free productivity app that lets you create and structure your routines so you consistently hit your daily goals. Its official page describes it as an app for people who want to get more done without distractions, from the Secrets of Success team.

You sign up free on the official site and set up your routine once, so you are never unsure what comes next. The app helps you stay consistent by tracking your progress and showing which days you completed your routine.

How does the What’s Your Morning Routine app work?

1. Set your routine. Add what you want to accomplish in the morning, day and night columns, and rearrange items with drag and drop.
2. Check it off. As you complete each item, check it off, and the app tracks your progress automatically.
3. Use the extras. The app also has to-do lists, and you can arrange tasks by high, medium and low priority.

Because the app has a night column as well as a morning one, it also fits an evening routine, which is the best way to prepare for the morning: set tomorrow’s top task at night, then start the day already knowing what comes first.

Is the morning routine app free?

Yes. The official page invites you to sign up for free. Registration takes a minute, and you can start building your routine right away. Details can change, so check the official page for the current offer.

How do you stick with a morning routine?

• Keep it small. A five-minute routine you do every day beats an hour you do twice.
• Never skip twice in a row. If you miss a day, do the shortest version the next morning.
• Make the first step easy. Put the water, the shoes or the notebook where you will see them.
• Track it. A visible streak is motivation, and checking items off is the habit’s reward.
• Review monthly. Remove what you do not use and add one new habit when the routine feels easy.

If you like the idea of a guided community around daily habits, Russell Brunson’s Secrets of Success has a daily newsletter and a membership: our Secrets of Success review shows what each includes.

Our verdict on building a morning routine

A morning routine works when it is small, ordered and tracked. Choose three to five habits, prepare the night before and check each day off. The free What’s Your Morning Routine app gives you a simple place to do all three, with morning, day and night columns and automatic progress tracking. Sign up, build your first five-minute routine tonight and start tomorrow.