The way you start your day from the moment you wake up sets the precedence for how the rest of your day, and ultimately how the rest of your life, will go. This is because creating a morning routine is a healthy habit that benefits both the body and mind.
Sometimes it is difficult to have a positive attitude first thing in the morning. Especially when you have a hectic day before you. It is easy to slip into a worried mindset when considering your to-do list. For this reason, I have come up with five tips to help you spruce up your morning routine and cut the negativity.
1. Eliminate Negative Thoughts
The first thing you should do in the morning is absolutely eliminate is your negative thoughts.
You should eliminate them from your life entirely, but again, it’s best to nip this in the bud at the start of your day. They’re not going to get you to where you want to go.
Instead, always look for a better feeling thought.
Become a “Vibrational Match” for the Things You Want
Everything on Earth vibrates at a specific frequency, and you must become a “vibrational match” for the things you want.
Think of yourself as a radio station. If you want to listen to jazz, you have to tune your dial to a jazz station, not a heavy metal one. Likewise, tuning your thoughts and feelings to a positive frequency will bring you positive things.
2. Don’t Think About What Could Go Wrong
Do not immediately think about what could go wrong with the things you have to do for the day.
Don’t dread having to find a parking space or think about being late to your appointment.
Instead, I want you to close your eyes for a few moments every morning. Visualize your day going exactly the way you want it to go.
You’re going to find a parking spot. You’re going to make your appointment. Your meeting is going to go well. You are going to make that sale and you are going to finish that project.
Every single thing is going to go exactly the way you want it to.
This is what I call “intending the day.”
3. Start Your Day With a Purpose
The third thing you shouldn’t do in your morning routine is start without a purpose.
What is your bigger purpose?
Know why you get out of bed in the first place.
So after visualizing your day, visualize your bigger, long-term goals coming true. And take a few moments to say your affirmations, too.
Describe Your Goals in a Completed State
Try statements that describe your goals in their already completed state. Things like, “I am celebrating feeling light and alive at my perfect body weight of 135.”
I keep each of my goals and affirmations handwritten on a 3×5 index card. I read them after I wake up in the morning and before I go to sleep at night. Doing this consistently will activate your subconscious mind’s power to fulfill the achievement of your goals.
Your subconscious will look out for anything — people, opportunities, activities, and events — that can help you achieve your goal.
4. Remember to be Grateful
Next, remember to be grateful.
It’s easy to get up, jump right into working on getting things done, and take for granted the things that brought you to this moment. Take a few minutes to write down what you’re grateful for, that’s what I do every day.
I promise you that this simple technique will work miracles in your life.
A state of appreciation and gratitude puts you in one of the highest emotional states possible.
Remember, the Law of Attraction states like energy attracts like energy.
Our thoughts are made up of energy. If you think that way, you’ll attract more abundance, which will give you more to be thankful for.
5. If You Get Inspiration, Act Immediately
The fifth and final thing you should not do in your morning routine is ignoring your inspired actions.
If you get an inspiration to do something…
Act on it immediately.
As opposed to “obvious actions,” like changing your diet if you want to lose weight, “inspired actions” are more intuitive. Like a hunch or gut feeling.
You know, those random thoughts you have? Things like “I don’t know why, but I have this urge to call my college roommate” or “I have a strong feeling that I should attend that event tonight.
You may be presented with an opportunity you would never have imagined by taking that action.
Listen to Your Gut
Most of the time you won’t see the whole plan, but if you get an inspiration, act on it!
Don’t put it off or let it go. Pick up the phone and make the call, go down to the coffee shop, or go to the event that you thought of.
I remember being at a conference in Connecticut with my wife. I felt attracted to go to a session on doubling your income. My wife questioned my decision because service, not money, had always been my primary motivator in life.
I told her I didn’t know why, but I felt compelled to go it. When I arrived at the session, I sat down next to a woman and introduced myself. It turned out she was a veterinarian, and she had just discovered a cure for feline leukemia.
My cat had recently been diagnosed with feline leukemia. Because I had followed my inspiration to go that session, my cat went on to live many more years.
See a Positive Difference in Your Day and Your Life
I’m going to leave you with a homework assignment. Eliminate at least one of these five things from your morning routine and replace them with their opposite. Positive thoughts are greater than negative thoughts.
Remember to visualize your day going well instead of badly. Focus on your larger purpose and your long term goals. Take a few moments to focus on what you are grateful for. Act on your inspirations.
If you do, I guarantee you’re going to see a dramatic, positive difference in how the rest of your day, and your life, plays out.
As the beloved originator of the Chicken Soup for the Soul® series, Jack Canfield fostered the emergence of inspirational anthologies as a genre—and watched it grow to a billion dollar market. As the driving force behind the development and delivery of over 100 million books sold through the Chicken Soup for the Soul® franchise, Jack Canfield is uniquely qualified to talk about success. Jack is America’s #1 Success Coach and wrote the life-changing book The Success Principles: How to Get From Where You Are to Where You Want to Be and Jack speaks around the world on this subject. Check out his newest book The 30-Day Sobriety Solution: How to Cut Back or Quit Drinking in the Privacy of Your Own Home. Follow Jack at www.jackcanfield.com and sign up for his free resources today!
Image courtesy of Trent Szmolnik.
