How I motivate myself to be productive every day

Should I get up now? Wait, it’s still dark outside, I can still have like, seven minutes, right? Should I go to work today, though? What if I just call in sick? After all, I feel very sick and exhausted right now… and it’s for tomorrow.
Oh yes, these malicious thoughts cloud my mind, if not all the time, then most of the time when I wake up and think about going to work. I believe most of us have gone through this most daunting decision every working person has to make. The decision that could make or break your career, depending on the circumstances. When I was working in the call center industry, this was something I always ask myself in front of the mirror as I brush my hair and put on my eyeliner.
Should I go to work today?
Surprisingly, the answer is always yes.
should we go to work today
Should we go to work today?

Starting your day right

I’m not really sure what it means to “start your day right”. Is it watching gruesome news while having your morning coffee? Or smiling the moment you open your eyes, when you still feel disoriented and can’t really smile because the sun shines through your window and straight to your face and it damn hurts your eyes? My morning routing is as boring af, compared to those YouTubers who have cameras in their faces ready to record the moment they wake up and pick some lemon from their backyard’s lemon tree every morning. I don’t do serious meditation. I actually don’t have plans, and this is why I ditched my Starbucks planner that required me to buy 18 cups of 120-peso coffee each and replaced it with a dotted notebook which I bought for just a hundred bucks (obviously regrettable). I don’t even write down the things I’m supposed to do for the day. I just know that things need to be done and I’ll just write them down as I remember them one by one. Then I’ll pray to God, thanking Him for the day, and asking Him for forgiveness for all the people roasting I’ll be doing the entire day.
No, I don’t have plans for the day. I’ll just have coffee and take it from there.

start your day right with good coffee
That’s the Starbucks planner I ditched, baby.

Never underestimate the power of a mean breakfast

I’m grumpy when I’m hungry—and you can take this as a freaking hint during the days when I’m not at my nicest. My coffee-only mornings are restless and uneasy, and I’ll find myself scavenging for anything to eat from somebody else’s desk, which is normally sugary bars and sweeter biscuits. It’s unusually fun, but when your colleagues are too generous they’re allowing you to eat their food then you don’t want to continue doing so for the fear of evolving into a human parasite. Plus, I feel so hungry the entire day. This is why I cannot emphasize more the importance of breakfast. Look, it’s not called the most important meal of the day for nothing. A good breakfast meal can make or break your day. Grab that warm pan de sal and spread butter in it—goes well with black coffee. Or fry some eggs, and it doesn’t matter if it’s plain scrambled or you want tuyo on the side. Serve with fried rice. Again, goes well with black coffee. Or tinapa (smoked fish). It doesn’t matter what you feel like eating in the morning. What matters it is, you eat.
golden tinapa with rice and egg from pancake house
This is from The Pancake House, during one of the days I skipped breakfast and had this for lunch.

Doll up and make yourself look and feel beautiful

Shower takes a big chunk of my morning routine. I like taking the time to wash away all the dirt and grime and every impurity I accumulated during the night, plus the residue of the previous day that nighttime wash wasn’t able to fully handle. No, I don’t own a hair dryer—I’ll just let my hair dry on its own and that’s probably why it resembles a floor mop. Then I’ll try to put on some good clothes. Something that’ll make me feel good about myself when I happen to pass by the glass wall of Gucci in Shangri La. Shoes with heels that won’t kill me. Plus makeup. I feel panicky whenever I don’t put eyeliner on and I don’t have one in my bag. Some blush and highlighter for that envious glow. Red lips to complete the look, because sadly we’re living in a world where respect is earned based on what you’re wearing, the colors on your face, and the way you speak good English. In reality though, this is the look of an office babe who doesn’t have plans but has coffee in her hands to fuel her desire to deliver her work a little bit beyond expectations because she has bills to pay and passion projects to fulfill.
Dress up and slay the day like a queen!
What is your morning routine?   

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