66 Days to form Habits for Excellence
Why change your morning routine? It’s worked so far, hasn’t it?
Do you find, like I did in the past and many others have, that you wake up chasing the day and being reactive? What I mean by being reactive is that you are at the mercy of other people and events; checking text messages, emails and whatever bad news is on social media as soon as you get up, or even in bed! Then, like me and others, you can choose to claim your day back.
If you win the morning, you can win the day.
So how can you do this?
Very simply. Change a habit at a time and add to those successful habits until you have a morning routine that enables you to be proactive. Being proactive means that when you get involved with the wider world, you are facing it on your terms, and in a state you have chosen to be in.
So here are some ideas for you to try and see what works for you.
Sleep:
Go to sleep at the same time and wake up at the same time every day! Having a set schedule not only improves the quality of sleep but also the quality of awareness when you are awake– allowing you to be productive and resilient, focused and happier. The National sleep foundation recommends the following:
School age: 6-13 years 9 to 11 hours of sleep
Teenager: 14-17 years 8 to 10 hours of sleep
Young adult: 18-25 years 7 to 9 hours of sleep
Make your bed:
Start the day with success and end the day with success. It’s a requirement in the military to start the day with a winning habit and so no matter what happens during the day you come back to a clean environment and a welcoming bed.
Hydrate:
The Brain is 80% water and when we sleep we dehydrate. This lack of hydration to the brain impairs the short term memory and also the accessing of long term memory so the best way to “drive” our brain is to “fuel" it. It’s a quick win and easy to do.
Oxygen:
Breathe deeply through your nose and into your belly because your brain is 2% body weight but consumes 20% of your oxygen and nutrient intake; it also uses about three times the oxygen as your muscles. So get that free hit of oxygen into your blood circulation and feed the brain!
Gratitude:
Journal what you are grateful for and live in a state of positivity as we learn faster when we are happy. Writing down what makes you happy provides a resource to fall back on and is an active learning process which helps to imbed those wonderful memories.
Exercise:
Exercising produces feel-good brain chemicals that help to reduce stress. What is the most natural exercise we are designed to do? Stand and walk. A Stanford study found walking helps to improve creativity and helps break out of tunnel vision. So why not add in a 20 minute walk to school or university?
If you’d like to learn more then visit your free habit Calendar and Hypnotherapy/guided imagery for personal mastery.