Jun 21, 2016
Morning, Change, Success, Goals, Habits
Summary
Does the early bird really get the worm? Well, it seems so. And there are other benefits to making the morning work FOR you. We’ll discuss that in our Thought of the Day. And, later, in today’s interview, Hal Elrod took morning productivity to a whole new level in his bestseller, The Miracle Morning. Actually, we’ll learn that his story is somewhat of a miracle itself. That and more on today’s show.
Bob's Thought of the Day
- “Master your morning and your master your day.” I’m not sure who said this, but it’s certainly true. It’s been said that if you tackle your biggest priority before 10 a.m., chances are that your entire day will be successful. Stories abound of people who credit their success to getting up early.
- But this can be an issue for some. Many years ago, in my mid-20’s, I was listening to a series by Zig Ziglar, and he was discussing the importance of rising early and having a great attitude about it. Although a few years earlier I was up a 3:30 a.m. every morning because I was a television anchor for a 6 a.m. newscast, I did not see myself as a “morning person.” But if Zig said it was important, I figured it was.
- My greatest hero, my Dad, had been setting that example for as long as I’d known him. He was always up at 5 a.m., praying, studying, exercising, and going to Miyan at the local Synagogue. He was always up very early, and always with a fantastic attitude. And, one of the most successful people I know!
- So, I listened to Zig teach me how to wake up with a great attitude. He said that for 21 days, get up as soon as the “opportunity clock” (not “alarm clock”) goes off, get in front of the bathroom mirror, excitedly tell yourself how great it was to be alive, how this day is going to be magnificent, and how you love being up in the morning.
- That’s exactly what I did, and it worked. It worked well before the 21 days. Others give different time frames for forming a new habit (30, 45, or 60 days), but I propose that it doesn’t matter. The most important number is however many days it takes for you.
- The key is understanding that the early mornings are your friend, your ally. Remember Ben Franklin’s words from Poor Richard’s Almanac: “Early to bed and early to rise, makes a person healthy, wealthy, and wise.”
Interview with Hal Elrod
- Hal shares a story of how a traumatic car accident dramatically changed his life.
- While blame determines who is at fault for something, responsibility determines who is committed to improving things. Blame identifies who is at fault. Responsibility means choosing to be happy in the midst of your circumstances, to choose to do the things that will get you where you want to go in your life. The degree that you take responsibility is the degree you have the power to change your life.
- How you begin your day sets the tone for who you become and how you show up for the rest of the day. If you can win the morning, you can win the day. If you want your life to be significantly different, you must do something significantly different.
- SAVERS (morning practices): Silence (Meditation/Prayer), Affirmations, Visualization, Exercise, Reading, Scribing (Writing/Journaling).
- What if you don’t have time to practice the SAVERS in the morning? Go to bed an hour earlier to get an hour earlier. The last hour before you go bed is not usually very productive. Also, you can scale these practices for how much time you have. It doesn’t have to be an all or nothing proposition.
- What if you don’t consider yourself a morning person? One of the easiest ways to begin a morning routine is to set your alarm clock alarm across the room, which forces you to get out of bed.
- The average person lets their emotions dictate their actions, while achievers let their commitments dictate their actions.
Interview Links
The Miracle Morning: The Not-So-Obvious Secret Guaranteed to Transform Your Life … Before 8 AM by Hal Elrod
Resources