3 Free Apps You Need to Win the Morning
... and you can start tomorrow.
Today I want to talk about the three apps that I’m using to get out of bed and win the morning.
All three are entirely free to use, although you can pay for extra features (I don’t) and you can start tomorrow morning.
1. Alarmy
No brainer. This is the only alarm app you need. Set missions and the alarm doesn’t turn off until you complete them. Simple concept, big results.
Personally, I use the ‘Photo’ mission so every morning I have to take a picture of my bathroom sink for the alarm to turn off.
This achieves two things:
I have to get out of bed to turn the alarm off or risk a physical assault from the wife
I have to turn the bathroom light on to take the photo
All of a sudden within 60 seconds of the alarm going off I am up and in a bright bathroom, the hard part is done.
There are other missions like math challenges, scanning barcodes or doing squats to turn the alarm off.
If you struggle with waking up on time, download Alarmy and start tomorrow.
For a full write up of Alarmy check the first ever post on No More Snooze.
2. BlockSite
Clue is in the name, this app blocks your access to websites and apps that you choose.
You can choose to block your access to individual sites like Twitter or TikTok, or blanket ban categories like ‘Adult’, ‘Social’ and ‘News’.
You can choose to block access on specific days and certain times of the day. If you know you have trouble doing deep focussed work because you’re spending too much time on TikTok, block the site from 8 to 5 Monday to Friday.
BlockSite might seem an odd choice but our phones are an energy zap and time killer. I want to avoid using my phone early in the morning.
There’s really no use in waking up early to sit on TikTok for an hour, you might as well stay in bed asleep!
3. Chains.cc
Based on the Seinfeld productivity framework ‘Don’t Break the Chain’, Chains.cc allows you to create chains that grow as you tick off completed tasks. The idea is that you never break the chain.
“After a few days you'll have a chain. Just keep at it and the chain will grow longer every day. You'll like seeing that chain, especially when you get a few weeks under your belt. Your only job next is to not break the chain.” - Jerry Seinfeld
Now a popular framework for becoming more consistent and turning up everyday even when you don’t feel like it, Chains.cc is a great visual for those that don’t want to pin a yearly calendar on the wall.
You can create a chain called ‘Morning Routine’ and tick every day you follow your routine. I prefer to create a chain for the individual tasks that I want to do each morning.
Don’t Break the Chain is also the method used in the free No More Snooze morning routine builder.
There you have it, the three apps that I am using to rise earlier and win the morning.
Which apps are in your top 3?