How do you spend your first 10 minutes of each day?

Hi There,

Do you have a morning routine...that you feel really good about?
Does it set you up for a successful, energized day?

This week, I’m actually experimenting with mine. There are key things that I know, if I get done BEFORE I go to work (which nowadays means go into the home office), will make me more productive and happier with life in general…

To some, this might seem hokey or even fantasy - like, yeah, someday when I’m not so busy I’ll have a nice routine - but the reality is, you have a morning routine right now. It just might be a frantic, crazy, high strung, rushed routine...but it’s still your routine.

I’m not suggesting that you can just ignore your responsibilities (perhaps getting the kids ready for school)... I am suggesting that there just might be 10 minutes that you can squeeze in for yourself to make life a little more enjoyable…

After all, isn’t life meant to be enjoyed?

I certainly think so. I do believe that we often get so caught up in our day to day stuff that we fall into a routine that feels more like a "rut."

I DON’T HAVE TIME!! That’s often the immediate, automatic response, right? But, here’s a quote from Tony Robbins I think is a smack in the face many of us need:

"If you don’t have 10 minutes,
you don’t have a life."

Seriously. If you can’t take just 10 minutes each morning to dedicated to making your day better than what kind of life do you really have? By the way, you may just need to get up 10 minutes earlier. Like I said, it’s not about skirting your daily responsibilities.

In fact, because I want to squeeze a few more things into my routine, I’m experimenting this week with new wake-up times. Now, you may be wondering, "what kinds of things go into a morning routine?"

I think that’s a very personal question, but here are some ideas:

Walk the dog while listening to a podcast
Workout at Primal Conditioning ;-)
Gratitude journal
Meditate or focus on your breathing
Simple calisthenics
Take a few extra minutes to get 'presentable'
Drink hot lemon water while reading

Sometimes it's even about what you DONT do in your morning routine... I don't take my cell phone off of airplane mode until I've gone through my own personal routine first. I need to feel both energized and settled before I am ready to let the world (ie notifications and incoming alerts) determine what I should be focusing on.

The possibilities are endless. It’s really up to you.

Here’s a three-minute video where Tony Robbins explains his minimum 10 minute routine to Oprah:
---> Click to watch on Youtube

If you’ve got a morning routine that you find really beneficial, I’d love to know what it is. Please reply back and let me know. Maybe I’ll add a piece of yours to mine. :-)