Why You Should “Rise and Grind” Every Morning (Part I)

Hello Jeff here, welcome to my first blog post ever. So, I’ve been wanting to wake up early for some time now, but made little head way over the past few years - achieving rather inconsistent results. However, at the end of 2016, I came across this article by Zdravko Cvijetic called “Your Ultimate Guide for Waking up Early” and I realized what I was missing was simply a “PLAN”.

There are so many benefits of waking up early, and I believe that when someone says they are a “night owl”, or they “can work better at night”, it is actually a misconception. The human mind is a powerful entity and it is what sets us apart over other animals. The mind is extremely adaptable to our surroundings and environment, so all we need is some dedication and good planning. Here are my top three reasons why it is good to wake up early:

Time for YOU

Most of our day is spent doing things for other people, we really need to leave some time for ourselves so we can work towards personal goal planning and self-development (reading, meditation, gratitude etc).

Less Distraction

A large percentage of the human race in your circle (usually) don’t have the dedication like you to wake up so early, therefore, there is nothing to distract you during your early morning hours and this morning routine can help you get the most out of your day.

Elevated Productivity

Since there are few distractions during those earlier hours, a few minutes spent planning the rest of your day (coming up later in this blog) means that you will be able to get the most important things done first. You will also feel good about your accomplishments for the remainder of the day.

I want to mention here that willpower is like a battery cell. Willpower drains throughout the day, especially when you are making tough choices (like not eating that piece of cake). So, it’s a great strategy to use your limited amount of willpower towards difficult tasks you must do each day. So why should you believe me? Well, seems like there is a pattern of early risers amongst successful people in our society…

• Anna Wintour, Vogue USA Editor-In-Chief — 5:45 AM
• Richard Branson, Founder, and Chairman of the Virgin Group — 5:45 AM
• Michelle Obama, FLOTUS — 4:30 AM
• Tim Cook, Apple CEO — 4:30 AM (actually, he has already started sending emails at this hour)
• Howard Schultz, Starbucks CEO — Before 5:00 AM
• Jack Dorsey, Twitter Co-founder — 5:30 AM

Convinced? I know I am! So, how do we regular people do this? Stay tuned until next week when I share with you what I will do in the new year for waking up early.