Morning rituals and creative practice

I’ve become protective of my mornings. Not in a rigid, militaristic way, but in the way you protect something precious.

The First Hours

I wake early, before the emails and notifications and demands of the day begin. The house is quiet. The light is soft. It’s in these hours that I feel most connected to my work.

I make coffee. I sit with my journal. Sometimes I write, sometimes I sketch, sometimes I just think. This isn’t “work” - it’s the soil that work grows from.

Why Mornings?

There’s something about the morning mind. It’s more open, less defended. Ideas that seem impossible at 3pm feel achievable at 7am.

The creative work gets done in the morning. The rest of the day is for everything else - the admin, the emails, the practical tasks of running a creative practice.

The Ritual Matters

It’s not about being productive every second. The ritual itself - the coffee, the quiet, the routine - signals to my creative self that it’s safe to emerge.

Some mornings are explosive with ideas. Others are quiet and contemplative. Both are valuable.

Protection

I’ve learned to say no to breakfast meetings, early calls, morning commitments. People don’t always understand. That’s okay.

My creative practice depends on this protected time. Without it, I’m reactive rather than creative. I’m responding rather than initiating.

Your Own Ritual

Your creative ritual might look completely different. Maybe you’re a night person. Maybe you need music and chaos to create.

The question isn’t what time of day, but: when do you feel most creatively alive? And how can you protect that time?

For me, it’s the mornings. They’re where the day’s creative possibility lives.