What’s Amazon’s Jeff Bezos morning routine like? How does one of the richest people in the world spend his morning? How can we imitate his morning and daily routine to achieve success in business?
I’ve been fascinated with the morning routines and daily practices of successful people from a young age.
I’ve covered Tim Ferriss’s morning ritual, Jack Dorsey’s daily schedule, the morning habits of famous writers, and much more.
There are some similarities, of course. Such people tend to wake up early. Most of them, super early.
The CEO of Apple, Tim Cook, for instance, wakes up at the ungodly hour of 3.45 am. Richard Branson is up by 5 too.
Elon Musk works so much (he used to have 100-hour work weeks for 15 years) that he often sleeps under the desk.
CEOs, in general, are known for waking up that early and having a powerful morning routine.
What do they do? They fill their mornings (or just the first hour of the day) with things like working out, meditating, having a nutritious breakfast, journaling, answering email, making calls, or even directly getting to work.
That sounds motivating. And the more you read about these people’s morning rituals, the more likely you are to give such a daily routine a try.
I know I’ve tried it many times. And it was uplifting to be up early even though I wanted to be in bed, to be doing what some of the richest and most successful people on the planet were doing at that same time, and to allow this to boost my productivity and focus.
However, I have to admit there was always pressure involved. Meaning, I had to wake up but then I also had to start doing a particular thing. Eventually, it feels like an obligation if you don’t truly love it.
That’s why personalizing your morning routine is crucial. And so is not including too many activities in it.
But I want to bring to your attention what another successful person does at the beginning of the day as it’s the opposite of everything I’ve seen so far in the business world.
I’m talking about Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon and the richest person in the world. Here’s how the Jeff Bezos morning routine looks like”
What’s Jeff Bezos Morning Routine Like
Instead of waking up before dawn and getting to work, Jeff Bezos believes in getting as much sleep as your body needs. He likes to wake up naturally without an alarm.
He then starts the day slowly by reading the newspaper and having coffee.
After which he spends time with the family – his wife and 4 kids – at the table having breakfast.
Obviously, he’s not addicted to work and makes family a priority. He’s even not scheduling meetings for the morning just so he can be with the kids before they go to school.
The CEO of Amazon believes such beginnings of every day are what helps him do his best work.
After that, he’s ready to start with the meetings (which he’s not a big fan of, in general, as he only meets with Amazon investors for around 6 hours per year) and he begins with the one requiring the most brain power. That’s when the Jeff Bezos daily routine starts.
Why This Morning Ritual Works
Could the secret to career success and productivity be in having a slow morning and waking up when you feel like, then doing mindless tasks and spending time with family?
Let’s see what science says about it.
For a start, waking up at 5 isn’t for everyone. According to multiple pieces of research, a 5 am morning routine might be killing your productivity and even reducing your happiness.
Also, waking up that early often means not getting your 8 hours of sleep. And that’s key for allowing your body and mind to recharge. Jeff is a big believer in getting a good sleep so he makes sure he’s in bed for 8 hours straight every night.
Another great thing about the Jeff Bezos morning routine is that he’s not hitting the snooze button.
According to sleep experts, that’s harmful for 2 reasons.
“First, “you’re fragmenting what little extra sleep you’re getting, so it’s not the best quality.” Basically, the extra 10 or 20 minutes become meaningless. And second, “you’re starting yourself on a new sleep cycle that you won’t have time to complete.” This “messes with your brain hormones” and disrupts your circadian rhythm, the body clock that regulates your awake and sleep time.”
In addition, with a slow morning routine involving things you truly enjoy, you can get energetic, be in a good mood, and feel grateful.
As you saw, Jeff Bezos also doesn’t include decision-making tasks in his morning or get straight to checking email. Everything can wait 60 minutes.
Until then, you are free to be at home and do what you feel like. And spending quality time with family is one of the best ways to start the day without the chaos of the business world, but with love and appreciation instead.
What Not to Do in The Morning to Be More Like Jeff Bezos
Jeff Bezos morning routine is not just about the things he’s doing, but about what he’s not doing (that many other CEOs do and which often leads to burnout).
That includes:
- Sleeping less than 8 hours;
- Waking up at 5 am;
- Hitting snooze;
- Doing work-related activities first thing in the morning;
- Being in a rush;
- Filling your morning with success habits that require too much willpower.
Obviously, to be able to start your day this way you must probably have to be your own boss. While some employees (that I know, too) are flexible enough to be able to do what they like till 10 am or even noon, this isn’t usually the case.
That’s why this is yet another great reason to start a business on the side and turn it into something big.
Check out this list of side hustle ideas you can start while working full-time.
Enjoyed this article about the morning routine of Jeff Bezos? Pin it to spread the love.