For a while now I have valued the following things:
- Good physical health
- Good mental health
- Consistency
But I wasn't doing much to really live those values in my day to day life.
I knew that I wanted to embody those traits, but if I was being honest with myself, I wasn't.
One of the main things I learned from Nir Eyal's book, Indistractible, is that it is important to align your values with the time you spend everyday.
Recently I started a new morning routine:
30 minutes every morning:
- 10-12 minutes of yoga
- 9-11 minutes of journaling
- 8 minutes of meditation
Yoga
Yoga is a great way to start your day by stretching and strengthening your body. I've found that if I don't exercise for 3-4 weeks, my body starts to get a lot of small aches and pains. I mix using videos from Yoga with Adriene and also some basic self-guided routines.
Journaling
If you are like me, then you may not always do a great job processing how you feel. Sometimes I would find myself feeling super stressed out, but not always understanding why. I've been really surprised by how much it benefits me to just sit down and write out what I am thinking or feeling.
Meditation
I suck at meditation, but I keep practicing. One thing that changed my mindset was thinking about it as a practice to better be in control of your mind and thoughts. By practicing trying to clear your mind, you are building muscle to be more intentional with it. For me it has already helped with tempering my stress and emotions, while also helping me mindfully avoid distractions better.
Don't give up!
I quit my job 4 months ago and have been trying to launch my own internet business. Mental health and consistency have probably been the two things I have struggled with the most. I hope this routine might help some of you overcome some of your own struggles!
If you liked this, consider following me on Twitter: @jstnchu (I tweet about my learnings around starting my own business)
Top comments (3)
"Take care of yourself first" that what we all should say when we look into a miror :)
Thanks for the insights and I'd love to share an article about the subject, hope you like it: zenkit.com/en/blog/5-productivity-...
Interesting read! Any specific meditation you would reccomend for a beginner?
I started with breathing exercises (breathe in for 4s, hold for 7s, exhale for 8s). I also did guided meditation with my therapist leading, but apps like headspace would work similarly. Then just try doing 8 min sessions on your own and just mindfully aim to keep your mind clear.