Establish Your 5am Habit
Our relationship with bed is paradoxical. We are reluctant to go to bed at night and reluctant to get out of it in the morning. In the greater scheme of things a 5am Wake Up Call is not asking that much of ourselves. It is only asking that you commit to a relatively minor change to your daily routine and importantly is not requiring you to go with less sleep.
Now, I have more than 20 tips on how to make waking at 5am an enjoyable and long lasting habit but now’s not the right time to go into that much detail . So what I’ll do is give you my top three, so you can get help now and try it for yourself tomorrow morning.
Tip # 1: An Extraordinary Reason
The most important instrument you have for to make waking at 5am a habit is to give yourself an extraordinary reason to do so. You need a compelling reason to get out of the warm bed in the middle of winter when it is still dark outside, cold and you’re tired. Without such a reason you will simply fail. A magnificent obsession is that extraordinary reason. Remember, your life will feel incomplete if you fail to achieve your magnificent obsession and you’re your burning desire to make this dream a reality is the ultimate leverage.
Get obsessed about why you are getting up in the morning. The moment the alarm goes off think about nothing else but the fact that you are just about to work towards your magnificent obsession. Think about how great you feel as you progress closer and closer to its realization. Think about how it is changing your life, defining who you are and demonstrating to the world that you are willing, able and passionate about taking control of your life.
Think about becoming rich.
Losing weight.
Getting fit.
Getting that promotion.
Starting your own business.
De-stressing your life.
Graduating with honors.
Getting out of the rat race.
Writing that book.
Think about whatever your dream is, your magnificent obsession.
Become passionate about success.
This is the ultimate alarm clock!
Tip #2: Be Flexible
Flexibility with order is the strength of your new habit. Don’t be unrealistic or you will fail. So, determine which mornings you are going to get up at 5am. You may want to do it one morning, as my wife does, or 5 mornings as I do. You may only want to do it to complete a short term goal or may want to forge a life long change. Also, if you don’t get up one morning, don’t write yourself off as having failed and then use that as an excuse to stop trying. Understand that you have missed a morning to work on your dream and try again tomorrow. If you are sick or know you are going to have a late night be kind and let yourself sleep in. Remember, this is not about LESS sleep.
Power comes from its flexibility and this habit can accommodate any situation you could ever imagine.
Tip # 3: Reward Yourself
I love the power of neuroplasticity so give yourself plenty of rewards. Firstly, when you get up at 5am remind yourself that you are already being successful, you’re up and taking action. Next, because we don’t have a personal cheer squad to root for us and make us feel good, after you have achieved a landmark, buy yourself something special. Don’t feel guilty, worry about what your partner may say or be stingy. Give yourself a big reward. Well-done you have earned it. Every morning leading up to this reward think about it and feel the dopamine making you pay attention to the fantastic job you are doing. Be creative, enjoy it and have fun. You are living a RICH life.