“Every morning in basic SEAL training, my instructors would show up in my barracks room and the first thing they would inspect was your bed. It was a simple task — mundane at best.
But every morning we were required to make our bed to perfection. If you make your bed every morning you will have accomplished the first task of the day. It will give you a small sense of pride and it will encourage you to do another task and another and another.
By the end of the day, that one task completed will have turned into many tasks completed. Making your bed will also reinforce the fact that little things in life matter. If you can’t do the little things right, you will never do the big things right.”
–William McRaven, former US Navy Admiral and Commander of USSOCOM

 

What is the first thing you do when you wake up? Do you commit to a morning routine?

A common thread I’ve noticed among professional athletes, CEOs, and other world-class performers is their commitment to a morning routine:

  • Kobe Bryant is notorious for his legendary predawn workouts.
  • Pharrell Williams meditates and showers to spur ideation.
  • Bob Iger wakes up at 4:30am to catch up on news, work out, and eat breakfast before getting his day started.

Over the past few years, I’ve committed to a morning routine and have found the following to be true:

  1. Start your day with momentum. If you wake up early to read, work out, meditate, etc., then you will have accomplished something before most people are awake. This initial accomplishment provides the necessary momentum to accomplish many other things throughout the rest of the day.
  2. Start your day with great energy. Studies show that working out leads to increased energy levels. Simply put, expending energy actually leads to increased energy in the long run. Kinda ironic but I’m a believer.
  3. Start your day with purpose. A purposeful morning routine leads to effective time management with the rest of your day’s schedule. Remember, time is the most precious resource we have. Might as well use it wisely.

I wanted to share my morning routine in the hopes that it inspires you to share (or start if you haven’t). You can message me here.

  • 5:00am: Wake up and reflect on 5 things I’m grateful for (I learned this from a good friend and allows me to start my day with positivity and gratitude rather than hating the world at this ungodly hour).
  • 5:15am: Meditate. This is something I’m trying to incorporate this year. I’m terrible at sitting still so my goal has been to complete a basic meditation and not open my phone.
  • 6:00am: Work out. I typically workout for 60–75 mins. and try to mix it up: full body weight circuits, run, spin, yoga.
  • 7:30am: Shower. This is my favorite activity of the day. I’m able to think without any distractions.
  • 8:15am: Get to the office and eat breakfast. Breakfast is my biggest meal of the day and I like to usually eat some combination of yogurt/granola, protein bar, oatmeal, and fruit.
  • 8:45am: Greet everyone on our team. I say hi to each person on our team and greet them with great energy and a positive attitude. You’ll be surprised by how infectious these are.

 

Terry Lee is an entrepreneur-in-the-making | Co-Founder + CEO of Panacea (coming 2017) | The story we tell ourselves is the same story we tell the world.