The Energizing Daily Rituals That Transform Body, Mind, and Soul
The chains of habit are too weak to be felt until they are too strong to be broken.
—Samuel Johnson, English author, poet, and journalist
I was an obsessive child. I always had to be first at everything, I refused to let different foods touch on my plate, and I had rigid sleep habits.
On one particularly memorable Friday night when I was just nine years old, my family and I went to a high school football game. This was one of those epic crosstown rival matches there was no way any of us was going to miss.
Late in the second half the score was close, the tension was high, and everyone in the stands was on their feet. I was screaming just as loud as anyone—cheering, booing, and stomping my feet. At one point near the end of the game, my mother looked over at me and saw something rather remarkable: I was asleep standing up.
In the middle of the chaos and having just been wide awake only a few moments before, I had fallen asleep standing on both feet at exactly 9:00 p.m.
At this point in my life, I had the most structured sleep patterns of anyone I knew. Like clockwork, I would fall asleep every night at 9:00 p.m. and bounce out of bed at 6:00 a.m. the next morning. You could literally set your watch to my daily routine.
Those impressive habits didn’t stick around during my teen years and I have had to start over from scratch ever since. Yet, among the many differences between my life as a nine-year-old boy and a man in his 30s, there is no doubt that I still have the same ability today that I did back then.
What has changed is that I have had to be very intentional with my habit formation, focusing closely on what it means to create effective, healthy, and productive habits. Most importantly, it is clear that any repeated daily action can become a strong habit that can stick like glue.
Your daily actions tell your whole story. Whether good, bad, or ugly, you are where you are today because of your habits, actions you consistently repeat and that are hard to give up. If you truly want to know where you will be many years from now, you only have to look as far as your strongest habits—the actions that have the most impact and that you have repeated more than any other.
Habits are the backbone of your personality, relationships, health, finances, and career. For all intents and purposes, your habits created your life as you know it. Phrased another way, the only thing standing between you and your highest self are better habits.
The key to forming better habits is conscious consistency, deliberately choosing effective actions to repeat over and over instead of letting accidental bad habits form. Every day we have a lot more power and control over our lives than we think, but only if we think.
As we discussed in the previous chapter, the Quarter System is based on a short vision of the future. However, over time those quarters will add up to a year, two years, five years, and more. The habits that you consistently execute each quarter will determine your success many quarters (and years) from now.
The whole point of the Quarter System is to cause action to happen, and happen faster. When you have chosen goals that are important to you and there is an inherent sense of urgency to get those goals accomplished, it’s much easier to bounce out of bed on a daily basis and execute your most vital habits.
After all, if repeated daily actions determine your habits and your habits determine your future, then your daily actions are the most important element between you and the achievement of your grandest goals.
Now, all we need are a few intelligently chosen daily actions to repeat over and over that will lead to securing your strongest, stickiest, healthiest, and most productive habits.
STEP 3: ANCHOR AND COMPLEMENTARY HABITS
In the first step of The 5 AM Blueprint, you established a comprehensive list of your grandest goals, and then, in the second step, you focused on just a vital few goals with your new Quarter System.
In order to reach your grandest goals, you will need more than focus and more than a few marathon work sessions. In the end, daily actions make the biggest difference.
The third step in the Blueprint is the implementation of habits, specifically anchor habits and their resulting complementary habits.
In addition to being handsomely rewarded for your actions, getting habits to stick is as simple as implementing the right reminder (also known as a trigger or cue) that leads directly to the habit itself. The best possible reminder is one that is already in place and that doesn’t require you to make any changes at all.
Anchor habits are those habits that are already in place. They are actions you are already doing, and the best part is, they naturally lead to other habits, which I refer to as complementary habits. For example, an anchor habit could be flossing your teeth (assuming you do this regularly), which then naturally leads to the complementary habit of brushing your teeth (because you are already in the right place, at the right time, with the right resources available).
Though anchor habits are typically habits you already have in place, you can also create new anchors, change old anchors, or eliminate anchors that are not working well for you.
There are three core anchor habits that are vital to your success with The 5 AM Blueprint. These are likely anchors that are already in your life in some form. If not, now is your chance to reinvent your day.
The first anchor habit is waking up with a plan. As we discussed previously in the book, how early you wake up is highly subjective. However, the intention behind your wake-up call is not. When you wake up with a plan you then flow easily into the completion of your ideal morning activities, which are your complementary habits.
In other words, one well-chosen activity (the anchor) leads to many other well-chosen activities (complementary habits) that might not have happened unless the anchor was in place.
For example, let’s say that you normally wake up at the last minute, rush around the house, and then leave for work without a written plan in place. After implementing the lessons in The 5 AM Blueprint, you wake up earlier and plan your morning efficiently around a few powerful habits. In your past life you never had time for meditation, reading, or exercise, but because of your new anchor habit you now have time for the habits you had been missing.
The second anchor is exercise. Some people work out religiously while others just regret spending money on a gym membership they never use. Though I’m not as consistent as I would like to be, I do prioritize exercise and I recommend it as an essential ingredient in The 5 AM Blueprint. Exercise is a fundamental tool for both health and productivity.
As an anchor habit, exercise lends itself to healthy complementary habits. In my own life I know that when I go out for a morning run I also tend to practice yoga, hang upside down in my gravity boots (which is awesome by the way), eat a healthier breakfast, and shower before work.
Exercise improves your chances of better self-care, eating a better diet, and having better hygiene, among the multitude of other health benefits directly related to fitness.
The third core anchor habit is beginning your workday. That’s right, just getting out the door and into the office is an essential ingredient. It seems so obvious, but let’s look at why just getting to work is such an effective strategy.
When you go to work, what do you do there? Get to work, I would presume. On the flip side, what do you do when you stay home? Could be anything but work.
When you think of beginning your workday as an anchor habit, you then think about all of the complementary habits that naturally occur: answering emails, attending meetings, finishing your big project, and everything else. When you postpone getting to the office, you also postpone or eliminate all of the essential complementary habits that would have followed.
Like a great story, the key is to think about the inciting incident, the hinge that swings the big door, or any other metaphor where one pivotal action leads to the accomplishment of so many more essential actions. Successfully executing just a few core anchor habits each day has a profound effect on all the other tasks that now become available to complete.
If you have been kicking yourself for neglecting something important, simply implementing the right anchor habit can be the difference between success and failure.
HABITS OF THE HIGH ACHIEVERS
Now that I have covered the three core anchor habits (waking up with a plan, working out, and getting to work), let’s discuss some of the healthiest and most productive habits that are widely implemented by high achievers and early risers alike. Though we will specifically discuss productivity strategies in Chapter 8 (page 70), these habits form the foundation for a highly productive day.
Through my podcast I have interviewed dozens of highly successful people, including Dean Karnazes, David Allen, Bob Proctor, Rich Roll, and more, and asked each about their most effective daily habits. These are the habits that came up again and again through nearly every conversation. High achievers don’t waste much time, so when they prioritize a habit it’s because that habit brings with it a phenomenal return on investment.
This list is far from comprehensive, but these are the best of the best. When in doubt, go back to the fundamentals and work through this list as often as you can.
1. Bounce Out of Bed Bright and Early
You guessed it, high achievers are early risers and early risers are high achievers. I reiterate this point here because it stands to show just how widespread waking up early is among people who get a lot done. Not every successful person has a 5:00 a.m. wake-up call, but many of them do. It’s a clutch habit.
2. Hydrate Like You Live in the Desert
I have been waking up and drinking a liter of water for years, and many productive people do the same. After sleeping for many hours your body is likely to be dehydrated and craving water. A few years ago I implemented the habit of drinking 1 liter (34 ounces) of water before I have my morning espresso. I love my morning caffeine kick, so knowing that I have restricted myself to only getting my reward after drinking the water forced that habit to stick quick.
3. Quiet Time Is Essential
Without a doubt many, if not most, productive high achievers incorporate some form of meditation, prayer, and/or affirmations in their morning routine. Though these three habits are obviously different, they share the similarities of calm, focused thought on something positive and inspirational. That’s the goal and it works wonders.
4. Fruit for Breakfast
Every morning I have a 2-liter (68-ounce) green smoothie (fruit smoothie with leafy greens) for breakfast. It’s how I have begun my day for the last few years and I can’t imagine a better beginning to my day. High achievers focus on quality nutrition early in their morning routine. A healthy breakfast fills your mind, body, and soul with the nutrients you need to thrive.
It would be a disservice to you if I failed to mention my diet as a part of this strategy. In my mid-twenties I went through a radical health transformation, moving from highly processed and cooked animal products to a low-fat, raw vegan diet.
I know that what I eat is not for everyone, but it has been fundamental in my own 5 a.m. miracle. As I have mentioned, a large green smoothie is a staple in my morning routine, and that is because eating large quantities of fresh, ripe, raw, and organic produce is nothing short of life-changing. From increased energy and improved digestion to weight loss and dramatic fitness gains, consistently eating more food direct from Mother Nature is one of the healthiest habits I can imagine.
5. Consume Inspirational and Informative Content
This is unanimous. I can’t imagine a successful person who doesn’t include some form of personal growth in their day. From audiobooks and podcasts during a morning run to reading books, blogs, and inspirational texts while sipping your morning coffee, consuming quality information is absolutely essential for a productive life. I call my personal growth time my Morning Workshop, and I scour material looking for something actionable for my day—and I always find it.
6. Pump Your Blood
Even if it’s for only 10 minutes, morning exercise is a habit that cannot be replaced by anything else. Some high achievers are rather extreme with their fitness, but for most it’s highly effective to get the most bang for your buck. Burst training (or HIIT: High Intensity Interval Training) is a great strategy for anyone who does not have a lot of time but wants a great workout. Burst training involves explosive exercises with quick breaks in a few short minutes of high intensity. Outside of running, it’s my favorite workout.
7. Plan Your Day Like You Mean It
If there was one productive habit that I would recommend over any other, it’s this one. Planning your day in advance is the absolute best way to ensure you get the most value out of your time. Even with distractions that you know are coming, planning your day puts you in the driver’s seat first thing in the morning and increases your odds of success by leaps and bounds.
CONNECTING THE BIG PICTURE WITH YOUR DAILY ACTIONS
With these habits in mind, think back through your grandest goals for this quarter and determine what daily habits would work best in your daily routine. Ideally, you will have healthy habits (exercise, meditation, etc.) and productive habits (those that lead directly to the achievement of your goal).
For example, if you are working toward buying a new home, you could search for new houses on the market each morning. If you are applying to graduate school, you could complete one application per day. Whatever your goal, break it down into the key habits that make the biggest long-term difference.
In the next chapter, we will be designing your ideal morning routine. This will be your chance to schedule and implement both the anchors and the resulting complementary habits that will make the biggest difference in your life and your grandest goals.
KILL THE SNOOZE BUTTON
Pitfalls, Mistakes, and Problems to Avoid
Stick to your boundaries.
Whenever we find ourselves with many great options at our disposal we tend to want to do everything—open every door, pursue every epiphany, and seize every opportunity that has presented itself.
Unfortunately, there really are only 24 hours in a day and even with so many amazing, healthy, and productive habits to adopt, neither you nor I can do it all.
This is why boundaries are essential. In addition to the 8:00 p.m. evening boundary I set for myself each night, I also set additional boundaries on a daily basis. For example, when I create my task list each morning, I create time boundaries around any vital activities that need them.
Events, meetings, and commitments involving other people tend to be the most obvious choices for boundaries. I also set time-based boundaries around my morning routine, daily workout, and meals. Whenever it’s appropriate and necessary, I restrict myself with a hard deadline.
Without those restrictions I would likely chase every rabbit and follow every link that popped up. Boundaries provide structure that keep us zeroed in on the goals that need our attention while everything else is held for another day—or never.
QUICK REVIEW: ANCHOR AND COMPLEMENTARY HABITS
1. Consciously choose to form positive habits instead of accidentally letting bad habits creep into your life.
2. Ultimately, the achievement (or lack thereof) of your grandest goals is based on what you do every day.
3. Anchor habits are the core actions that you are already doing, which naturally lead to complementary habits.
4. The three core daily anchor habits are waking up with a plan, working out, and going to work.
5. The healthiest and most productive habits of high achievers include waking up early, drinking large quantities of water, prioritizing quiet time, eating a healthy breakfast, consuming positive information, working out, and planning the day in advance.
1. What unhealthy or unproductive personal and professional habits have you acquired over time that you would love to replace with healthy and productive habits?
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2. Now, connect the big picture with your daily actions. List your most important daily habits for achieving your current grand goals.
Current Grand Goal #1:
Daily habits that lead directly to the achievement of this goal:
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Current Grand Goal #2:
Daily habits that lead directly to the achievement of this goal:
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3) ___________________________________________________
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Current Grand Goal #3:
Daily habits that lead directly to the achievement of this goal:
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3. Identify when your key anchor habits and resulting complementary habits will occur, and what you must do to guarantee they will happen on a consistent basis.
Anchor Habit 1: Waking Up
Wake-up time: __________________________________________
What you must do to wake up at this time every morning:
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Complementary habits that result because I wake up on time (meditation, reading, etc.):
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Anchor Habit 2: Working Out
Workout time: __________________________________________
What I must do to work out consistently:
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2) ___________________________________________________
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Complementary habits that result because I work out consistently (improved diet, hygiene, etc.):
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Anchor Habit 3: Beginning the Day’s Focused Work
Time to begin focused work: ______________________________
What I must do to begin focused work at this time every morning:
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2) ___________________________________________________
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Complementary habits that result because I get to work ready for action (improved focus, energy, etc.):
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