What's the day-to-day routine of successful individuals?

Do these people
set their alarms earlier than average people? Do they consume a special
type of breakfast prior to working? What is it about exceptionally successful
individuals that makes them accomplish incredible feats? Everyone wants
to figure it out and I bet you aren't any different. Do you want to figure out
the day-to-day routine of successful individuals? Then read on!

The early bird will catch the worm

Successful people absolutely wake up early. Because the earlier they begin
the day, the more time they'll have to get things accomplished. They'll face
the day ready for whatever comes their way because they've established
plans the evening before.
As compared with an individual who rises out of bed 5 minutes before
she/he must be at work and possesses no true direction, who do you think
is going to have the ability to deal with his/her responsibilities better?
It follows, of course, that early birds will also get a good night's sleep. If you
have a desire to follow the day-to-day regimen of successful individuals,
you may want to begin to wake up early.

Regularly exercise
Exercise certainly is a portion of the day-to-day regimen of successful
individuals. It'll make you feel good about yourself, and keep the body
healthy, will make the mind alert and teach you discipline. As a matter of
fact, a report revealed that 70 percent of successful business individuals
discover a way to exercise each day.
If you cannot exercise in the morning, get it in around lunch time or in the
early evening. If you are on the ground floor and you are traveling to the
fifth floor, take the stairs rather than the elevator--but do not overexert
yourself because it may set you back.

Have a balanced life

Successful individuals do not have work on their agenda all of the time.
They set apart time for their family and themselves. Consider it a way of
recharging your batteries.

If you are always buried in a pile of work, you are missing out on life.
Personal time is critical because it's the time you're able to review your life
and where it is headed; that is the time that you reflect and develop new
strategies for your success journey.
The day-to-day regimen of successful people is not that hard to master.
Anybody may do it, though not everybody has the proper mindset to really
see it through.

Take life within the limitations of your control

Let go of what you cannot control then invest your time and efforts into what
you can influence/control.

You must let go of your past

Learning lessons from past failures will restrict your openness to think
about future opportunities.

Plan your day ahead

Objectives aren't as crucial as getting the work done. Not attaining goals
may lead to lack of self-worth and depression; however, doing day-to-day
tasks which propel you toward the person you wish to become will benefit
you a positive way; that is, motion will beget greater motion.

Complete your tasks

Whatever the activity is, successful people start and finish the work to the
best of their ability.

Invest in yourself
Network, educate yourself, invest in relationships, spiritually reflect, and
take care of your physical and mental health.

Ask questions
The ones who control conversations include those who ask questions. Also,
they're liked more by other people, who are given the chance to be heard.

Successful individuals share their success tips with other

people
As the proverb goes, blessed are the ones who share their food offerings
with those less fortunate.

See time as finite/limited

It'll motivate effectiveness and efficiency as it applies to time and allow you
to achieve results. It's best accomplished through delegation and leverage.
Like the path from white belt to black belt, success includes a journey that
is taken one lesson at a time. Improved and refined, successful people
move onward and forward in facing their next challenge and life lesson.

By James ClearJULY 17, 201322 Comments

Youll wake up for about

25,000 mornings in your adult life, give or take a few.
According to a report from the World Health Organization, the average life expectancy
in the United States is 79 years old. Most people in wealthy nations are hovering around

the 80year mark. Women in Japan are the highest, with an average life expectancy of 86
years.
If we use these average life expectancy numbers and assume that your adult life starts at
18 years old, then youve got about 68 years as an adult. (86 18 = 68) Perhaps a little less
on average. A little more if youre lucky.
(68 years as an adult) x (365 days each year) = 24,820 days.
25,000 mornings.
Thats what you get in your adult life. 25,000 times you get to open your eyes, face the
day, and decide what to do next. I dont know about you, but Ive let a lot of those
mornings slip by.
Once I realized this, I started thinking about how I could develop a better morning
routine. I still have a lot to learn, but here are some strategies that you can use to get the
most out of your 25,000 mornings.

8 Ways to Get the Most Out of Your Morning

Here are the strategies that Ive found to be most effective for getting the most out of my
morning.
1. Manage your energy, not your time. If you take a moment to think about it,
youll probably realize that you are better at doing certain tasks at certain times. For
example, my creative energy is highest in the morning, so thats when I do
my writing each day.
By comparison, I block out my afternoons for interviews, phone calls, and
emails. I dont need my creative energy to be high for those tasks, so thats the best
time for me to get them done. And I tend to have my best workouts in the late afternoon
or early evening, so thats when I head to the gym.
Respecting your internal, ultradian rhythm for whichever task is at hand is one of the
most powerful things you can do.
What type of energy do you have in the morning? What task is that energy best suited
for?

2. Prepare the night before. I dont do this nearly as often as I should, but if you
only do one thing each day then spend a few minutes each night organizing your todo
list for tomorrow. When I do it right, Ill outline the article Im going to write the next
day and develop a short list of the most important items for me to accomplish. It takes 10
minutes that night and saves 3 hours the next day.
3. Dont open email until noon. Sounds simple. Nobody does it. It took me
awhile to get over the urge to open my inbox, but eventually I realized that everything
can wait a few hours. Nobody is going to email you about a true emergency (a death in
the family, etc.), so leave your email alone for the first few hours of each day. Use the
morning to do whats important rather than responding to what is urgent.
4. Turn your phone off and leave it in another room. Or on your
colleagues desk. Or at the very least, put it somewhere that is out of sight. This
eliminates the urge to check text messages, Facebook, Twitter, and so on. This simple
strategy eliminates the likelihood of slipping into halfwork where you waste time
dividing your attention among meaningless tasks.
The power of receiving zero notifications, especially at night can boost your sleep
time and make your morning that much more productive.
5. Work in a cool place. Have you ever noticed how you feel groggy and sluggish
in a hot room? Turning the temperature down or moving to a cooler place is an easy way
to focus your mind and body. (Hat tip to Michael Hyatt for this one.)
The science behind temperature and lighting in your workplace has shown that
adjusting both can have a significant impact on your productivity, day in day out. Its
worth to spend a few minutes adjusting it.
6. Sit up or stand up. Your mind needs oxygen to work properly. Your lungs need
to be able to expand and contract to fill your body with oxygen. That sounds simple
enough, but heres the problem: most people sit hunched over while staring at a screen
and typing.
When you sit hunched over, your chest is in a collapsed position and your diaphragm is
pressing against the bottom of your lungs, which hinders your ability to breathe easily
and deeply. Sit up straight or stand up and youll find that you can breathe easier and
more fully. As a result, your brain will get more oxygen and youll be able to concentrate
better.

(Small tip: When sitting, I usually place a pillow in the small of my back. This prevents
my lower back from rounding, which keeps me more upright.)
7. Eat as a reward for working hard. I practice intermittent fasting, which
means that I eat my first meal around noon each day. Ive been doing this for almost two
years. There are plenty of health benefits, which I explained in great detail here, here,
and here.
But health is just one piece of the puzzle. I also fast because it allows me to get more out
of my day. Take a moment to think about how much time people spend each day
thinking, planning, and consuming food. By adopting intermittent fasting, I dont waste
an hour each morning figuring out what to eat for breakfast, cooking it, and cleaning up.
Instead, I use my morning to work on things that are important to me. Then, I eat good
food and big meals as a reward for working hard.
8. Develop a pregame routine to start your day. My morning routine
starts by pouring a cold glass of water. Some people kick off their day with ten minutes
of meditation. Similarly, you should have a sequence that starts your morning ritual.
This tiny routine signals to your brain that its time to get into work mode or exercise
mode or whatever mode you need to be in to accomplish your task. Additionally, a pre
game routine helps you overcome a lack of motivation and get things done even when
you dont feel like it.
For more details about why this works, read this: How to Get Motivated.

25,000 Mornings: The Power of a Morning Routine

Just as its rare for anyone to experience overnight success, its also rare for our lives
crumble to pieces in an instant. Most unproductive or unhealthy behaviors are the result
of slow, gradual choices that add up to bad habits. A wasted morning here. An
unproductive morning there.
The good news is that exceptional results are also the result of consistent daily choices.
Nowhere is this more true than with your morning routine. The way you start your day
is often the way that you finish it.
Take, for example, Jack LaLanne. He woke up each day at 4am and spent the first 90
minutes lifting weights. Then, he went for a swim or a run for the next 30 minutes. For
more than 60 years, he spent each morning doing this routine. In addition to being one

of the most influential people in fitness in the last 100 years, LaLanne also lived to the
ripe old age of 96.
This is no coincidence. What you do each morning is an indicator of how you approach
your entire day. Its the choices that we repeatedly make that determine the life we live,
the health we enjoy, and the work we create.
Youve got 25,000 mornings. What will you do with each one?

Imbecility

About the author:

James Clear writes at JamesClear.com, where he uses behavior science to help you
master your habits and improve your health. For useful ideas on improving your mental
and physical performance, join his free newsletter. Or, download his free
guide: Transform Your Habits.