I Tried The Morning Habits of Successful People for 60 Days
“Successful people are simply those with successful habits.” — Brian Tracy.
Highly successful people often swear by morning routines to create a powerful momentum for their day ahead.
Influential figures varying from entrepreneurs like Oprah Winfrey to tech titans like Bill Gates have carefully crafted their mornings as a foundation to start their day.
Unsurprisingly, their routines have a lot in common.
I decided to take the liberty of practicing the morning routines of highly successful people over 60 days to gauge the impact an effective morning routine would have on me.
Listed below are the morning habits of successful people and my experience when integrating these habits into my mornings.
1. Planning Their Day The Evening Before
Only to be expected, the beginning of a successful morning for overachievers don’t start in the morning, it starts the day before.
Planning a task list the day before helps prepare them to stay on track of their priorities. It provides a clear picture of the goals they have at hand to accomplish before their day ends.
According to Forbes, Shark Tank host, Barbara Corcoran makes her to-do list before leaving her office at night and then lists them in order of importance when she gets to the office the next day.
So every evening after finishing my work, I wrote down all the tasks, work and personal, that I wanted to accomplish the next day.
Initially, the habit helped me feel more in control because it provided clarity and structure to my day. I was able to break down my goals into actual action plans.
Although it was in the second week when I decided to limit the number of tasks on my list, I started giving myself only 3–5 assignments a day.
I planned my day around the jobs that would get me closer to my goals, and all other activities were slotted in whenever I had free time. It was this change that significantly increased my efficiency.
I would aim to get those three things done no matter what because I knew it was achievable. That shift prevented me from wasting time on trivial tasks that were only tricking me into believing I was productive.
Not to mention, checking off an assignment from the list always did provide a nice little motivation boost.
2. Getting Up At Dawn
From Apple C.E.O. Tim Cook to athlete Dwayne Johnson, it’s a well-known fact that successful people typically rise in the 4–6 AM window.
To make the most of my experience, I tried going for the extreme and got up at 4 AM every day. It was not pleasant, unsurprisingly, but I can say the additional time it gave me each morning almost made up for it.
It was a different experience going through my morning routine without having to rush. If there was a delay with public transport I didn’t have to worry, and if someone was making me late for work I didn't have to be angry.
I went through my morning routine more smoothly, and I could really take my time in being present. That shift resulted in me feeling less anxious, more relaxed, and composed when I began my day.
Getting up early surprisingly gave me a motivation boost too. Having that extra time made me feel like I was getting a head start on my goals and work, which gave me a sense of confidence that I was going to be productive.
Though truthfully, for the first few days, the only thing I felt was drained and dog-tired, despite sleeping earlier the night before.
A little trick I found was to get up 15 minutes earlier every day until I was waking up at 4 AM.
I can honestly say it was that tip that got me to readjust my sleep schedule successfully.
3. Cold Shower Therapy
Hopping into a cold shower or ice bath is a common practice for many influential figures, including Tony Robbins who plunges himself into a 57-degree Fahrenheit pool each morning.
According to motivational speakers like Tony Robbins and Robin Sharma, cold showers pose several health benefits to the mind and body.
Other than shocking yourself into being more awake and alert in the morning, cold showers can also improve blood circulation and reduce inflammation by constricting blood vessels.
Additionally, cold showers can supposedly build resilience. By placing yourself in an uncomfortable environment, you’re training yourself to embrace discomfort. As a result, that increases your tolerance and willpower.
I tried this by taking a 5-minute cold shower each morning for four weeks. While I felt refreshed and awake after each shower, I wouldn’t exactly say it built my resilience or made me stronger.
I would’ve preferred to keep my hot shower and compensate by just exercising, which brings almost the same benefits plus more. However, cold showers do have their perks and are certainly worth trying.
4. Meditation and Self-Reflection
Out of all the habits, meditation seems to be the most recurrent in successful people.
Meditation has been practiced for thousands of years and has gained even more popularity since the pandemic. High-achievers like Kobe Bryant and Oprah Winfrey swear by meditation to start their day.
I realized I had misconceptions about meditation. Meditation isn’t supposed to be some transformative experience. It is simply setting time aside to settle your mind.
After a month of meditating, I can confidently say it’s a habit I will continue to practice indefinitely. Taking time out of my day to slow down and be mindful and observant was surprisingly impactful.
I became more aware of my thoughts, and the busyness that typically occupied my mind in the morning had reduced. It was around two weeks when I noticed that I had even kicked some subconscious habits like grinding my teeth, shaking my leg, and furrowing my eyebrows when I felt anxious.
Even when I was in a stressful situation, I didn’t experience any shortness of breath like I usually did. Overall, I was less reactive to my surroundings.
There is a growing number of studies and research showing meditating can reduce stress and anxiety, increase focus, improve sleep, and even fight addiction.
In support of this, a Harvard study found that during an MRI, the part of the brain responsible for the stress response of people who meditated regularly was less active compared to people who didn’t meditate.
While there are several types of meditation, I found that guided meditations worked well for beginners. I started with 5–10 minute sessions before working my way up to a half-hour.
5. Avoiding Their Phones For The First Half-Hour
I’m guilty of reaching for my phone as soon as I open my eyes. It’s addicting and a habit that’s hard to stop.
Surprisingly, this turned out to be the hardest change in my morning routine yet.
I’ve always found that rather than breaking a bad habit, it’s easier to replace the habit with a new one. In replacement, I decided to shower as soon as I woke up and make my breakfast before using my phone.
While I did feel bored, I also felt less overwhelmed. I could stay on a task longer without feeling restless.
I found out why after I read Chris Bailey’s book, Hyperfocus where he explains the effect on the brain when we overuse technology.
Interestingly enough, using our phone first thing in the morning can mess up our concentration and ability to focus the entire day.
That’s because when we reach for our phones as soon as we wake up, we get bombarded with all kinds of texts, notifications, and information.
That causes our brain to become overstimulated and produce a high level of dopamine (a pleasure chemical) which falls shortly after. Since our brain craves dopamine, it’s stimulated to repeat behaviors that will produce more dopamine, which for us, is checking our phone.
That’s why we feel the urge to check our phone throughout the day, the moment we feel the slightest bit bored.
Essentially, we’re training our brain to crave distractions by overstimulating it first thing in the morning.
Seeing the results of this mini-experiment was slower than the rest, which was around after the first month, but it was a change that was worthwhile.
The longer I went without using my phone in the first hour of my day, the less bored I was eventually. My screen time even fell by a whopping 43% from the first to the fourth week!
Conclusion
Successful people maximize their time, energy, and potential to stay ahead of their competitors.
While many of them build their lives around habits and morning routines that set them up for success, what works for one person might not necessarily work for someone else.
Trying out all of these new habits was a new experience and impacted the rest of my day and productivity in different ways. Some of them I’ll maintain, and some I won’t.
It’s important to recognize that a good morning routine will only be beneficial if it supplements your own ambition and needs.
As one of my favorite quotes goes,
“Having a routine is great, but only if it serves your goals. Otherwise, it’s called a rut.”
-Josh LaJaunie
