SUCCESS FORMULA

Action: Win The Day

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Action: Win The Day

In The Compound Effect, Darren Hardy makes the important point that we have more control over the very beginnings of our day and the very ends of our days than we do over the middle of the days.

He calls those “Bookends.”

If we want to create a template for a Masterpiece Day, we’d be wise to start with those bookends!

So… Here is a magic wand (like the one from Harry Potter!). Wave your wand at your calendar, what would your ideal day look like?

What would your optimal AM bookend look like?

How about your PM bookend?

Think about it. If you could wave a wand (within the constraints of reality), what would you create? This is how you are going to win the day (and every other day).

 The Big Ideas

1. While I said in previous videos Today's the Day, actually... Today actually started last night. Your PM Bookend is going to directly impact how you feel as you start the next day. Therefore, we need to put a bigger emphasis on our PM Bookend over our AM Bookend and why it is so important.

2. What time do you want to wake up? Now backtrack 8.5-9.5 hours before then - that is your new bedtime.

3. You have an end to your workday, right? If not, now is the time to create one and call it Shut-Down Complete. At the end of the workday, shut down your consideration of work issues until the next morning —no after-dinner e-mail check, no mental replays of conversations, and no scheming about how you’ll handle an upcoming challenge; shut down work thinking completely. If you need more time, then extend your workday, but once you shut down, your mind must be left free.

4. I recommend having your Shut-Down Complete at least 1 hour before your bedtime and couple it with turning off all your electronics to avoid blue light inputs.

5. Craft your PM Bookend and make it a work of art. Go old school! No electronics, just whatever else it takes you to start the process of winding down. Here is my personal PM Bookend:

   1. Hygiene. I wash my face, brush my teeth, do everything I need to from a self-care perspective to get ready for bed. If I have time, I take a relaxing warm shower. 

   2. Clean Your Feet. In the Sleep Revolution by Arianna Huffington, a major key takeaway for me was to wash your feet every night before going to bed. This helps relax your entire body, lower your core temperature, and can shorten the time required for you to go from wakefulness to sleep. 

   3. Gratitude practice. I do this by writing in my 5-Min Gratitude Journal. https://amzn.to/3ddxQ1v

   4. Read. If I have time, I like to read a book and pick up where I left off till I feel drowsy!

6. Here are two powerful frameworks to use to craft your perfect AM Bookend:

   1. 20/20/20 Formula ― 5 AM Club by Robin Sharma: The way you start your day powerfully shapes how productively you live it. Reserve the first 60 minutes for personal preparation. Spend your first 20 minutes reflecting. This can be a review of your annual plan and reflect deeply on your quarterly goals. This can also be meditation, journaling, gratitude practice, affirmations, or whatever works best for you. Clarity precedes mastery and this practice will deepen your focus through the day. For the next “20 minute pocket” do some type of moving. Sweating releases BDNF, a brain chemical that actually grows neural connections. Working out also releases dopamine (the neurotransmitter of motivation) and serotonin, which make you feel happy. Invest the final 20 minutes of this morning routine on learning. For example, reading a great book, listening to a podcast, or course video. Whatever falls under the realm of personal development or self-improvement from a learning perspective falls under here.

   2. S.A.V.E.R.S. ― The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod: This is a 6-step morning routine (which can take 60min or more, up to you) that will dramatically affect your levels of success in every single area of your life using what are called Life S.A.V.E.R.S.:

      1. Silence. Start every morning with a period of purposeful Silence of at least 5 minutes

      2. Affirmations. Program yourself to be confident and successful in everything you do

      3. Visualization. Imagine what you want to achieve and mentally rehearse what you’ll need to do to achieve it.

      4. Exercise.

      5. Reading. Learn from the experts and model successful people who have already achieved what you want.

      6. Scribing. Writing enables you to document your insights as well as any areas of opportunity.

7. And that is it! Great lives are created one great day at a time. Knowing what your ideal days look like, crafting AM + PM Bookends, and holding yourself accountable to them will be instrumental in actualizing your potential. Now go wave that wand and live your masterpiece of a day.