The alarm clock sounds. Half-awake, you jump out of bed, head to the shower, and start running through the mental checklist for the day. Shake up that routine. Instead, take one minute – yes, just 60 seconds – to jump start your day with intention. Keep it up – and you may be surprised how much more calm, centered and productive you become.
How often our days get disrupted. Plan A becomes Plan B or even Plan C. I was on a college visit in Minneapolis recently with my daughter, 300-some miles from home. We were about to leave our hotel for the prospective student information session and tour. We packed the car and got in – and, I turned the key. Click. Click. Nothing. Dead battery. Plan B: Get an Uber to campus. Thanks to Roadside Assistance later that afternoon, all it took was Cody to arrive with the portable jump starter, two minutes to hook it up and then get us on our way back to Milwaukee.
It struck me that too often we get caught up in our routine – we lose our charge. What power there is to make it a habit to jump start our day. Set aside what’s in the way and start with intention. Call it your Morning Minute. With thanks to Michael Bungay Stanier, well-known coach trainer and author of The Coaching Habit, here are three questions to ask ourselves. Think of it as your portable jump start:
1) What am I letting go of today?
2) What am I grateful for today?
3) What’s my focus today?
And, I offer – bring your day across the finish line by ending strong:
1) How did I do my best today?
2) What got in the way?
3) What’s a word of praise or encouragement for me?
Give it a try for a week and see what difference it makes.
Oh – and, yes, we loved the university and the campus. My daughter will be applying soon.
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