How Do I Get 1% Better Today?
THE ANSWER: Start Winning Your Day From the First Sound.
Okay, I know I might step on a few toes with this one. I catch some flak for some of my beliefs, and this is definitely one of them. Snoozers are losers. There, I said it.
I believe one of the easiest ways to start winning the day is to turn the alarm off at the first sound and put your feet on the floor. It may seem small, but winning is often built on small moments. The day becomes a series of decisions, and the first decision you make might be one of the most important.
Research suggests we have only a short window before our brain starts convincing us that a few more minutes won’t hurt. Sound familiar? I might—or might not—have lived with someone who set the alarm for 5:00 a.m., only to hear it again at 5:09, 5:18, and finally roll out of bed at 5:27. I could never understand why we wouldn’t just set the alarm for 5:27, enjoy 27 more minutes of quality sleep, and then get up.
Now, before you send me an angry email, I’m not judging. We are all wired differently. But I do believe there is something powerful about making the decision to get up when you said you would. Every time you keep a promise to yourself, you build trust with yourself. Every time you delay, negotiate, or hit snooze, you weaken that trust just a little.
As a high school football coach, I talk about this with our players all the time. Young people struggle with it. Truth be told, plenty of adults do too. The solution is simple: put the alarm clock across the room. Make yourself get up to turn it off. Sometimes success isn’t about being more motivated; it’s about creating an environment that makes the right choice easier.
The goal isn’t just to wake up earlier. The goal is to become the type of person who does what they said they were going to do. Once you become that person, the alarm clock is no longer the challenge. The challenge has already been won.
I’m proud to report that with the addition of another winning habit in our home—our morning walks—my wife now gets up at the first sound too. That’s two wins before most people have started their day. And you know what? The whole day seems to go a little better.
Here’s the challenge: Tomorrow morning, when that alarm sounds, don’t negotiate. Don’t debate. Don’t snooze. Put your feet on the floor. Collect your first win. Then go stack another one.
WIN THE DAY.
John Perry