It’s early morning and you’re trying your best to get yourself ready, out the door and to work on time.  Somehow it seems like no matter what you do, you just can’t get everything done before you have to leave.  You find yourself feeling dishevelled because of how chaotic your morning is all the time.  Almost every day you realize that you’ve forgotten something at home and it’s almost always important.  Some days you even find yourself late because you spend so much time prepping in the morning. Maybe now’s the time to realize what you’re doing just isn’t working.  Admit it. Day in day out, you’re not getting off to a good start which affects the rest of your day. Look no further. Here are a few handy tips to help you jet out the door with some serenity and on time every morning.

The name of the game is planning ahead.

When you do that everything falls into place so easily you’ll never feel flustered or stressed while trying to make your morning coffee.  One of the biggest time wasters is trying to find an outfit to wear.  Did you know that Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg wears the same style grey t-shirt every day?  He says that he doesn’t want to waste time on making that type of decision everyday.  For that reason he chooses to have the same style t-shirt he wears all the time.  Apple’s founder Steve Jobs used to do the same.  He had the exact same black mock turtleck he wore almost every day (of course they both had several multiples of the same shirt).  Certainly this saved these men a great deal of decision making, but as a person who loves fashion, I also understand the desire to have some variety in your wardrobe.  In that case, plan ahead.  Pick the items you plan on wearing the next day the night before.  Lay them out, iron everything if needed and hang it up somewhere you can just grab and go after you shower.  To make it easier, if you have the space, get yourself one of these organizers from IKEA or any other retailer like Target or Wal-Mart and use it to hold the clothes you plan on wearing the next day.  When I say pick everything I mean every item including shoes, socks, accessories and your bag.

Pack your bag or purse the night before.

Many women love to change their purse based on what they choose to wear.  You’ve all had that experience of realizing you forgot something important because you left it in your other purse.  Make the switch for everything you know you’re going to need the night before.  Since you’ll be planning your outfit, the purse or bag you choose should be easily prepared beforehand also. If you go to the gym make sure you pack your bag and leave it at the front door. So you don’t forget it on your way out.

Prep your lunch.

For those who pack a lunch for work, it’s a good idea to package everything in your containers the night before too.  That way all you have to do is grab your containers from the fridge and put them in your lunch bag.  No need to waste precious moments in the morning when you’re in a rush.

To Do lists should be done before.

Just like everything else it’s a good idea to write your list of things you need to get done the night before.  Maybe have a calander or cork board where you post everything so you don’t forget.  For those who prefer to use their mobile devices add things to your task list and set reminders so you don’t forget.

I hope these short few tips can help you get yourself together and better organized each morning.