Productivity Tip of the Week

Yes, sleep is important…very important and I address this topic with all of my clients and even other blog posts. However, waking up 20-60minutes earlier than you “have to” can have a profound positive effect on your life. Not only does waking up earlier produce relaxing and less-rushed mornings but it will allow you to do all the things that make you feel and perform better. Take a peak at the acronym below.

Took this acronym from a recent book I read: The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod

“S-A-V-E-R-S”

Silence – Meditation, prayer, breathing exercise, reflection
Affirmation – Expressing your goals, ambitions, mantras outloud
Visualization – Picturing obstacles, seeing your day unwind, etc
Exercise – Can be a 5 minutes stretch or a 60min strength session
Reading – Personal or Business Development best here
Scribing (writing) – aka Journaling, more on this at a later date

Ideally you want to spend at least 5 minutes on each but you have to do what works best for you. Spending 5-10minutes in silence can de-clutter your brain and allow you to handle stress, trouble-shoot, and be more creative with ease. If you can squeeze in 10-15min of reading each day before school or work you will have read for 91 hours over the course of 1 year! That’s 5-10 books a year, imagine the personal growth and the success that stems from this time!

Your Goal: Play around with what allocation of time works best for you but be consistent with spending time on at least 4 of the 6.

My Typical morning:

10minutes of silence: I’m learning to get better at meditation and “stillness.” My wheels are always spinning so this is a work in progress. A huge benefit for me isn’t just the instance of de-cluttering my mind but in hectic/trouble shooting situations I can bring myself back to this “stillness” zone even only for 30 seconds helps tremendously with problem solving and creative thinking.

5 minutes of visualization and affirmations: Usually in the shower, brushing teeth, getting dressed. I can visualize my day, what I plan on accomplishing over the day, and remind myself of some recent personal development goals that I’m working on.

20-60 minutes of reading: Personal or Business Development. Always helps get my mind right for the day. I’m not a fiction reader but if you are, save it for pre-sleep reading (helps with REM cycles and the dreaming process).

Pending on the day I’ll squeeze in 30-60min of Exercise.

I only write during my group emails and blogs but many of my favorite authors and leaders of certain industries journal every day, normally 5 minutes in the morning and 5 minutes before bed. Definitely something I’m looking forward to starting in the near future.

If you have any quotes, tips, or questions please feel free to email me anytime!

Get outside your comfort zone,

Joe Drain CSCS