Are you as fascinated with the morning routines of famous people as I am? Our obsession makes sense. After all, how we choose to spend our morning inevitably influences how the rest of our day unfolds.

As an author, I know that facing a blank page and getting started is the hardest part. Facing a new day can feel just as daunting. Still bleary-eyed from sleep, you already have some decisions to make…

Do you hit snooze several times and curse the sun for coming up too sun?

Or do you head straight for the espresso machine and sip your way into a more awake state?

If you’re like a lot of famous people that I’ve been reading about, you have a solid morning routine that probably includes one or more of the following:

• No alarm
• Gratitude
• Exercise
• Meditation

These were the common denominators in the morning routines of many successful CEOs, celebrities and artists.

Over the years, I’ve cycled through a variety of morning rituals including:

• Writing down and visualizing my goals
• Grounding meditations
• Julia Cameron’s “Morning Pages”
• Going straight to the gym
• Looking in the mirror and saying: “I love you so much…what can I do to make you happy today?”
• Doing yoga

I don’t think any one routine is superior. Simply having some kind of morning ritual is better than nothing. For introverts like me, having some solitude in the morning is key.

That said, if you’re looking for some inspiration, here are the morning routines of famous people.

9 Morning Routines of Famous People

Oprah Winfrey

The visionary talk show host and media proprietor starts her day with a burst of endorphins from cardio. She spends an hour on the treadmill or elliptical in her home gym.

Stephen King

Every morning by 8:30 the prolific author sits down to write. He has his tea, his music, and his papers all arranged in the same places. He also spends time reading and researching. This consistent routine frees his mind to focus on his craft.

Jeffrey Bezos

Love him or hate him, the Amazon founder has figured out how to start his days for success. He doesn’t take meetings until 10:00 am. Instead, he reads the newspaper and has breakfast with his kids.

Jennifer Aniston

The Morning Show star begins her mornings with her skincare routine, which I’m guessing has no less than 27 steps. Next it’s time for a healthy breakfast and meditation. Aniston likes to spend the early part of her day on creative activities, such as writing or reading scripts.

Satya Nadella

Want to know the first question the Microsoft CEO asks himself when he wakes up? “What are you thankful for”? Starting the day with gratitude gets Nadella in the right mindset for success. After that he hits the gym for 30 minutes of running.

Arianna Huffington

The co-founder of The Huffington Post has quite a zen morning routine. She gets up without an alarm, meditates and occasionally writes down her dreams. Once she’s done getting her Yoda on, she pours herself a cup of bulletproof coffee.

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson

With a name like “The Rock” you can pretty well assume that he starts his day with a workout. But before the actor and pro wrestler hits the gym, he makes time for gratitude, goal setting and visualizations.

Mark Zuckerberg

While other successful people try to avoid social media in the morning, the Meta CEO does the opposite. Before he even puts in his contact lenses he’s scrolling through—you guessed it—Facebook. Next, he puts on one of the 20 identical grey t-shirts in his closet. This allows him to avoid decision fatigue.

Julianne Hough

The Dancing With the Stars dancer and actress spends the first few minutes of her morning counting her blessings. She sits in bed thinking of five things she’s grateful for. After that she sets a selfless goal such as making 10 people smile that day.

I hope you found these morning routines inspiring! If you’re looking for more introvert inspiration, join our private Facebook Group.

Xo,

Michaela