My life first fell apart in 1999, when I was 20 years old. Coming home after a night out with friends, my small sports car was hit head-on by a truck traveling at 130 km/h. My body was destroyed and my heart stopped beating for six minutes.
The second time was in 2007, when the U.S. economy collapsed and my fledgling business as a personal advisor took a hit. Overnight my income was cut in half. I was £300,000 in debt and couldn’t pay my bills. Mentally, emotionally and financially, I hit rock bottom.
Seeing how low I was, a close friend advised me to start running in the morning. “It will make you feel better and think more clearly,” he said.
He was right, but it wasn’t about running. I hated running back then, and anyway I wasn’t sure my pelvis, which was broken in three places in the car accident, could handle it. No, what made the difference was getting up early.
Instead of rushing straight into frenetic activity, I used that precious time in the peace of the morning to rethink my priorities, focus on my goals, de-stress, and get properly in touch with my feelings.
Hal Elrod says changing his morning routine meant he married the woman of his dreams, built a thriving business, lost weight and was happier than ever.
It was a total revelation. One year after changing my morning routine in this way, my life was genuinely transformed.
I married the woman of my dreams, created a thriving business with a waiting list of eager clients, lost weight, and was happier and healthier than ever.
I know it sounds ridiculous, that such big changes in my life can come from something as simple as getting out of bed earlier, but I honestly believe that none of those things would have happened if I hadn’t changed the way I started my days.
I was so convinced of this that I started calling my new habit of getting up early The Miracle Morning.
It’s very simple: by changing the way you wake up in the morning, you can transform any area of your life. All before breakfast.
Successful mornings lead to focused, productive and successful days. Make good use of your first hours and everything will flow from them.
“But I’m not a morning person,” you say. “I need more sleep, not less.” That was also true for me before The Miracle Morning. The key is to do it step by step. And if I can do it, twice a victim of bad luck and in those days barely able to get out of bed, anyone can do it.
Hal Elrod. He advises thinking positively before going to sleep, since your first thought when you wake up is the one you had when you went to sleep.
HOW EARLY IS EARLY?
Most days I get up at 5 in the morning and five minutes later I sit on the couch drinking coffee. However, by following the energizing tips I’m about to share with you, I find it just as easy to wake up at 4 in the morning.
Don’t worry: you don’t need to start so early if it scares you. First try setting your alarm an hour earlier than normal.
LEARN HOW TO EARN THE SLEEP BUTTON
- Think positive. Your first thought in the morning is usually the last thought you had before going to bed. If you consciously decide to wait for the next day when you go to bed, you are much more likely to wake up in an optimistic mood and raring to go.
- Do you remember how you felt as a child on Christmas Eve? You were so excited that the next day you jumped out of bed full of anticipation. That’s the mentality you’re aiming for here.
- Move your alarm clock around the room. It’s very simple, but movement creates energy, so if you have to get out of bed to turn it off, it will naturally help you wake up.
- Brush your teeth as soon as you get out of bed. Yes, before breakfast. The point is that you are doing a mindless activity for the first few minutes and giving your body time to wake up.
- Drink a full glass of water. After six to eight hours without water, you will naturally be slightly dehydrated. Often when people feel tired – at any time of the day – what they really need is more water, not more sleep.
GET MORE ENERGY (SLEEPING LESS)
I’ve spent years experimenting with this and believe me, it’s not only possible, it’s easy. I discovered that how we feel when we wake up is not based solely on the number of hours we sleep.
Instead, it is significantly affected by our mental attitude towards the benefits of sleep. For example, if you think you need eight hours just to feel human, but you know you’re only going to have six, you’ll probably tell yourself you’ll feel exhausted the next morning.
And this is how you will feel when you wake up. It is a self-fulfilling and self-sabotaging prophecy. But the mind-body connection is a powerful thing, and if you tell yourself that you will really feel healthy and energized with, say, five hours of sleep, very often you will.
Don’t take my word for it – experiment with this yourself. Try getting six hours of sleep and tell yourself you’ll feel amazing in the morning. I bet you will.
MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR EXTRA HOURS
- Reduce stress. For most of us, mornings are rushed, hectic, noisy and even chaotic. But while everyone else is still in bed, you can enjoy the stillness.
- Daily meditation can improve metabolism, lower blood pressure, increase brain activity, and develop concentration. Spend five to ten minutes in glorious silence.
- Lose weight. We all have a small internal voice that runs through our heads almost non-stop, but few of us take control of it. If you want to lose weight and get fit, repeating a daily mantra or affirmation out loud really accomplishes those goals.
- You might say, “I am 100 percent committed to going to the gym five days a week and running on the treadmill for a minimum of 20 minutes.” Do it repeatedly as a morning routine and you will be amazed at how quickly your thinking changes and good habits are established.
- Use your imagination. Sports experts often use the technique known as “visualization” to mentally rehearse the perfect free throw, backhand or sprint exit. Tiger Woods used it to imagine the flawless execution of his golf swing on every hole.
- But it also works for non-athletes. Try to visualize your goals, your deepest desires and your most exciting dreams. The more vivid you make your vision, the more compelled you will feel to take the actions necessary to make it a reality. Spend ten minutes each morning imagining your ideal life.
- Write a book. Or at least keep a diary; You never know, it might become a book later.
- Write any type of entry you want: lists of what you’re grateful for, lessons you learned the day before, priorities for the next day, or a synopsis of recent events. The mere process of writing something forces us to think about it carefully, and that brings clarity and concentration.
- It’s also empowering to go back and reread journal entries from a year ago to see how much progress you’ve made. Spend ten minutes writing in your journal each morning.
- Make plans to improve your relationship or change jobs. Whatever you want to achieve, there are expert books for every challenge you face.
- There are no limits to the knowledge you can acquire by reading. Take ten minutes to absorb ten pages of a book that will help you live your best life.
Hal Elrod’s Miraculous Morning. It says you can improve your life by taking six minutes each morning to relax, focus and exercise.
A NEW YOU IN JUST SIX MINUTES
The most common question I get asked about The Miracle Morning is how long the routine should be.
As I’ve developed it over the years, I’ve been very conscious of the need to make it scalable, so that even on those especially busy days, when getting up early doesn’t result in free time, it’s still possible to do so. Here’s how you can overhaul your life in just six minutes a day.
- Minute One: Calm your mind and relax your body. Allow all your stress to fade away.
- Minute two: take out your list of life goals. Review what you are committed to and what your purpose is. Say out loud the actions that are necessary to live the life you really want.
- Minute Three: Close your eyes and visualize the day going perfectly. Imagine yourself enjoying your job, your family, and your friends, and then imagine an even happier day, when you’re living the life you’ve always wanted down to the last detail.
- Minute four: Write down something you are proud of yourself, something you are grateful for, and the priority goal for that day. By doing so, you create a secure and organized state of mind.
- Minute five: Read a page or two from an inspiring book. You may learn a new idea or discover something that will improve your relationship or increase your performance at work.
- Minute six: Get up and run on the spot or do as many sit-ups as you can in 60 seconds. Increase your heart rate and generate that vital energy.
Congratulations. You are ready to face the day ahead and transform your life in the process.
Adapted by Alison Roberts from The Miracle Morning: The 6 Habits That Will Transform Your Life Before 8am by Hal Elrod, published by John Murray Learning, priced £9.99.
To order a copy for £7.99, call 0844 571 0640 or visit mailbookshop.co.uk. Free delivery on orders over £12. Offer valid until April 18.