7 Ways to Simplify Your Morning Routine ...

The best way to simplify your morning routine is to prepare as much as possible the night before. Obviously you can't shower the night before, but get packed lunches ready and pack your bag and your kids' school bags. Making sure they've got everything they need will avoid a mad search for something important in the morning.

Mornings are not the best time to do an elaborate makeup. Save that for when you're going out in the evening. Work out a simple makeup routine that you can create in five minutes; this will allow you to look smart without spending a lot of time. You don't need lots of makeup for work anyway.

It's tempting to check your phone and watch TV while you're getting ready for work, but these are real time-wasters in the morning. Stick to only things that you need to do and you'll free up quite a lot of time. This will also allow you time to deal with any minor emergencies that crop up.

Every parent has experienced their children crying, 'I can't find my shoes/books/homework!' The old saying 'A place for everything, and everything in its place' is very helpful for a simpler morning routine. Designate a place where you and your kids keep things such as shoes, coats and school books, and then have them ready to go.

As well as preparing lunches the day before, make sure that lunchboxes are clean, so that you don't have to wash and dry them in the morning. Also try to be organised and ensure that your fridge and cupboards have everything you'll want for breakfast. You don't want to realise at 8am that you've run out of bread or milk, and have to dash to the store.

Paradoxically, the more time you have, the less time you may need. If you're short of time it's very likely that you'll start to panic and mess things up. If you have more time, you'll be relaxed and able to deal with any last-minute hitches that pop up.

Choose your clothes the night before; this goes for your children as much as yourself. If they like to pick out their own outfit, get them to choose it before they go to bed. This will avoid a tantrum in the morning as they can't find what they want to wear, and you getting frazzled because you're running out of time.

Mornings are never fun, especially if you're not a morning person. But being organised and paring your routine down will help make your mornings less stressful and cut down the risk of you being late for work. Do you have any handy ways of saving time in the morning, or are you always hopelessly disorganised?