I’m not a morning person. Given the opportunity, I enjoy sleeping to noon daily and taking my sweet time to get dress. I like long, hot showers and playing with hair in the mirror for 15 minutes or longer, as I ensure each hair is positioned just right. Be that as it may, we can’t always have it our way – life is not like a Burger King. Instead, we often have to make a series of compromises.

Early appointments are the way of the world. Waking up in the morning, after hitting the snooze button about three to five times, we typically rush to shower, dress and fight traffic to be on time. In the process of our morning routine, we often sacrifice our personal appearance by putting on a ball cap, hair scrunchy or go al natural.

We find ourselves in our cars, driving with one hand while shaving and applying makeup with the other free hand in between red lights and stop signs. Yet, our appearance and personal grooming is a direct reflection of us. Don’t we enjoy looking good? When we attend our 8 o’clock class in our pajama pants, flip-flops and cap, it speaks to our poor planning or laziness. Attending morning classes, unshaven, hair disheveled and our clothing wrinkled, sends a message to our peers, professors and employers.

Understandable, we are not all morning people. However, with a little planning and preparation, we can give the impression we are. No one needs to know we hate mornings. Our morning routine can be condensed to about 5 minutes; we need not spend hours before sunrise grooming, in order to look good.