Begin
your day with a Success Ritual to keep yourself off
the bottom
How
do you start your morning — do you hit the snooze
button 2 or 3 times, then jump up at the last
minute? Do you set a world record for the
fastest shower, throw on some clothes, then wolf
down hot coffee and stale donut in the car while you
make last minute grooming adjustments? On your
commute are you listening to talk radio that's
telling you the world is just about to end (stay
tuned ...) or speaker rattling music designed to
lifted your begrumbled morning spirits on the way to
being late again to the office? And, do you
ever wonder if there's a better way to get going
every day?
Not
to brag, but people who know me tend to describe me
as a positive and confident person. This
wasn't always true — I describe myself as a
"formerly shy, low self-esteem underachiever
with a bad attitude." In other words, I
was a normal Chicago-kinda guy through my 20's and
into my early 30's. And I was mostly
frustrated and depressed about my prospects for the
good life.
So
how did I turn things around? In the early '80's I
began to read books on goal setting, listen to
motivational audio programs and go to personal
development seminars — 25 years later I'm now an
"overnight success."
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These resources
inspired some new habits, among them a morning
"Success Ritual" that has served me well,
which I'll share here:
Morning
recitation
I don't know what time you get
up, but my dog got me trained to walk and feed him
at around 5 am every day (yes, even
weekends!). While on this morning stroll I
recite aloud the following:
- My
Mission Statement.
Per instructions in Napoleon Hill's classic success book
Think
and Grow Rich, years ago I created
"a statement of chief definite aim,"
then committed it to memory and now I recite it
every day so that the vibrations of sound can
reach my subconscious mind. According to Hill
this exercise is the starting point of all
"riches," both monetary and otherwise.
- Affirmations.
I learned from Brian Tracy that using positive affirmations as
you start your day is a key to thinking and
feeling positive most of the time. If
doing this is good enough for a successful
person like Brian Tracy, it's good enough for me. So
I use several custom-made affirmations to
reinforce my belief in my capability to achieve
whatever I want.
- Gratitude/Blessing
Statements.
I would never describe myself as
"religious" in a traditional
sense. Yet I want to give thanks to God
for all my blessings which are far too numerous
to count. So I put these thoughts into
words with the belief that "Someone"
actually hears them. And I make a point to
bless all of my friends, family, associates,
clients and prospects — past, present and
future ... covers just about everyone, doesn't
it?
This recitation takes all of 5 minutes.
Yes — there are probably people who drive by
at that early hour who are wondering who the
crazy guy is that always seems to be mumbling to
himself or his dog. They have no idea I'm
in the process of using "mental floss"
on my attitude!
Mediation/Visualization
After the dog is walked, I come
and and sit down cross-legged on a little cushion
for a 5 - 10 minute meditation/visualization
session. With eyes closed I take a few deep
breaths, then initially try to clear my mind of all
thoughts. After a minute or two I begin to
picture the outcomes of the goals I've set for
myself as vividly as possible. For example, I
will picture a certain number of coaching client
folders in my file, or a picture of an investment
statement with my financial goal on it. I have
not found the need (nor do I have the patience!) to
go longer than this — the key is: I never
miss a day, even when I've been out late the night
before.
Health
shake
I've never been a breakfast
eater — seems like nothing's happened yet to work
up an appetite. I found that when I just had
coffee around 10 am I would get hungry. So
several years ago I began to make my own version of
a "health shake," which is tasty,
nutritious and keeps the mid-morning sag away.
Ingredients include vanilla soy milk, protein
powder, fresh and frozen fruit, roasted almonds,
flax seeds, pure coconut oil and ice cubes.
I'll put this all in the blender, then take my
custom concoction over to the computer. I'll
glance at the day's news headlines briefly. . . .
you may wonder
why I don't pay more attention to the
headlines. The fact is most reported stories
really don't affect my world that much, and I don't
have control over them anyhow. So why waste
mental energy on them?
Motivational
audio program
I leave most weekday mornings
by 7 am for the 20-minute commute to my office, and
I have the habit of listening to a motivational/
inspirational/educational audio program. It's
not that I dislike music or talk radio — it's just
that these don't put me in the right frame of mind
on my way to being a great coach for my
clients. And the ideas I learn can put money
in my pocket; when I share them with clients it can
put money in their pockets too.
Morning
reading
But before I
get to the office I stop for coffee for about 20 minutes. In order to fulfill my
annual learning goal of at least 40 books per year,
I always carry a book that will give me even more
ideas to help me succeed. These range from
biographies of successful people to sales,
marketing, networking, business or personal
development. I heard a quote from Brian Tracy that goes, "If you want to be in
the top 10% of your field, read an hour a
day." I have averaged 5 hours per week of
reading and listening to material related to
coaching for the past several years, and lo and
behold: According to a recent book, I am in
the top 10% of earners for coaches — what a
surprise, huh?
I'm
not suggesting you do your morning Success Ritual
exactly the same way I do. For example, you
may find that working out in the morning while
listening to a motivational audio works best —
fine. Morning prayers from a prayer book?
Great! I just want to encourage you to pick
some "attitudinal fitness exercises" every
morning to inoculate yourself against the unseen
deadly "negativity virus" that pervades
our culture. By taking this on to start your day
you'll first build and then maintain a positive
attitude, which will lead to a successful day.
String these together and you have the foundation of
a successful and happy life.
* * * * * * * * * *
Success
Skills Coach Jim Rohrbach, "The Personal
Fitness Trainer for Your Business," coaches
business owners, entrepreneurs and sales
professionals on growing their clientele. He has
helped hundreds of individuals to achieve their
goals since he developed his first coaching program
in 1982.
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