Today let’s embrace our power of developing a routine. Establishing a positive daily routine is both self-investment and a way to do your best for the rest of the world. It also provides additional benefits, such as giving you structure, building forward-moving habits and creating momentum that will carry you on the days when you feel like you don’t have the strength to carry yourself. Routine is defined by the author, Tynan, Superhuman by Habit, by “the actions that you take on a repeated basis with little or no required effort or thought.” There are so many things changing around us that creates chaos. History has shown that the most productive people use wildly different scheduling techniques depending on their circumstances, personalities and energy levels. Winston Churchill, for example, worked late into the night and broke up his day with whiskey and naps. There is no “one size fits all schedule” for productivity. The key here is to create a regular and consistent daily pattern that will take you where you want to go in life, helping you maximum yourself on every level possible. Take a moment today to:
1. Optimize your mind start the day with a mantra. According to Mayo Clinic, positive thinking helps manage stress and improves your health. Start out by saying a positive simple sentence, “Today is going to be a great day!” The moment you get out of bed say the mantra out loud to put your mind in a good state right away. Ben Franklin asked himself this question each day: “What good shall I do today?” Pick a phrase or question that resonates with you. It can be simple as smiling and saying, “Thank you” out loud and acknowledging being gifted with another day.
2. Be proactive: Don’t check email or social media first. Start your day focused on you and you will be in a much better sate of mind to help others and get more accomplished.
3. Visualize Success: Visualization helps prepare to reach the goal they want to obtain. Simply close your eyes and imagine yourself excelling and being the best you. Put yourself in situations where you shine, visualization the best outcome possible. This allows us to pass goals from conscious mind to your subconscious mind. Your subconscious mind wants to believe what you tell it and it will do whatever it takes to turn though statements into reality.
4. Read a book (even if it is one page): Reading boosts your intelligence and increases your brain power and even strengthens your ability to empathize with other people.
5. Get moving to optimize your body.
6. Practice deep breathing. Tony Robbins recommends deep breathing as part of his Ten day Challenge, three times a day take 10 power breaths. Inhale for 6 seconds, hold for 24 seconds and exhale for 12 seconds.
7. Drink more water: 9-13 cups a day.
8. Eat “productive” foods: Our brains operate optimally when we consume a very specific amount of glucose that releases slowly over time. Examples: fish, nuts, seeds, avocados, blueberries, dark chocolate, raw carrots.
9. Get moving: get up every 20 min and walk around. Go outside for a walk, do yoga, dance or to play with your kids.
10. Sleep: Practice getting no less than 7 hours. Not getting enough sleep affects mood, judgement, and ability to retain information.
11. Get Quiet: attempt to try meditation and be still. By practicing being still we have greater focus, better decision making and problem solving, and improved memory. This can actually change the structure of your brain.
This may seem like an overwhelming list of things to incorporate everyday. Start off slow and choose one to focus on today. Let this time of quarantine and social distancing be the beginning of a new routine of taking better care of you.