Honing the practice of having a great day. Every day.
Waking up and going directly into your workday can put you in an anxious, high-stress state from the start. If you don’t give yourself time to sort through your own thoughts, ideas, to-do lists, and anxieties before launching the day, it’s a perfect recipe for a stressful, scattered, and unproductive day. And yet, that’s how most of us function!
In this blog, we have talked about building habits and planning ahead by using that part of your brain that has your best interests in mind. When you wake up in the morning, your mind is open and relaxed and your thoughts can flow easily. You can quickly access what you learned from yesterday’s experiences and prioritize what things you plan to do today. Capturing that energy and harnessing that clarity of thought is one of the best tools to maximize your own potential and begin to meet, and even exceed, your goals — no matter what they might be.
Using your brain to benefit yourself is incredibly powerful, free, and, once you establish a practice, quick and easy.
But how do you do it? One of the most powerful, and easy-to-implement, practices is to download (write down) your thoughts first thing in the morning. This thought download serves to capture key learnings from the day before and inform your priorities for the day/week/month ahead. It takes a bit of practice but if you can take 10 - 15 minutes each morning to do it for yourself, you will reap incredible rewards. Of course I can hear some of you saying no way, I don’t have time for that. What would I write down? How would I even start? This is stupid.
Use this template to give it a try. There’s no downside.
For those of you in the IBS Game Changer program, you’re already documenting some of this stuff on a daily basis in the IBS Game Changer journal you received when you signed up for the program. Good for you! You’ve already started to establish a practice. To help you take that to the next level, I’m sharing a template that should be very helpful.
Following this template will make the work of downloading your thoughts a powerful tool that benefits…you!
“It’s not what happens to us but what we learn from it that matters most.” - Michael Hyatt
Yesterday
What happened?
Don’t chronicle everything, just the highs, lows, and anything you want to remember later.
What did you read or hear?
List important books, articles, podcasts you consumed since your last thought download.
What were your biggest wins?
This gives you a sense of momentum to start the new day.
What lessons did you learn?
Try to distill your experience down to a couple of lessons you want to remember. It’s not what happens to us but what we learn from it that matters most.
What stood out?
I don’t want to lose what I learn in my reading and listening, so I record key insights.
Today
What are you thankful for right now?
This is one practical way you can cultivate a sense of abundance and gratitude.
What are you thinking and feeling right now?
Your thoughts and feelings are the be-all-end-all because they drive everything you feel, actions you take, and the results you get. Writing them down prevents you from ignoring or suppressing them and gives you an opportunity to check in on yourself.
What are your goals for this week/today?
Keep your goals focused and no more than 3
Allow yourself to include goals related to personal growth and self care in addition to work and productivity
What are your top 3 priorities to support those goals today?
Stay focused so you can keep your priorities in mind. It’s ok to list them all, but then prioritize and focus on the top 3. \
What can you do for someone else?
Doing things for others is one of the best ways to feel connected and reap personal rewards. This can be as simple as reaching out to a friend or family member with a call, text, or card or it can be as much as volunteering your time at a local food pantry or shelter to help strangers who are in need. The simple act of helping someone else is powerful in lifting your own spirit.
Tomorrow
What are your goals for this week/tomorrow?
Give some thought to tomorrow and what your focus can be to maintain your progress.
What can you do next to move forward on your goals?
Think through your goals, priorities and schedule and identify a few key actions you could take tomorrow to keep your momentum going.
Here’s a text version of the prompts you can copy and use as you establish your daily practice.
Yesterday
What happened?
What did you read or hear?
What were your biggest wins?
What lessons did you learn?
What stood out? What did you like best?
Today
What are you thankful for right now?
What are you thinking and feeling right now?
What are your goals for this week/today?
What are your top 3 priorities to support those goals today?
What can you do for someone else?
Tomorrow
What are your goals for this week/tomorrow?
What can you do next to move forward on your goals?