Episode #149 - The Power of Morning Routine-REBOOT#88

Episode Notes: 

Tired of being tired… struggling to just get yourself going every morning?… What if you had a superpower, one that could give you energy, positivity, and control over your day?

How about a strategy to ward off the dreaded “cold & flue” season, and why I believe avoiding illness is a lifestyle choice rather than a seasonal obligation. 

Do you want the same advantage that top business leaders, elite athletes, millionaires & billionaires have?... like 95% of successful people, it starts with a solid, repeatable morning routine.

Discover how transforming the start of your day can boost your energy levels & fast-track your path to accomplishing your goals.

This week, I’ll reshare an earlier episode, that outlines my easy 6-Step Morning Routine that will not only transform your mornings but change your life & have you loving your mornings instead of dreading them!

Stay tuned, as we share these valuable insights and offer a free resource, to help you embark on this journey of transformation… NOW, go out and master the morning & crush the day!

 Sign up for FREE to my "Quote of the Day" below:

 https://tinyurl.com/fv5xr68h

Transcript

Rick: 0:00

What is it that all these successful people have in common? What superpower do they all share that keeps them at the top of their game, Motivated, energized and winning in life? It's the same principle I've been following for the last two and a half years that's made a dramatic shift in my life, something I will not ever remove from my daily life ["Mindwrench"].

Rick: 0:24

Welcome to the Mindwrench podcast with your host, rick Selover, where minor adjustments produce major improvements in mindset, personal growth and success. This is the place to be every Monday where we make small improvements and take positive actions in our business and personal lives that will make a major impact in our success. Next level growth and quality of life ["Mindwrench"].

Rick: 0:53

Hey, what's up everybody. Welcome to the Mindwrench podcast. I'm your host, rick Selover. Thanks so much for stopping in. If you're a returning listener and haven't done so already, please take a minute and click the follow or subscribe button and then rate and review the show. When you rate and review the show, the algorithms for Apple, spotify, google podcasts, iheart radio, amazon music and all the other platforms will see that it's valuable and show it to more people that have never seen it before, and hopefully it can help them too. I would really, really really appreciate your help, sharing this word with your friends and family as well, and if you're a brand new listener, welcome. I hope you find something of value here that helps you in your personal or professional life as well. Please make sure to click the subscribe or follow button so you never miss another episode.

Rick: 1:37

Yes, it's that time of year again. You know when the media lets us know, because we always forget that it's cold and flu season. Better get your shots now, and might as well get that new booster shot at the same time, right? Well, usually for the next three or four months or so, many people do get sick, but it's not mandatory. You actually have more control over your health, not just during the winter months, but throughout the whole year than you think. This week, I wanted to share my personal hack to avoiding the impending doom predicted by the news media and our morning talk shows. It's a lifestyle habit that I've adopted and practiced it consistently over the past several years, with amazing success. In fact, I have not been sick, gotten the flu or colds or strep throat or any of those other common winter time sicknesses, since I've implemented this change to my day. Back in the summer of 2022, I released this episode of the power of a morning routine, and I thought this would be a great time to reshare it with all of you, in hopes that by following these simple changes to the start of your days, something that can be done by most anybody that you'll be able to avoid the disruption and misery of being sick too. So let's travel back to the summer of 2022, an episode number 88, power of a Morning Routine.

Rick: 2:58

One of the things I've always been extremely grateful for is, in my position within this industry and being on the customer facing side of distribution. I've had the great fortune of meeting and speaking to probably thousands of people over the last 30 years, getting to know the personalities, listening to their stories, their worries, their concerns, listening to their sins and confessions I swear sometimes they must think I have a white collar or something but, most importantly, gaining some wisdom and perspective from every one of them. It has given me some incredible insight on how the human brain works and sometimes how it doesn't work Well. Today I wanna share a few commonalities and synergies in all of us that I've discovered along the way that help guide the direction of our lives and a superpower that can make a massive difference, a life altering shift in the quality and enjoyment of your life. And the cool part is it's something that every one of us has the ability to master. Now I may note a few things that may seem overly obvious or state a few facts that by themselves may have you thinking so what? But when I tie them together, it just might have you seeing a clear picture of why some of us seem to struggle through our days, never seeming to get ahead or accomplish any big goals, realize any dreams and just manage to live off of a low energy existence, while others around us master their days, seem to have full control over their destinies, knock down big goals and have endless energy in their days. So hang in there with me on this one, okay, I promise it'll be worth it.

Rick: 4:32

One thing that's one of those commonalities, or a constant in all of us, is that we have two schools of thought going. At all times, we have thoughts and feelings of how we view ourselves right now, present day, on how we're doing, how we fit into our little ecosystem. Am I where I should be in life? Is my job safe? Am I even in the right job for my skills? Should I be doing something different? If so, than what? And unfortunately, we think of what everybody else thinks of us, right? Well, here's a bonus tip Stop doing that right now. We also have thoughts and feelings, concerns and worries about our futures. Will I be able to retire someday, or will I need to go back to work again? What about my health? What about my spouse, my kids? Will I ever be able to start that business I wanted to? Will I realize my goals or my dreams? What happens if I don't? The list goes on and on. Now, while these thoughts are all perfectly natural and most all of us have them, they are predominantly negative, always looking for worst case scenarios. But that is how our brains are designed to look for what could go wrong, what to be cautious of. It's our caveman brain's self-protection mechanism that sole job is to keep us safe. So two thoughts where we are now, how we're doing and how will we be in the future.

Rick: 5:50

Another consistency I've realized is we seem to fall into one of two categories. We are either intentional with our lives means we're proactively making decisions and take action or we are unintentional in our lives. We are reactive to what happens around us. We do not make decisions ahead of events or situations. We run the day or the day runs us. We are the main character, the hero, in our own movie, or we're a supporting character or, worse yet, an extra on the set in someone else's movie. I know it may seem like a silly little analogy, but it's true, isn't it? And if you had the choice, would you really want to be in someone else's movie and not in your own?

Rick: 6:33

I think, deep down, every single one of us wants to be the hero of our own movie, but fear, insecurity or the willingness to try to be intentional prevents us most of the time. If there's only something to help us get started, hmm, have you ever looked in the mirror and said to yourself how come I'm not further along than this? Or why can't I ever seem to get ahead? You're frustrated with life, unsure of your future, wanting to make a change in your current situation, but too scared to make that next move. Maybe you want to reach that next level in life or in your business, but not sure what the right move is. Or maybe you feel the best thing to do is nothing at all.

Rick: 7:11

Many of you may not know, but, along with hosting my own weekly podcast, I'm a personal development mindset, business and life coach where I focus on helping people with self development, mindset and how to make positive changes in their lives. And, trust me, with all the negativity we've had to deal with these past two years, I think we all need some positivity, positive change and a fresh approach to our life or our business. Sometimes talking to the right person can make all the difference. If you really want to start making those changes in your life, take action right now. Reach out and email, text, call or direct message me as soon as possible. Do it right now. I'll set you up with a free consultation. Call and pre qualify you for either the one on one or business coaching that you really need to get your life or your business on the right track, and success Appointments are available right now.

Rick: 8:00

Okay, here's where the superpower I spoke of earlier comes into play. If you know anything about me, you know that my focus always starts with mindset. Mindset is the foundation that all self improvement is built upon, and whenever I'm working with someone on making improvements, we must first strengthen the mindset before we can move forward. Having the correct mindset is not only critical to success in your business or professional career, but your personal life as well. This is something the top 95% of business leaders, entrepreneurs, elite athletes, health and fitness experts, as well as millionaires and billionaires, not only understand, but work on every single day. What is it that all the successful people have in common? What superpower do they all share that keeps them at the top of their game, motivated, energized and winning in life? It's the same principle I've been following for the last two and a half years that's made a dramatic shift in my life, something I will not ever remove from my daily life. They all have a solid, defined, repeatable, dependable part of their day called the morning routine.

Rick: 9:04

Now hold on a second Before you start spitting out reasons why you could never have time for something like a morning routine. Or you just don't have the energy, or you're not a morning person, or you have too many responsibilities, or you're too out of shape, or whatever bullshit excuse you want to throw out there. Please just hear this out. There are a few simple steps that don't need to be overwhelming at all. These will not take up much time out of your morning, and I will show you how to gain that extra time to spend on this and will only feel uncomfortable for the first week or so, but quickly start giving you benefits that will keep you looking forward to your mornings instead of dreading them.

Rick: 9:39

First step reset your body's clock. Wake up a little earlier than normal One hour earlier would be great, but even 30 minutes earlier would give you enough time to accomplish a great morning routine, and you can do this without missing any sleep by simply shifting your bedtime. Turn off the news or whatever you're watching, and go to bed 30 to 60 minutes earlier Trust me your body will appreciate it and then set your alarm clock the same amount of that time earlier. Do not use a snooze button ever. Your best time to get up is as soon as you open your eyes the first time. If you need to, you can count down from 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, and pop out of bed.

Rick: 10:19

I know a lot of you always seem to be running late, rushing to work or dropping the kids off at school and, trust me, I do see you on the road every morning and you probably should be getting up early to begin with, but never really had a compelling reason to before now. Well, now you do. Trust me, I was just like you For a lot of years. I was always rushing last minute every morning and then getting upset when traffic was slow or stopped. Frustrated and late is no way to show up anywhere, especially at work. Right, leaving in the morning ahead of time makes that drive a lot more enjoyable. Some of you will struggle with this initially and say it's too hard to make that change, but believe me, if your job started in new hours or you had to change jobs that included different start times, you'd have to make that adjustment anyways. Right, you can do this and you will thank yourself after about the second week.

Rick: 11:09

Second step practice a little gratitude. This is such an easy part of the routine. It literally only takes a minute or two, and it can be done even before you're out of bed or while showering, shaving or putting on makeup, or walking or running, so there's no reason not to do it. Most people can quickly think of a few things to be grateful for. But if you're stuck and need a few ideas, how about just waking up in the morning? Do you know 150,000 people die every single day? Hey, and today you're not one of them? Having someone in your life that loves you could be your family, could be a spouse, your kids, could be a pet hell could even be the gas station owner. These days, you can be grateful to be employed or have a job, or to have specific talents or skills. You can be grateful to have good friends or good coworkers that you like spending time with. You can be grateful for having shelter or a vehicle or food in the fridge. You get the idea there's much to be grateful for even in the humblest of lives.

Rick: 12:09

Third step hydrate your body and your mind. Now the first thing you should do after getting out of bed, before you go brush your teeth or jump in the shower or whatever, is go to the kitchen and drink a full 8-12 oz glass or bottle of cold water. During sleep, your body and your brain get very dehydrated and we're not up running at full capacity first thing in the morning. This simple step rehydrate you quickly, gets you up and gets all your cells functioning at full speed. Well now, anybody that knows me knows I love my coffee, but hydrating with cold water first will wake your whole body up quicker than you could brew a cup of coffee. And don't worry, you can still have that cup of coffee afterwards. If you want to take it to the next level, you can follow my process and add a fresh squeezed whole lemon to the water as well. The lemon helps as a great source of alkaline that not only reduces the amount of acid in your system and acid increases stress levels but works as a natural cleanse for a better gut health as well. Lastly, on water, if you haven't done so already, make it a habit to drink at least 6 or more 8 oz servings of water every single day. It does a world of good for your whole body. Yeah, you may have to pee a lot more, but, man, you'll be running a lot cleaner, trust me.

Rick: 13:23

Fourth step exercise. Adding some degree of exercise to your day may be new for most of you, and that's okay. There's no judgment here but it's a critical step in the morning routine that should not be skipped. This doesn't have to be overly strenuous, exhausting or extreme at all, but just something that gets your body moving, get your blood pumping through your system. The range of activities can be very broad, from as easy as practicing yoga or meditation, stretching or a brief walk outdoors, or it could be a little more intense, like walking or running on a treadmill, an elliptical trainer, maybe lifting some weights or a trip to your local gym. You know I joined my first gym over 20 years ago because I didn't want to get to be old and fat like so many other older men I knew into my business and I'm so glad I did. I don't go more than 2 or 3 times a week, but I've stayed consistent over the years and I feel strong and flexible as I did when I was in my 30s, not to mention I do some form of exercise at least 5 days out of the week, at the same time every day, and I'm very consistent on that. Most of it's cardio and a little bit of calisthenics. But no matter what you decide you can do consistently do it for a minimum of 15 minutes every work day possible. You can take the weekends off if you want. Just try to shoot for 5 out of 7 days. An exercise has many mental benefits to it as well. You will notice the more you exercise, the better your and clearer your thinking becomes.

Rick: 14:51

Fifth step fuel your body. This step should already be part of your mornings, but just may look a little different right now and it may be working against what you're trying to accomplish with your new morning routine. But most of us give very little thought to our first meal of the day. For some it's just a cup of coffee, tea or juice, maybe a muffin or maybe a piece of toast and out the door we go. I know from previous experience none of those will power or sustain you until lunch. In fact, most won't even make it till 10am without getting shaky or hangry and start looking for some kind of snack. They get them through for another couple hours. Sound familiar.

Rick: 15:27

Start your day with some protein. Animal or plant based works just fine. Go later on the carbs, the toast, the bagels, the muffins, the donuts, the cereal and fruit and yogurts are always good. Coffee and teas are good in moderation, but try to avoid juices, as they're just loaded with sugars and will spike quickly and end up leaving you hungrier when they wear off. You've heard it before garbage in, garbage out, the better the fuel, the better the performance. And once again, I can't stress enough water, water, water. Now please note, and please keep this in mind, that I'm not a nutritionist, a healthcare professional or a doctor. My suggestions are based purely on my experience, so please use your own best judgment or consult with a doctor before making any changes in diet or exercise.

Rick: 16:14

Okay, last one, sixth step fuel your mind. This one is not only the most impactful part of a great morning routine, but it's also the very core of living a better life, allowing you to experience more personal and professional success and helping you be more intentional with the direction of your life. If you do nothing else I've shared with you today, or if your limiting beliefs have decided for you that this morning's shit is not really for you although it really is do this one step and do it with dedication every single day. It'll end up being the best gift you've ever given yourself. It'll reshape, redefine and redirect your mindset in such a positive way that your life, how you look at it and how you live, it will change forever. If you do nothing else to change your current situation in life, please do this.

Rick: 17:06

Your mind is being fed input every single second of every single day, for most of us automatically, without a direction or any positive intention. It's being fueled or fed by the input we're exposed to Whatever's coming out of the TV or the radio, or someone talking to us or someone with an ear shot, what we read, the smells around us, what we see and what we feel, to atmosphere that we're in. Much like a garbage dumpster with a top open. It'll fill with whatever someone decides to walk by and dump in there. Right, if you're not actively deciding who can dump whatever into your dumpster, it'll fill up with pure garbage. It's also being fed with all the negative thoughts we focus on the worries, the fears we have, the crappy things we tell ourselves, the limiting beliefs we have about ourselves and our abilities. This is nothing but purely passive feeding, no real control, direction or intention of what's getting dumped into that dumpster. And we do it every damn day, don't we? So what can we do to change this, or is it even possible to control? There's a great quote from Jim Rohn that was Tony Robbins' original mentor many years ago and it says stand guard at the door of your mind, just like it sounds. This means it's up to you to monitor what gets into your mind. You close the top of that dumpster and deciding what's getting in there. There's a few easy things to start eliminating or drastically reducing right away.

Rick: 18:33

That we'll call bad fuel the morning or evening news. Like they say, if it bleeds, it leads. It is all negative stories. Everything that went wrong today, all the crimes that were committed, what might go wrong tomorrow, how we're all doomed by the end of the week. It's all the same crap. It's just negative, negative, negative. It's never a positive story. It's never anything enlightening or refreshing or inspiring. I mean, if you ever watched the news and felt, oh my God, I feel so much better now. Of course you don't. That doesn't sell, that doesn't get advertising dollars. They know what does. They prey on our weakness of being attracted to negativity and shocking things. That's just how the human brain works.

Rick: 19:16

Social media, another one you should avoid. It seems to be nothing more than people posting things that make themselves look like they're living the life of a millionaire, while others just bash them with all the comments. I mean it's really pointless. Nobody goes to social media and feels better about themselves or better about life after they've scrolled for an hour or two hours. So just skip it. It's a waste of time, it's pointless. Avoid it. Sad, depressing music or violence-based rap music. It doesn't inspire or motivate you. Then cut it out of your life.

Rick: 19:50

Negative self-talk Some of the things that you tell yourself you definitely would not tell to someone you loved, or your own kids, or your own mother or father, right? So why do you keep telling yourself I'm not good enough, I'm probably not going to make it, I don't think I can do it, I'm probably going to lose? I mean, we do a great job of telling ourselves how bad we are and how much we suck and how we're not going to make it. So that's bad fuel. Cut it out. You don't need to do that.

Rick: 20:17

Spending time with toxic people that's an easy one. You may not be able to avoid everybody that's toxic in your life, but you know who they are. As soon as you start talking to them, you start feeling a little bit worse about things and you start looking for okay, how soon can I get out of this conversation. So avoid talking to those people as much as possible. If you can't cut them completely out, limit your time with them. You'll be so much better off for it. Now here's some good fuel to replace those things with Number one gratitude. You know, a little goes a long way. It doesn't have to be a whole lot, but it's literally impossible to feel angry, to feel upset, to feel stressed or worried when you're practicing gratitude, positive affirmations. It's an easy way to program your mind for what you want. I mean, when you're telling yourself what you're going to accomplish, what you're going to do, how you're going to do it, and confirming to yourself that you are good at what you do and you are going to be successful, you're actually pre-programming your mind for success.

Rick: 21:16

Podcasts they're great ways to learn something, to gain a new skill or to sharpen up an existing skill, to learn more about a certain subject that you're interested in or to learn a whole brand new subject. It's great entertainment, great knowledge, and it's a great way to spend that 20 or 25 minutes in your car driving to or from work. Really good music can be a great input or a great fuel for your mind as well. Something that's 120 to 130 beats per minute, something that'll motivate you, enhance your mood or give you that little dopamine hit and make you feel good. That's always a great choice. Another thing I like is beautiful natural landscapes. So whether it's real outdoors or something you can watch on YouTube TV, the sights and sounds of nature have a high impact on creative thinking, mood and sense of well-being. And if you can't get out in nature often enough to visually see it in person, then YouTube TV's got some great running videos of oceans with waves crashing or mountain views or babbling creeks or whatever. It's very soothing, very relaxing, and it'll spark some creativity and some great thinking for you.

Rick: 22:28

And lastly, reading a few pages of a good book, whether it's self-help, growth, new skills, starting a business, whatever. And if you don't like reading, you can try Audible or Blinkist. Those are great ways to listen while you're driving to and from work as well. Learning and growing should be a lifelong process, and most successful leaders and entrepreneurs read over 50 books a year, yet most of us only read one to two books a year.

Rick: 22:50

So once again, six steps to your new superpower morning routine. Number one reset your body clock. Go to bed earlier, get up a little earlier. Number two practice a little gratitude. It only takes a minute or so. Three hydrate your body and your mind. Water, water, water. Number four exercise at least 15 minutes, five out of seven days, a little or a lot, it all helps. Number five fuel your body. Remember quality in quality out. And number six fuel your mind. Stand guard at the door of your mind and be in charge of what goes in there. Now I know if I can get my naturally lazy ass on this program and stick to it. You can too. It's now been over 24 months that I've been practicing my morning routine. I feel amazing. Each day I have a ton of energy and would highly promote this life-altering change to anyone and everyone.

Rick: 23:44

Well, that's all I have for today. Hopefully, these ideas and these tips I've shared with you today will motivate and inspire you to start your own morning routine. I can guarantee you it'll be one of the greatest things you've ever done for yourself and it'll make a massive difference in your health, how you feel, your mental state and your performance and your ability to get to the next level. Hey, if you're interested in following my exact morning routine and all the steps involved, I created a great PDF resource. Just DM me and I'll send it right to you Absolutely free. Thanks again for tuning in. I really appreciate your support and I hope you have a great week. I can always be reached at wwwricksellovercom, where you can find all my social media links, post episodes, blog posts and much more.