The Power of Mornings

Alarm sounds, hit snooze. Three times.

Barely awake, reach for phone, check email, scroll social media.

Get out of bed.

Breakfast/coffee while scrolling news, reply to emails, check social media again.

Get ready, commute while listening to a podcast.

 

Is this you?

High-performance coach and best-selling author, Brendon Burchard, has said he can tell a lot about someone by knowing how they spend the first hour of their day. 

There is SO much data on this and high-performing, successful people consistently say that checking email during your first hour sets you in reactive mode for the rest of the day, allowing something/someone else to determine your priorities. 

Um, no thanks.

I don’t know about you, but I want to be more strategic than that. 

I also know that it can be hard to set your own priorities, especially when life is operating at the record speed it’s going right now.  

Still. This is totally doable…and much more rewarding.

Consider this observation by the founders of My Morning Routine, Benjamin Stall and Michael Xander. They have studied that getting up and doing the things you want to do FIRST, like exercise or devotion or meditation, will create “WINS” for you that you can carry through the day. 

Yes, please!

This is all about agency.

If you want to be more productive, intentional, and focused, a morning routine designed by YOU can be a game-changer. Small habits, not an overhaul. 

Stall and Xander give us some tips on creating success with this:

• Try everything once – not really, but everything you want to try, give it a fair shot.
• Make it simple. The idea is to find a combination of things that help you launch into the day ready, but don’t overdo it with an extensive hours-long practice that will wear you out. 
• Get in bed earlier, people! That last episode on Netflix doesn’t really serve you.

As a team, we have studied this in our own morning routines. With new habits comes results. 

It’s the same with leadership. 

So, how do we do this?

This is a small daily practice that can be a major catalyst for change and growth in other areas. 

Check out some of the morning intentions of our own team that help us launch the day and create momentum. 

• 6am wake up, no snooze! 
• Phone stays on DND for 1 hour after wakeup time.
• Quiet time with prayer/meditation to set the tone for the day.
• 3-minute stretching.
• Workout (as simple or complex as needed to get it done).
• Family time before everyone leaves, minimize electronic devices as much as possible.
• Intention setting to include think time, goals for the day, and reading/learning to inspire new ideas.

(THEN open that crazy phone to see what everyone else thinks is important.)

I can hear the “buts” in stereo right now.

AND you can’t argue with the experts. There are years of articles, quotes, and books on this practice. 

Search it yourself if you don’t believe it. And hey high-performers, try it for one week? And then you can go back to reaction mode where other people are the boss of you.

What works in your morning routine? We want to hear from you!