Morning Work Routine for Introverts: Energy Boost

As an introverted HR Business Partner in my day job, I lead a busy, people-focused work life. There's never a dull moment, and a lot circles around people, social interaction, meetings, alignment with stakeholders and let's face it... office politics.

There are days when I get home with a humming noise and a numb feeling in my head. It is a clear sign: I've been drained with all the social interactions: listening and understanding everyone, reacting fast and forced to act while I would have been more comfortable to take some time to think it through before deciding.

Having a few of these days in a month can be tolerable and easy to recharge from. After such a busy day, I would usually take a big cup of tea, put on chill music and read a book at home. However, as it gets regular to have such active days, I've been deliberately coming up with strategies to balance my energy level throughout the day. It is important to get moments of recharging so that I don't end up with the humming noise and exhausted feeling at the end of the workday.

My Morning Work Routine for Introverts: the Energy Boost

I'm an early bird, so I came up with a morning ritual that helps me achieve just that: energize myself by having some quiet time. Thankfully, the rest of my team prefers to arrive a bit later, which allows me to be the first one in the office and have half an hour to an hour time, all by myself. This is much appreciated time. I get to sip my morning coffee or tea in peace and quiet, get to read through my emails, look through my agenda for the day, get some things already done and plan the rest of the day ahead of me. As I progress with my day, my job is becoming more active and social, therefore having this alone time can really boost my energy level for the rest of the day and keep me centered and balanced.

Having some rituals at work are key to care for our introverted needs at a loud workplace. A morning routine can be a way to achieve this and it works very well for me. It may work for you to do something similar or to adapt this short me-time at work fitting your schedule and preferences. In the end what matters is finding a bit of quiet time to get back into our minds and create some space for ourselves.