No Instagram Before Breakfast

and Other Habits to Start Your Day Right

Today we have a chance, an opportunity to put our all into it and get the most out. We can stumble through the hours in a maze of backtracking and second-guessing or we can begin it with intention, with direction, with the compass of authority that says we will forge our own path to great things.

Here are a few ways to begin well, to take confident steps of initiative that will move your morning, your day, your life from wandering to well-lived.

Be Selfish
It’s morning, quiet. No kids, no spouse, no TV. It’s time to be selfish, the world is yours. No diapers to be changed. No email to be checked. No floor to sweep. No commute. No deadline. No laundry list.

We say we’re too busy, too poor, too tired, too whatever to dream. But at 5:00AM, those excuses disappear. Before the alarms go off and the madness begins, no one demands our time. Homework remains undone, reports stay unwritten. Lawns mowed, prospects wooed, numbers crunched. It can wait.

Make these moments change you. Let them light a fire, fuel a change you’ll make in your week or your company or your family. Let it begin with being selfish.

Be Selfless
And then the aforementioned madness. You’ve already been selfish, being selfless is next. Make breakfast for your teen. Bring coffee to your wife. Shoot a text to that friend with a big interview. The day will be full of imposition, tasks, projects, responsibility. This selfless act is a choice and a good one to make.

We are consumed: our work, our family, our homes, our bank accounts, our purchases, ourselves. Sadly, we often miss chances to encourage, love, and add value. Do it early, before you find yourself drawing in your to-do list.

Do Something Difficult
Our days are tough. Difficult decisions, confrontational co-workers. Big things feel easier when you’ve practiced, even conquering the small things,when stakes are low. Don’t hit snooze. Go for a run. Take a cold shower. Say no to that Cinnabon. Even the smallest victories build confidence.

Do Something Good For Your Body
Make a routine. Find a way to burn calories that doesn’t burn you out. Eat good food with ingredients you understand instead of unwrap. Give your body energy, give it good things, give it a chance to get you through the day.

Do Something Good For Your Mind
The morning brings a clean slate, a day yet unblemished by difficulties. Find a few moments and spend them quietly, intently, itentionally. If you have faith, pray. If not, just sit. Taking a beat, just a breath, fixes your mind right. This is a favorite part of my day.

Do Something Good For Your Heart
With the new day, bring a new perspective to those around you. We withhold forgiveness in order to punish, but it just consumes us, leaving us bitter and distracted. Even before they ask, grant that grace. You’ll benefit as much as they do (or more).

Seize today. Seize your life.

What will you begin?

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