This guest post is by Amy of Brainy Owls. Amy likes to write about self-improvement and productivity. Check out the free email course, The Strategies of Enormously Successful People. These science-backed lessons with highly actionable worksheets will help you unfold the path to success.
Let me start by saying this:
How you begin your mornings can either make or break your day.
For years, getting out of bed every morning was a big struggle for me. Every morning was chaotic and stressed. I had to really force myself those times to have a quick shower and rush to work.
Does this sound familiar?
We all know healthy mornings leave a positive effect on your day. Eventually, I decided to create a healthy morning ritual, no matter what time I woke up. (even if that meant I would be late to work!)
I was determined to find a ritual which didn’t stress me out, yet at the same time empower me throughout the day.
We all need something to get out of bed for. That’s why consciously forming positive habits that will transform and empower your life significantly.
Here’s What Changed My Mornings (& Impacted My Entire Day)
There are 2 steps to incredibly productive mornings:
- Create a suitable morning routine.
- Practice it consistently
I was lucky to stumble upon Hal Elrod’s Morning Miracle book. Following his framework, I found myself more efficient and productive.
Elrod focuses on practicing the 6 Life ‘SAVERS’ first thing each morning. According to him, “These six steps develops one or more of the physical, intellectual, emotional, and spiritual aspects of your life so that you can become who you need to be to create the life you want.”
Here’s what “SAVERS” is all about and how you can incorporate these principles in your routine to rock your mornings:
Step 1: S for ‘Silence’
Silence is an effective stress-reliever. It increases self-awareness and helps sharpen the focus on your goals and priorities. It reminds you of what is truly significant in your life.
Practicing silence first thing in the morning can be an outstanding kick-starter for your day. Some of the ways to integrate Silence in your routine can be:
- Meditation
- Practicing gratitude
- Praying
- Introspection
- Contemplation
There’s no single right way to spend time in Silence. You can choose what suits you the best.
Time it takes: About 5 minutes
Step 2: A for Affirmation
Telling yourself a simple phrase can help make your day wonderful and even shift your mindset. Affirmation directs your energy towards your goals in life. Positive affirmations are a simple yet powerful tool to bolster your mindset.
Some good examples of affirmations that you can reiterate daily are:
- I am responsible for creating the life I want.
- I will be calm and composed, always greeting the day with ease.
- I am grateful for what I have today.
- I choose to be exuberant and productive today.
- I will joyously live in the present moment.
You can even categorize your own affirmations specific to health, financial abundance, purpose, family, and growth.
Reading these over and over will help you in gaining clarity on what you want to achieve and how to proceed about it.
Time it takes: 2-3 minutes
Step 3: V for Visualization
Visualization employs your creative energies to etch a vision of success in your mind. It assists a great deal in making your dreams and aspirations come true to life.
Visualization improves upon your motivation, coordination and concentration abilities. It also reduces fear and anxiety.
However, this will only be fruitful if you focus on visualizing the journey more than the end result.
For instance, instead of visualizing yourself as 10 pounds thinner, visualize yourself exercising harder each day. Think about yourself resisting the temptation to eat junk food. This will pace up your attempts in achieving the ultimate goal.
Time it takes: 2 minutes
Step 4: E for Exercise
We all know how important exercise is to overall health. The challenge is that it is quite a task to start working out daily if it is not already a habit. Take it slow. Start with exercising just one minute a day, doing push-ups or jumping jacks. Gradually build your stamina and keep increasing the duration.
Don’t have 20 minutes to exercise? Well, research says that a mere 7 minutes of exercise daily is good enough.
Time it takes: 5 to 7 minutes for a beginner.
Step 5: R for Reading
Reading keeps you well-informed and allows you to learn something new each day. Browsing through a few pages of a good self-help book every day can work here. Try to take away new ideas from what you read. Incorporate these into your work and relationships and see the positive change.
Time it takes: 5 minutes.
Step 6: S is for Scribing (Writing/journaling)
This step encourages you to maintain a journal. You can choose to write about a topic that excites you or motivates you to do better. Many self-help gurus and coaches swear by journaling.
All you need to do is to take out a few minutes and just start scribing.
Here are some wonderful topics you can write about in your journal:
- 5 things you’re grateful for
- Three most important tasks of the day you want to accomplish.
- One Thing that you can do to get nearer to your goals today.
- Your plans for the day, etc.
Time it takes: 4 minutes
Make Your Morning Ritual Cater To Your Needs:
The most important step of the entire ritual is to personalize it and change it to fit your needs, not just follow it blindly. For instance, I increased the time spent reading & meditation. These activities help me relax more.
You can change the order or do each one for a shorter or longer period of time—whatever suits you best.
So far, I have seen amazing benefits with this framework and my days have been energetic. This framework has given a structure to my mornings. On to you now.
Special Bonus to Productivityist Readers:
With that said, I’ve put together a few resources to help you win your day.
Bonus 1: 30-day and 90-day challenge PDF worksheets that you can print and track your routines to follow them consistently.
Bonus 2: A free email course on Strategies of Enormously Successful People. Backed by scientific research and packed with action steps, these lessons will take your life to next level.
You can access your bonuses by clicking here.
