What makes someone successful is often extensive habits the rest of us don’t see because we aren’t there for the journey. People get so focused on a result that they fail to realize that success is built through subtle thoughts and habits exercised daily. Each day, thousands of advertisements are thrown our way and they shape our beliefs unconsciously. The six tips I discuss here are things we all can benefit from and are a glimpse into a successful person’s daily routine.
In order to thrive in this day and age, we must learn to “avoid the noise.” This means that it is important to avoid the things that don’t serve you while staying centered on the activities that promote health and growth.
Pay close attention. You do not want to miss this.
1. Ignore Your Email First Thing in the Morning
Why is checking email in the morning a bad thing? It’s because you’re setting yourself up to react to the day ahead instead of planning your day. Immediately, once you review those emails, you’re mentally pulled in multiple directions that usually don’t need immediate attention. If instead, you used the time to plan your day, it will set you up for more success and allow you to be on the offense all day. Ask yourself, where is the best place for my energy to go? It is critical to define early in the morning (or the night before) what is most important versus what is most urgent for that day. When we are running on only urgent messages we tend to avoid the most important.
2. Meditate
Meditation has become more mainstream over the last decade for many great reasons. The biggest reason of them all is results. It is amazing what a 10-minute guided meditation can do for people. I have never met an overachiever that did not meditate and have those quiet moments to allow themselves to let go. Meditation is all about letting go; not trying, not doing anything, in fact. Successful people use meditation as their secret to success.
Try starting every day with a nine minute meditation that looks something like this:
- Minutes 0-3: Think about what you’re most grateful for
- Minutes 3-6: Think about your three major outcomes for the day
- Minutes 6-9: Imagine your three major outcomes in life
This is a very simple exercise and anyone can do it. Imagine what would happen if you practiced meditating on gratitude and your personal outcomes every day. You would be able to start playing offense and go after more of the things you want, not just what others expect of you.
3. Exercise Daily
Successful people understand that regular morning exercise can have a tremendous effect on daily focus, productivity, and happiness. Exercise has biologically proven to change and reorganize our brains to handle stress. Whether it is attending a class at a nearby gym or working out at home, exercise will drive more attention to what needs the most attention—you and your health.
4. Do Something Social
Successful people are social butterflies, always meeting and chatting with new people. They put tremendous effort into expanding their network because they understand that relationships are often the keys to success. Never underestimate the power of a $5.00 cup of coffee.
5. Eliminate Outside Distractions
Successful people don’t spend their time indulging in Netflix binge-watching. Instead, they substitute TV-time for books and education. The average CEO reads sixty books per year compared to the average employee who reads only six. A successful person is shaped by the meetings and events they attend, the books they read, and the associations they spend the most time with. Your current fitness and financial levels are the exact averages of the five people you spend the most time with. If you want a six pack, hang out with people who have a six pack. Avoid all the other distractions that won’t aid you in attaining your goals.
6. Squash Negative Self-Talk
A big step to manage a successful life is to stop negative self-talk in its tracks. Successful people avoid ruminating on negative thoughts because doing that only gives those thoughts more power. Any thought, whether it be negative or positive, can only be fed by focusing on the thought rather than the solution. Successful people are more solution oriented, and they choke out negativity by not feeding it anything. Feed your solutions instead of feeding your issues.
The Bottom Line
If being successful is important to you, then your daily activities are essential in order to back up your long-term desires. Eating healthy, practicing meditation, and getting regular exercise are critical for your success in life, but these can never be stand-alone happenings. Like any great workout plan or diet, there needs to be supplements in order to take you to the next level. Pay more attention to your daily routines and you’ll see a complete 180 in your fitness, your mindset, and your success ratio. Kick old habits that don’t serve you to the curb and sprinkle in the good ones instead. Like anything, your habits must be reinforced daily to foster long term change.
