Commuting and mornings. One of the worst combinations to have ever been created. Alas, travelling to work each day is unavoidable for most people, unless you’re lucky enough to work from home and need only commute across the hall from the bedroom to the study. What a joy that must be! Still, it takes a lot of motivation just to get out from under the cosy duvet each morning, especially when you look outside and see…. rain. We are rarely awoken in Scotland by the gloriously warm face of the elusive fiery star that is rumoured to exist pretty much everywhere else.

If you’re looking for a way to make your early rise a little more bearable and improve your morning commute to work, there are a number of simple things you can do. It mainly centres around routine. The more we do something, the less we have to think about it, thus our actions are not as stress-inducing. There’s no guarantee that you’ll arrive at the office as chipper as Julie Andrews, but you’re likely to feel less frazzled whilst getting ready and travelling to work. As a result, you hopefully won’t be as stressed throughout the day.

Get up earlier, at a set time

This may sound drastic and downright offensive to even suggest, but it works. One of the worst things we can do in the morning is leave ourselves with as little time as possible to wake up and get ready. By doing so, you’re guaranteed to end up rushing about and getting stressed on your way to work. Give yourself time to relax into the day by setting your alarm that little bit earlier and at the same time each morning.

After a while, you’ll start to wake up just before your alarm and it won’t be such an effort to get out of bed. You’ll have time to just ‘be’ and then enjoy a more leisurely commute. Try to get out of bed and into the shower as soon as your alarm goes off, rather than hitting the snooze button 15 times, falling back asleep, and then re-enacting the opening scene from Four Weddings and a Funeral when you realise the time.

Set out your clothes the evening before

One of the most infuriating things to experience in the morning is being unable to find anything to wear. There are so many ways in which this can transpire—your required outfit is in the laundry basket; your shirt needs ironed; you discover a ladder in your one remaining pair of tights; there’s a stain on the top you want to wear; or you simply have no idea where the heck any of your work clothes are. So many things can go wrong. To avoid a traumatic event such as outfit failure, check the weather for the next day, choose something appropriate, and lay everything out before you go to bed. That way, if you encounter any unexpected problems, you have time to rectify the situation, so you won’t have to rush about in a panic in the morning and experience a horribly stressful commute.

Take or buy a coffee

This only works if you like coffee. If you don’t, it really won’t improve your morning commute. But there is always tea or hot chocolate? Either way, preparing a cup of ‘something’ to take in the car or train, or buying a tasty takeaway drink on your way to the office, will likely perk you up and it’s a good way to get some fluids into your system.  Again, this type of habitual practice will put you at ease in the morning—familiarity is comforting and relaxing.

Switch up the journey

Whilst routine is good, sometimes it’s beneficial to mix certain things up. If you usually drive to work, consider taking the train or bus instead. This will allow you to zone out because you won’t have to concentrate on the roads or gesticulate wildly at all of the terrible drivers out there. It may seem more convenient to just take the car, but it’s often more stressful. Take your coffee, listen to some music or a podcast, prepare your to-do list for the day, start knitting, practice mindfulness, read a book, subtly look at other travellers and try to figure out what they do… It’s simply an opportunity for some ‘you time’ before a busy day at work.

If you have to take the car, perhaps go a different route to enjoy a change of scenery. This type of change can be refreshing and may to reduce the monotony of the morning commute. If you’re feeling particularly daring (and it’s feasible), you could cycle to work. The fresh air and exercise will wake up the brain, get the endorphins flowing, and put you in a good mood for a productive day. It’s also an excuse to scoff more biscuits when it’s time for your elevenses.

As one of the West of Scotland’s longest-standing estate agents, we have had lots of experience managing the ups and downs of the housing market in recent times, so you can be confident you’ll be in safe hands when working with us. With an expert team by your side and a variety of properties on offer, including both property to let and homes for sale, Caledonia Bureau are confident that we can match you with the right home. Give our friendly team a call today, choosing from our offices in Clydebank, Helensburgh, Dumbarton and Paisley.