Do you know the saying “A Journey of 1000 miles starts with a single step?” Practically, that is the theme of the article. For you to have a chance at winning in life, you must be able to own a day fully. Even if it is just one. But before you own a day, you have to first own your morning.
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Author Aubrey Marcus in his book Own Your Day Own Your Life emphasizes the importance of living a full optimized day (energy, performance, focus and recovery). He believes if you can do this for one day, then you can repeat that day to create a lifetime of success.
Aubrey Marcus in his book, focuses on key practical strategies of owning a whole day, from the morning, to the work hours to the night. Have you ever felt out of control? As if the days control you? In this article, we are going to discuss practical strategies we can apply to win our mornings such that we increase our chances of owning the day hence increasing our chances of creating a life we desire.
The Power Morning Blueprint
Morning hours are the most crucial hours of the day. They set the pace for focus, energy levels and the mindset that we carry around for the rest of the day. This sets the mood for productivity and success. Below are some of the habits and techniques we should utilize to win our mornings.
1. Never Snooze Your Alarm
Many of us set alarms that we are never ready to respect. When the alarm goes off, we tend to keep snoozing until we feel ready which is wrong. The first step to owning your morning is avoid snoozing the alarm. This is because, when the alarm goes off, your sleep cycle gets distracted. This causes feeling of tiredness when you wake up later than when you would have woken up immediately.
2. Hydrate
Have you ever come across this quote? “Thousands have lived without love; not one without water” by Auden. He was trying to emphasize the overall importance of keeping hydrated. As most of us know, 60 percent of the human body is made up of water.
When we wake up in the morning, our bodies are naturally dehydrated. This water helps clean the body organs, flush toxins out and prepares them for the day ahead. It also enhances brain function because even the slightest of dehydration can reduce concentration, dull the mood and even affect the memory. So drinking water in the morning sets us ahead for the day.
3. Attain Small Wins
The other technique to conquer your morning is in application of the 5-minute rule. Instead of scrolling through social media, take proactive tasks on. For example take some 5 minutes to make your bed, writing down your key activities for the day or reading a page from your favorite novel. This helps build momentum as the small wins make way for the bigger wins.
4. Physical Fitness
Since we are now done catering for the mental environment by hydrating, we now have to focus on the physical environment too. The key activities here are: stepping in the rising sun and doing a quick workout involving simple exercises to kick start the day. Sunlight is a well-known catalyst in the production of vitamin D. It also elevates one’s mood and strengthens the body systems. This helps reamp your mood and focus for the day.
5. Practice Mindfulness
Instead of reactiveness, practice proactiveness through mindfulness. Mindfulness is a state in which a person is fully immersed in the present moment and aware of oneself’s current situation, including thoughts, emotions, etc. We can practice mindfulness through intensive journaling and guided meditations. This helps keep us aware as we prepare to win the day.
6. Substitute Hot for Cold Showers
Although hot showers seem to be more relaxing and enjoyable, they are somewhat destructive if we want to conquer our morning. You should try exposure to a cold bath instead. Here’s why;
- The hot water increases the heat loss of the body to the surroundings. This causes a dilation effect in the blood vessels hence sluggishness.
- On the other hand, cold showers spark alertness and boost blood circulation throughout the entire body. This also helps reduce inflammation that might have been caused by the physical fitness routine.
Cold showers help us win our mornings as they boost focus, clarity and blood circulation, hence resilience.
7. The Box Breathing Technique
Aubrey Marcus in his book Own Your Day Own Your Life talks about the 4-4-4-4 Technique. It involves inhaling, holding x2 for four seconds each. This technique involves deep powerful breaths and effortless exhales. It is advisable to repeat the process until you feel a slight lightheadness. This technique ensures mindful breathing while also giving us the energy we need to win our morning hence the day.
Conclusion
Owning the day comes from building small and intentional steps starting from the moment you wake up. In this article, we have discussed some of the techniques that we can apply to win our mornings for a more productive, focused, energized and rewarding day.
As Aubrey Marcus states, all you have to aim for in the start is winning one morning; this alone shows that when you intentionally implement your routine, you are on the path to longterm success. Its not about perfection, its about going a morning at a time.
For more literature about how to win your morning, check out Aubrey Marcus’ book Own Your Day- Own Your Life. Which of the strategies mentioned in the article above resonates more with you? Share with us in the comment section below. Mine is the Cold Shower.
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