Today was my first good morning in 2023. I want to share what the good days feel like because they give me something to shoot for when I’m feeling down. When I’m exhausted, it’s hard to remember what energized feels like. It’s also hard to remember what all the benefits are. So here is my happy moment for the year (so far).
I woke up, wide awake, at 4:59 AM. I checked my body battery for the day and it was at 91. Good enough for me! I had slept nearly 8 hours with only one restless leg syndrome episode and a couple trips to the bathroom, but overall pretty good. Garmin gave it a sleep score of 85.
The first thing I did was turn on my Headspace app and meditate for 15 minutes. Then I popped out of bed, grabbed my journal, and went upstairs to my office. Since I have been off of caffeine in the morning, I brewed a cup of decaf coffee, but honestly didn’t really need it. I also didn’t feel the need to turn on Civilization on my computer. Computer games are an escape for me, and I didn’t have anything I needed to escape. Normally it’s a way for me to wake up with coffee, but I felt good enough to tackle the things that really help.
So I started into my Miracle Morning routine. If you haven’t read Hal Elrod‘s book, I recommend it. He has an acronym, SAVERS, that stands for the six things he does every morning to make sure his day goes well. I will paraphrase them here in my own words:
- Meditate (silence)
- Affirmations
- Visualize goals for the day
- Exercise
- Learn something new (reading)
- Journal (scribe)
And for me there is a seventh piece to my miracle morning that ensures my day goes well – I have to be creative and work on a project that gives me hope for the future (like this blog post).
So that’s what I did today. I went through each of the steps and it really was a miraculous morning. I had purchased a new rowing machine and I worked out on that while watching YouTube videos of The Rock doing his work out. I filled out my journal and read some of my journals from last year to help remind me of the lessons I have learned. I made a protein smoothie after my workout and stretched. And I even had a couple of shower notes to show that my mind is already active and working on problems for the day.
This is what a good morning looks like for me. This is why I work so hard to protect my energy. This is why I give up so many things I’ve been addicted to and work to add in new healthy habits. This is what true joy and happiness looks like to me.
