10 Morning Habits of Successful People

By: Drew Sauveur

I’ve been reading a lot of self help articles and books regarding productivity and success. You’ve probably read them also, espousing things like standing on one foot for 2 minutes, to eating raw eggs first thing in the morning, to practising an hour of yoga before your day.

These are all great for someone, but many did not work for me. I’m a regular person. I sometimes don’t sleep right, I have a hectic and usually unpredictable schedule due to the fact that I run my own business and have sub-contractors working with me, and I’m human.

So I’ve put together some things that have worked for me, and I think they are a pretty easy list of things that have been helping me stay on track/focused towards my goals.

1. Make your bed – I know, WHAT? MAKE THE BED? WHAT ARE YOU MY MOM? Try it for a week. It’s weird, but it actually sub-consciously ends your sleep time, and starts your awake time.

2. Breakfast. – Eat it. Not just a muffin as you’re running to the car. A real, proper, nutritious breakfast. You’ll need the energy for your day. Be sure to drink some water at the same time, it primes your body and gets things running.

3. Input – I’ve started getting a hit of local news, either from tv news, or a newspaper while I ride a stationary bike for a half hour. It focuses my mind on the outside world, and just gets me ready to attack the day.

4. Get up. – I know, getting up early sucks. However, Most highly successful CEO’s tell us that they get up before 5 am. It’s not just because the Illuminati only meets before breakfast (kidding…… ), it’s because if you get yourself used to a specific schedule every day, you’re more healthy, more focused, and get more accomplished. Try it for a week, see what happens.

5. Family time. – Add some specific time with loved ones every day. This can be a cat, dog, child, spouse, whatever, turn off your problems and focus on cuddles. It will ground you, and remind why you work so hard.

6. Gratitude. – I have been doing this for a bit with a new daytimer that is really working for me. Every morning, write down 3 things you’re thankful for. It can be the sun that’s shining, the purring cat at your side, the birds chirping, whatever. It helps you start your day with Optimism. At the end of the day, take a look at what you wrote, it will probably make you smile.

7. Plan your Attack. – You don’t have to plan every second. However, if you lay out a general plan for what you want to accomplish for the day, you will achieve more than if you just wing it.

8. Personal Project. – Pick something that is a timewaster, and a fun hobby. Spend 20 minutes a day just immersing yourself in a fun hobby that takes your mind off of the daily grind.

9. Do the hardest things first. – Do you have a big meeting to prepare for? A speech or an estimate that has to get done? Get it out of the way first. If you leave it, your concern about doing it will taint your entire day. Get it out of the way, and log the win!

10. Smile. – I know, it’s a silly thing to put in writing, but smiling works. Smile at the person who hands you a coffee, smile at a coworker, smile at your spouse, neighbour, passerby (well, use proper judgement here, sometimes that can be creepy), but just smile. You’ll probably get a smile or 2 back, and, that will brighten your day!

I’d love to hear your feedback regarding your thoughts on this, shoot me a message at Drew@905business.com. Good luck!