Thought I’d share an interesting tip for setting every day up for success. It all started with an interesting productivity “tip” that landed in my email inbox earlier this week. The author had just completed a 30-day experiment to see if avoiding social media first thing in the morning would improve productivity.
I said to myself, “Um, yeah. I call it Staging Your Day to Slay Your Day” and it’s something I’ve used for years.
She found that scrolling first thing in the morning sabotaged her day, increased her stress levels, hijacked her attention, and affected her ability to stay focused and on task for the rest of the day. She fell into the trap of reacting to what others were doing or saying rather than acting on her own ambitions.
She called it “flooding my brain with cheap dopamine.”
I’ll say.
But Mel Robbins said all that and more and really put it in perspective for me a couple of years ago. She said reaching for your phone to scroll social media as soon as you open your eyes and before you get out of bed is like opening your eyes and seeing every single one of your social media friends standing in front of you talking at the same time.
Now, I don’t know about you, but that doesn’t sound appealing to me. At all.
So, this week’s tip goes way beyond just being productive for me. It reminded me how important starting my day with the right mindset truly is. When you start your day with intention, from the moment you open your eyes, it can make all the difference in your day and in your life.
What you do from the moment you open your eyes is introspective. That means you’re honoring yourself by focusing on yourself. You’re not letting everyone else’s news—good, bad, or just drama—influence your thoughts and emotions, cause you to worry or jump on the comparison train, or affect your stress levels and your health.
How do I know that? Because when I changed the way I managed my morning, I changed my life. The morning routine I created a couple of years ago has made a world of difference in my days and my life. I am more grounded. More focused. More productive. More content.
But, here’s the thing. Starting your morning with the right mindset actually starts the night before.
Yep. That’s what I said. It starts the night before.
Here’s what I do every evening. Go ahead. Give it a try.
First, put your cell phone in any room other than your bedroom. Yes, you read that right! No more sleeping with your phone! Our phones have become our number one distraction in life. Think about it. It’s the first thing we check in the morning and it’s rarely out of our sight (or hand) the rest of the day.
A staggering 33 percent wake up in the middle of the night to check the phone! But, no more (unless you have extenuating circumstances like a family emergency or a natural disaster looming). Take control of when you let the world in starting tonight.
Then, set your old-fashioned alarm so you can have 30 minutes for yourself, before 7:30am. If you use your cell phone as an alarm clock, go ahead and set it. But put the phone somewhere across the room so you have to physically get up and turn it off. (I’ll save that for another blog post. The science behind it is fascinating.) And, be sure to resist the urge to turn the alarm off and start scrolling!
Second, write down 3 things you want to accomplish tomorrow. This will take away the urge to focus on making decisions as soon as you wake up and it will free up energy and time for the more productive activities.
Finally, place a pen and paper (or journal) in that empty space in your bedroom. You know; the place where your cell phone used to be. As you’re stretching, taming your morning bedhead, or brushing your teeth, you’ll be able to write down the one, most important thing you’re going to accomplish today.
That’s my #1 tip to stage your day to slay your day. Want to know more? Grab my free copy of Stage Your Day to Slay Your Day for tips on how you can get in the right mindset every morning and avoid flooding your brain with cheap dopamine and sabotaging your day and life. It’s more than just improving your productivity. Trust me.
And, for more mindset and productivity tips, check out my blog.
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