Set Yourself Up For Success With This One Thing
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How does your day start?
Does your alarm go off and you proceed to hit snooze for the next 20 minutes? Do you roll out of bed and immediately launch into your day? Can you have an intelligent conversation before your morning coffee?
I want to encourage you to get intentional with how you start your day. Because the start of your day absolutely influences how you spend the rest of your day.
Did you know that your subconscious mind controls 99% of your brain function? Isn’t that wild?!?!? One thing to know about your subsconscious mind is that one of its objectives is to conserve your brain power.
How does it do this? By forming habits.
This is great when the habits you’ve formed are life-affirming and positive. But what happens when they’re not? Is there anything you can do?
Absolutely. You can set yourself up for success by creating a morning routine.
A morning routine supports you and empowers you by helping you to create new habits. Here are some ideas that you could include in your routine:
1. Take a few moments to say thank you and bless your day.
Instead of immediately jumping on your phone or launching into your endless to-do list, take a moment to give thanks for your life, your business, your loved ones and yourself. Bless the day before you and take time to think about the things going right in your life. What you focus on expands, so spend the first moments of your day by focusing on gratitude and blessings. You can even take a moment to write in a journal. I’m a huge fan of Julia Cameron’s Morning Pages, which she talks about in her book, The Artist’s Way.
2. Get moving.
Your body was designed to move and movement helps you convert anxiety, worry and stress into positive energy that fuels your body. Even if it’s just taking a 20 minute walk around your neighborhood or doing yoga on YouTube, take some time to move. Join your best friend at Crossfit or hit up Crunch Fitness on Valley Mills. When it comes to movement, you’re only limited by your desire to be creative.
3. Get still.
After you’ve worked out all your energy, get still. Even if it’s just for five minutes. Set your time and close your eyes. Get fascinated with your breath and notice (without judgment) how it moves through your body. Anytime your mind wanders, bring your focus back to your breath. By doing this, you train your brain to focus and not chase any thought that enters your mind down a rabbit hole. It’s this focus that is going to help you be successful during your day because you’ll know how to focus on things that matter.
4. Take a look at your planner.
Every single day, review your planner. Take note of any tasks, meetings and appointments you have. Carve out your schedule and don’t forget to include ME time (time to nourish yourself and do something fun, even if it’s just for 5 minutes). Your success comes in part with how you’re spending your time, so you’ve got to get intentional with who you spend it with and what you’re doing. When you review your planner, figure out what tasks are actually going to move you ahead towards on your roadmap and what tasks are busy work (and actually distracting you from what truly matters). You can even check out how I plan my day for more ideas.