How to Create the Best Day

#LeadandLift | Episode 17 | Chabidaye Jaglal Ramnath

My employment history includes spending more than 2 decades in the corporate world, and in the last 7 years, I’ve deeply invested in personal growth and development. Yet, many of my mornings go like this – and I’m certain many of you can relate to this.

The alarm goes off, and I hit snooze continuing to lie in bed telling myself the clock is 20 minutes fast so I can stay in bed for 20 minutes more. My mind starts thinking about all the things for the day, and I start feeling overwhelmed before I even get out of bed. Then the alarm goes off again. So I hop out of bed and start a typical morning routine of brushing teeth, showering, debating on what to wear, dressing, rushing to grab a sandwich and cup of tea, and finally rushing off to the train station.

As you can imagine, that type of routine is not setting a strong foundation of building blocks for a successful day.

 Did I also mention I used to work through breaks and lunches then log back into work when I got home? And because I didn’t take time to calm myself and get ready for bed, my brain would still be solving work problems while sleeping. This results in poor sleep.

 While I knew it was an ineffective routine, I did it for many years, and I know you’re probably doing the same thing right now.

 In January 2020, I realized my life wasn’t any different from how it was 10 years ago. Yes, there were life changes such as death, a job lay-off, etc., but nothing else had changed. So I made a promise to myself to change so I could be better. I wanted to see how I was spending my time and evaluate my habits because obviously, they were not serving me.

We each get 24 hours every day. The time allotment is the same for all people, yet some people achieve so much more while others burn out. So how do successful people structure their day so they win?

3 Things to STOP doing to START a Better Day

This list of 3 things are things you should NOT be doing when you start your day. Each of these things will slow down your day’s progress, prevent forward motion, and hinder any sense of success.

1. STOP rolling out of bed and immediately logging in to work.

 Most of us are working remotely now, so we feel we have the option to sleep through our commute time and just log in. This will put you in a reactive state all day. ALL. DAY. You cannot and will not recover from this. 

2. STOP scrolling the phone as soon as you wake. 

Because some of you take your cell phone to bed using it as an alarm clock, you’ll inevitably shut off the alarm and immediately begin scrolling through the news, or worse yet, social media. Don’t worry about what you missed overnight or from the day before. Focus on the day ahead. Having the phone so easily accessible makes you more prone to not setting it down and being sucked into the black hole of scrolling. 

3. STOP rushing to start morning chores. 

Don’t wake up, jump out of bed, and start your chores such as preparing and serving breakfast for the children and spouse. Allow time to gather yourself first. Otherwise, you’ll wake up and immediately feel overworked and underappreciated before the day truly begins.

Once you break one or all of these bad morning habits, you’ll have space to add in more positive, motivational activities to start your day on the right track.

2 years ago, in my effort to find out how successful business owners use their 24 hours, I attended a summit. It’s like I discovered a whole new world. One of the speakers spoke of a morning routine that included activities like reading personal growth books, putting good things in their minds, working out, meditating, and journaling.

 Just like you, my first thought was: Where do they get the time to do that? I’m struggling with my 24 hours as it is! But I listened. I was there to learn.

 I realized, by making the time, by waking an hour earlier, I could do those practices. By using 1 of the 24 hours more wisely, I noticed my productivity increased. Sometimes by noon, I’d already hit all my goals for the day and was still full of energy. The 3pm laziness I’d previously battled was no longer there.

“My entire day was more joyful, and I felt more fulfilled.”

You and I are better able to work through challenges and problems when you take the time for a positive morning routine – reading personal growth books, working out, meditating, or journaling. You’ll gain confidence not only in yourself but also within your team.

Add More to Your Day!

Because I constructed each of my days to start on a positive note and removed any obstacles I’d placed in front of myself, I began to feel better. My days felt better. My life felt better. So I continued to look deeper into how other millionaires were spending their days. The list is expansive, but I’ll share 5 things with you in the hopes you choose at least 1 to add to your day and create your best day.

1. The most successful people do NOT look at their inbox first thing when they login to work.

Do you think you can actually stay away from your inbox? And why should you? Well, we all get emails constantly. They come after hours, overnight, and in the wee hours of the morning. It’s neverending!

 “...your inbox is just an organized place for other people’s agendas.”

 Have you ever noticed that every email is someone wanting something? First, you need to know YOUR priorities so you can get your work done. Then you can look at the inbox to see what help other people need to get their stuff done. 

2. Have a plan! 

Schedule time on Sunday or Monday morning to plan your week. Consider what’s due and what’s required to move projects forward. In the corporate world, we worked in sprints. So the mornings were set aside for meetings with the team to discuss priorities, due dates, and help needed for problems we were actively solving. This brought the entire team together and ensured we were all working on the right thing at the right moment. 

For each day, plan your top 3 priorities so you have set expectations. Keep them manageable and reasonable, but at the same time, don’t hold yourself back. 

3. Time block! 

What I’ve discovered is many of us don’t even use a calendar system. Most people work in blocks of time. Some people believe they are high achievers and find it to be a waste of time to use time blocks because after all, why do you need to take a break, to eat, or to go to the bathroom? Sounds crazy, but I have friends in the corporate world who sit at the computer in the morning and don’t get up until evening. That’s not really being a high achiever. 

I’ve learned some successful business people use 15 minutes of focused time then take a 10-minute break to stretch, get water, and breathe deeply. I’ve also seen other people use the Pomodoro Technique. They set a time of 25 minutes for focusing then take a 5-minute break. On their break, they get up, move, breathe deeply, refocus, then set the timer again for another 25 minutes. 

4. Celebrate! 

This one is really big for me because in corporate life, we only celebrated when the project ended. This was really sad because some of the big projects went on for 2 years. As you can imagine, the team was continuously working through problem after problem for 2 years with no celebration until the end. Oftentimes, the celebration didn’t ever come. So pause to celebrate each day at the progress you’ve made in your projects, and this will build momentum and confidence to keep moving forward. 

5. Recharge & Relax! 

Schedule daily time to simply recharge and relax. Just like we plug in our phones to charge every day, we also need time to recharge or else we lose our joy and happiness. Then before you know it, you’re just miserable. Miserable with everything that comes up in life. Have you met people who are just miserable and complain about everything? They may be missing joy and happiness in their life.

But How Do I Add Time to my Busy Schedule?

It’s easy! Do it one step at a time. I’m not asking you to implement all the things discussed in this blog. I’m asking you to open-mindedly reflect on your personal routine, your level of joy and happiness, and consider what adjustments can be made to improve each day. 

Here are 3 things you can do, starting today: 

1. Spend this week recording how you spend your time. You may see you’re spending a lot of time watching tv, scrolling through social media, or playing mind-numbing phone/video games. Be conscious with where you’re spending your time and identify where you can repurpose your time to create the time for a better morning routine, celebration, and time to recharge. 
2. Buy a book and see how other people schedule their morning routines. Not everyone’s routine will look exactly the same, so by fully informing yourself you can create the best fit for you. Two books I strongly recommend are: The 5AM Club: Own Your Morning. Elevate Your Life. by Robin Sharma & The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod. 
3. Add time in your calendar each morning. You don’t need to add hours. Maybe start with scheduling 30 minutes into your morning to plan the day. Identify the things you must get done that day, and don’t forget to celebrate once you’ve achieved it.

Try these three little things to start creating your best day and when the time is right for you, continue to add on, be willing to make adjustments, and live your best life one day at a time.

“Your daily agenda is not your to-do list but is the habits you develop and how you manage your most precious resource -- time.”

You are in control of your time. You give your time to multiple priorities in your life. But you, my friend, are in the ultimate control. Take charge of your time and start making every day the best day ever.

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