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“I want to improve my life but I’m not sure where to start…”

This is something that I hear time and time again when people start their self development journey, so I thought I would address it.

I had this same dilemma when I started my journey also.

The key thing to do at this point when starting out is to build a solid FOUNDATION that will allow you to improve all areas of your life.

The reason for this is you don’t want to run before you can walk- as you will ALWAYS find yourself back at square one.

For example, why would you start trying to build a business if your sleep pattern is horrendous and you struggle with procrastination?

Or why would you try to get ripped in the gym if you have bad eating habits and struggle to find any energy?

These things are like trying to swim in the ocean with a weight strapped to you- you might be able to tread water for a while but eventually these things will ALWAYS pull you down!

That is EXACTLY the reason I suggest working to build a solid foundation first in your self development journey.

So how do you do this?

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🧱 HOW TO BUILD YOUR FOUNDATION:

To get started with building a solid foundation, you’ll need to focus on 3 elements:

Morning routine.
Evening routine.
Daily habits.

The purpose for focusing on these things is that you can use them to your advantage to ensure that you are:

Getting enough sleep regularly.
Feeling energised so that your body and mind can be at their best.
Always progressing every day (even if only a little).
Building discipline and consistency which will have a knock on effect in every area of your life.

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🌅 CRAFTING YOUR MORNING ROUTINE:

Building a morning routine is absolutely KEY to getting a solid foundation in your life.

It will allow you to start every day consistently and leave nothing up to chance.

No more hoping that you wake up ‘feeling good’.

You will take every day by the balls and regulate your energy, mood and focus levels.

WHAT YOU NEED:

All you need to build the perfect morning routine is 3 easy habits. One of each type. Mix and match:

An ENERGISING habit.
A PREPARATION habit.
A MINDFUL habit.

These 3 provide the perfect blend for your mornings so that you can attack every day and feel invincible.

Pick one of each to make a killer morning.

⚡️ENERGISING HABITS:

These are habits that wake you up in the morning and get you physically and mentally ready for you to take on the day. Some examples are:

A cold shower.
Stretching.
Deep breathing.
Quick workout.
Sunlight exposure.
Walking.
Nutritious breakfast.

📝 PREPARATION HABITS:

These habits are things that set up your upcoming day and get you off on the right foot so you can build on that momentum:

Journalling.
Goal setting.
Scheduling.
Create to-do list.
Do your hardest task.

🧘🏼 MINDFUL HABITS:

Mindful habits let your body and mind unwind in order for you to feel relax yet focused going into your day:

Yoga.
Meditation.
Journalling (again).
Deep breathing (again).
Gratitude.
Affirmations.
Technology detox (at least until your morning routine is over).

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🌙 CRAFTING YOUR EVENING ROUTINE:

A lot simpler than the morning routine, I find that in the evenings you only really need to focus on TWO things:

Reflecting on your progress in the day.
Making sure you get the best sleep possible.

🪞REFLECTING ON PROGRESS:

Take a look back in your journal or notes at the tasks you set yourself for the day, tick them off and be proud of the progress you made.

You don’t have to do them all, or even do them to completion.

Don’t have the ‘All or Nothing’ attitude with your goals.

Just do SOMETHING.

For example, if you set yourself a 1 hour workout but you only had time for 30 minutes…

…don’t just think ‘There’s no point, I haven’t got time. I’ll try again tomorrow.’

Just DO the 30 minutes. Do as much as you can.

That way you’ll make much more consistent progress, and when it comes to getting back in the gym, you won’t need to do as much catching up.

💤 GETTING THE BEST SLEEP:

You need to be aiming for at least 8 hours of sleep consistently.

Far more than you’re getting now?

Well that will explain why you feel like crap 24/7 and frequently skip workouts, procrastinate and have tonnes of bad habits.

You’re setting yourself up for FAILURE before the day has even begun.

Set your alarm to allow for 8 hours and get into bed around 30 mins before you need to fall asleep.

Turn your phone off, and read in bed.

This will relax your eyes and let them unwind from all the blue light your phone screen emits- which damages your sleep.

Also, you’ll be reading and learning and getting ahead of your competition.

Honestly, it’s a gamechanger for your sleep.

Just aim for 10 pages a day a minimum, and see where it takes you.

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📆 DAILY HABITS:

The aim of doing these habits every day is so that you keep moving forward in terms of your health as well as your goals.

You can add in as many more as you like, but just doing these as a MINIMUM is how you ensure you always have a good foundation:

10,000 steps.
30 mins of exercise.
Some deep work.
Good sleep.

👣 10,000 STEPS:

If you don’t move enough, you will start to feel lethargic and this will have a massively negative effect on your day. Period.

Think of ways where you can get some steps in and implement them. For example:

Take the stairs instead of the lift.
Walk instead of driving round the corner.
Walk on your dinner break at school/work.
Get on the treadmill for 15 minutes.
Take the dog out more.

🏋️‍♀️ 30 MINS OF EXERCISE:

Similar to above, moving daily will keep you from feeling lethargic. 30 minutes of more intense exercise will also keep you focused and actually have a profound effect on your mental state.

It keeps you sharp between the ears as well as making you stronger

Win, win.

MIX IT UP.

One day it could be the gym, the next day football, the next day climbing etc.

Just do SOMETHING!

Make it something you enjoy too. Why not involve your partner or your friends.

✍️ DEEP WORK:

You should always be doing SOMETHING that gets you closer to your goals in some way- whether that’s your business goals, exam study, personal development etc.

If you’re always at least doing something, you’ll move closer to these goals at an excellent rate.

Come up with a deep work HQ.

Find somewhere on your house that is reasonably peaceful, distraction free and encourages good posture (don’t lounge on your bed/sofa).

Sit at a desk or the dinner table for example.

Make this the spot where your deep work happens.

Your brain will start to associate this space with productivity and you’ll do your best work here.

When you’re working, leave all your distractions in another room and don’t check them until you’ve DONE what you set out to do.

💤 GOOD SLEEP:

As mentioned before, good sleep should be a massive priority for you.

Invest in your sleep.

Buy a sleep mask, or a white noise speaker or some ear plugs.

Anything that will improve your sleep by 5, 10 percent.