Julie Rath: Do You Wish You Got More Sleep?

Sounds good, right? With some foresight and planning, you can save valuable time in the morning so you can have that extra 10 minutes in bed. Read on for 13 tips on getting out the door quickly, efficiently, and of course stylishly.

1) Lay your clothes out the night before. We learned this back in grade school, but at some point along the way we stopped doing it. If you have the space, get a wardrobe valet to keep things neat and visible as you make your selections. It also helps to check the weather so you can decide on what shoes and outerwear you’ll need.

2) Maintain an organized closet so that you can find everything you need the moment you need it. For my tips on how purge your closet, click here.

3) Once you’ve cleared out the things you don’t need, keep your clothing organized by type (suits with suits, blazers with blazers, shirts with shirts, etc.), then by color within each type. Again, it’s all about easy access.

4) If you don’t have heavy beard growth, shave the night before. This also reduces irritation.

5) Put your keys on top of anything you need to bring with you, like the Netflix envelope you’ve been meaning to mail for the past few days.

6) Keep all the things you know you’ll need right before you walk out the door in one handy place, for example in a basket in your closet, or in a hallway drawer. This might include a lint-brush, hair product, glasses, sunglasses, change for coffee/the paper, mobile device, wallet, office security badge, transit pass.

7) If you find yourself always hitting the snooze button and running behind as a result, put your clock across the room from your bed so you have to get up to turn it off. If you’re notorious for bagging your morning workout, put your sneakers on top of your alarm clock for extra motivation – again, on the other side of the room from your bed.

8) Create an upbeat playlist to keep time as you get ready – the first song for your shower, the second for getting dressed, the third for breakfast, and the fourth for finishing touches and walking out the door.

9) Set up your coffee machine or the blender with your smoothie ingredients the night before.

10) When you get home at the end of the day, put everything back where it belongs (that way you aren’t going crazy looking for your tan belt the next day).

And here are three terrific bonus tips from my friend and client Tony Martignetti:

11) Have 2 or 3 combinations that you know with certainty are perfect for different occasions: casual, biz casual and Wall Street. You can go to these quickly when there isn’t time to be creative and thoughtful. [Rath & Co. note: your stylist can create a pictorial wardrobe layout or a spreadsheet listing these combinations for easy reference.]

12) Get your shirts washed and pressed before you need them. Always have plenty of clean shirts to choose from.

13) Know which shoes go with which belts. As you’re putting on the belt, you envision the shoes.

Thanks to Tony for his additions. (For more of Tony and a few laughs, check out these video style tutorials Tony and I shot: on mixing high and low in menswear here, and on how the perfect leather jacket should fit here.)

How do you save time in the morning? Feel free to share your tips below.