In his book The Miracle Morning, Hal Elrod explains how a programme of six practices will transform your life before 8 A.M.
by Julia Migné
In the book, The Miracle Morning, bestselling author and business achiever Hal Elrod gives us all the tips that helped him radically change his life. A few years ago, when Elrod felt stuck and depressed, he realised that in order to fulfil his potential he needed to set some time out every day to shape himself.
Looking at his busy schedule, he came to the realisation that the only time he had was in the morning. So, he put his alarm clock at 5am, an hour earlier that he usually would and he slowly developed a morning routine that turned his life upside down.
‘That’s great for him’, you might think, ‘but what if I’m not a morning person?’ Well, Hal Elrod has a solution for that too!
Being able to get up in the morning actually depends on the state of mind you were in when you went to bed, according to Elrod. If you went to bed thinking ‘I can’t believe I have only six hours to sleep’ then you’ll wake up feeling like you didn’t sleep enough. So brace yourself and decide tonight that tomorrow morning you’ll wake up refreshed and positive.
In terms of actually getting up, Elrod’s first tip is to put your alarm clock as far away from your bed as possible to avoid to hit that so-tempting snooze button. “Motion creates energy, so when you get up and out of bed it naturally helps you wake up”, explains Elrod.
After a full night of sleep, your body is highly dehydrated and dehydration causes fatigue, so drinking a full glass of water first thing in the morning once you’ve managed to get up is another key step to kick-start your day. Now rehydrated? Time to jump in your gym clothes to make sure you cannot back down from your new Miracle Morning Routine which is composed of the six following life S.A.V.E.R.S:
1. S is for Silence
Starting your day in silence allows you to bring in your life some clarity and peace of mind and also reduces your stress level. The practice of silent can take various shape and Elrod suggests to pick among the following activities: meditation, prayer, reflection, deep-breathing, and gratitude.
He explains that silence will “allow you to maintain your focus on your goals, priorities and what’s most important for your life, each and every day.”
2. A is for Positive Affirmations
Your self-talk has a dramatic influence on your life so why not change the narrative and be kind and gentle towards yourself for once? Positive affirmations allow you to do just that but before starting you need to ask yourself a few questions: What do you really want? Why do you want it? Who are you committed to being to create it? And finally, what are you committed to doing to attain it?
The answers to these questions allow you to draft your own personalised positive affirmations that you can then repeat every morning like a mantra.
3. V is for Visualisation
Also known as Mental Rehearsal, this practice is all about “using your imagination to create mental pictures of specific behaviours and outcomes occurring in your life.” The goal here is to imagine what you want to achieve and rehearse in your mind what you have to do in order to reach it. This technique is often used by athletes to enhance their performances.
“Once you’ve created a clear mental picture of what you want, begin to visualise yourself living in total alignment with the person you need to be to achieve your vision.” – Hal Elrod
4. E is for Exercise
Now that your mind has been activated, the time has come to awaken your body. Elrod explains that exercising even for just a few minutes in the morning significantly boost energy and help improve self-confidence and emotional well-being.
The type of exercise is completely up to you but the author highlights his personal love for yoga as a great way to wake his body up in the morning.
5. R is for Reading
Taking some time to read 10 pages a day every morning is a great way to acquire new knowledge, ideas and strategies. A huge diversity of self-help books exist out there so finding one that appeals to you shouldn’t be too difficult.
“Before you begin reading each day, ask yourself why you are reading that book – what do you want to gain from it- and keep that outcome in mind.” – Hal Elrod
6. S is for Scribing
Last but not least, scribing is the final practice that Elrod encourages you to take. One popular form of scribing is journaling. The idea is that by putting your thoughts on paper every morning you document your insights, ideas, and breakthroughs.
All you have to do really is to choose your format (either digital or paper), to get a journal and to decide what you want to write about every day. You can, for example, write a gratitude journal, a dream journal or even be ambitious and decide to actually write a book! It’s all up to you.
Julia Migné is a multimedia journalist and wildlife photographer specialising in environmental issues and odd hobbies. She has written for Africa Geographic and BBC Wildlife among others. An endless traveller, she swears that she would visit one country for each letter of the alphabet.