As the month of August begins,its good you start up with some awesome daily habits that will save your day!!!
Habit #1: The Morning Routine. (1-1.5 hours)
1. DRINK WATER (1 MINUTE)
This is the most important thing you can do in the morning. Drinking
water, preferably 12 ounces or more, helps you purge toxins from your body and
balances the lymph system. In essence, it makes you feel great. Your body has
been fasting for the last several hours and hydrating yourself is the best
thing you can do to start the day.
2. EXERCISE (30-45 MINUTES)
Grab a small snack [ fruit, granola bar] and exercise for a minimum of
30 minutes. Whether it’s a light jog around your neighborhood or lifting
weights, it doesn’t matter. This will instantly jump start your metabolism and
release endorphins to make you feel happier, confident, and optimistic. The
mornings that I exercise undoubtedly lead to the days when I am most alert and
focused. Very rarely will you ever need caffeine after this.
3. SHOWER AND GET READY (ESTIMATION: GUYS: <5 MINUTES, GIRLS: 20+
MINUTES)
Only one piece of advice here: Rock out to your favorite music. Music is
one of the most natural and effective tools to improve your mood and get you
ready for the next step. If you’re a 90′s kid, the Pandora 90′s hit music is a
favorite of mine.
4. GO THROUGH DAILY AFFIRMATIONS (5-10 MINUTES)
Let’s face it: we all have that little voice in our head that is either
saying either “you can” or “you can’t”. Daily affirmations is, in my opinion,
one of the most powerful ways to train that little voice and it requires very
little time. Daily repetition of this habit can profoundly impact the person
you become.
All it involves is repeating [and envisioning] ten ideal views of who
you are (or would like to become). Write it in the structure of “ I am the
[guy/girl] that _____________.” For example, one of my affirmations is “I am
the guy who sees strangers as new friends waiting to be made.” I know it sounds
a bit cheesy. But trust me, repeating this to myself every day for months has
transformed the way I see strangers and approach new friendships. It also hits
on one of my core values: meeting new people. Over time, you’ll see that you
become the person that these affirmations point to be. And it’s magical. You
can craft your dream self.
Here is a great place to start: If you could paint 10 ideal things about
yourself what would they be? Daily affirmation will make your subconscious mind
(the little voice) be on your side.
In the words of Mr. Henry Ford, “Whether you think you can, or you think
you can’t, you’re right.”
5. GO THROUGH YOUR DAILY AGENDA AND VISUALIZATIONS (5-10 MINUTES)
So you’ve got the mindset of a champion. Now what? It’s time to figure
out what I liked to get called the “Get shit done” list. List out the 3-5 most
important things you have to get done that day. These are the items that you
have to finish before going to sleep that night. Now visualize yourself
completing them. Play it out in your mind exactly how it will go. It is
astounding to see how much easier even mundane things are to complete when your
mind has already envisioned it. If you are nervous about an upcoming midterm or
presentation, having your mind visualize the event will you a sense of
confidence. This is one of the most important steps to productivity.
6. EAT A HEALTHY BREAKFAST (20 MINUTES)
So you’re feeling like a champion. You know exactly what you need to get
done. Now is not the time to stuff yourself with a high carb and fatty
breakfast. To put it more bluntly, you might as well skip steps 1-5 of the
morning routine if you don’t plan on eating healthy. Focus on high protein,
fruits, and whole grains. As my good friend Jack always says “feed the body,
not the mouth.” On your first day eat the healthiest breakfast possible–you’ll
be astounded at how great you feel.
This morning routine should take around 1.5 hours and should leave you
feeling better than waking up in a new Bugatti
Goal: Leave your door in the morning physically, mentally, and
emotionally prepared to dominate the day.
Habit #2: The Midday Check-in (<1 minute)
Your morning rocked. You were productive, focused, and felt awesome.
Then 2 p.m. rolls around and suddenly you’re not feeling so hot. Now what? This
is where the midday check in comes in.
Set your alarm at some point in the afternoon. When time comes, stop
what you’re doing and meditate on your personal life mantra for a minute.
For me, my alarm rings at 1:11pm. Everyday. When this happens, I stop
what I’m doing (most times I’m in class and it’s kind of funny) and I close my
eyes. I meditate on my personal mantra which is “My inner world creates my
outer world.” To me, this means that my reality is created in my mind. I remind
myself that I am feeling the way I am because I chose to feel that way. While
the external circumstances of my day I sometimes may not control, I do chose
how to react to it. I control my mind, not the other way around.
This only takes one minute but you’ll be surprised at how rejuvenated
you become.
Goal: In the afternoon keep your focus in check. Remember: mindset
shapes reality.
Habit #3: Night Routine (<5 minute)
At night, it’s important that you reflect on how your day went and be
grateful for the things that you did well. The night routine has two
components:
Reflecting on your day. Take out a notebook and write out 2-3 aspects of
your day that you can improve for the next day. It doesn’t have to be
extensive–it’s just to make you conscious of what you can do better (
psychologist call this course correction). Then, write out one sentence of how
you’ll fix that the next time it happens. For example, this was one of them
from a couple of nights ago:
Reflection: In Finance class today I looked at plane tickets for the
World Cup and didn’t pay attention to the lecture.
Improvement: Be mindful–focus on just the lecture and look at plane
tickets after class.
Daily gratitude: Research shows that being grateful is one of most vital
traits of being happy. Take a couple of minutes to reflect what you’re grateful
for that happened that day. The importance of the gratitude isn’t relevant
here–only that you’re grateful.
Goal: Continue to craft that person you wish to become by being
conscious of your actions throughout the day. Conversely, be grateful for the
small things made you happy that day.
Awesome bro
ReplyDelete