MAP Strategic Wealth Advisors

Five takeaways:

1. Wake up at YOUR right time: Productivity can be achieved regardless of being an early bird or a night owl. It’s important to align your waking time with your body’s natural rhythm, rather than forcing yourself to be part of the early bird club if it doesn’t fit your sleep pattern. Experiment with this a bit to find yours and consider switching up your pattern: an academic study found that waking up just an hour earlier was associated with a 23% decrease in depression rates.
2. Prepare the night before: Preparing for the next day the night before can help conserve decision-making energy and boost morning productivity. Activities such as laying out your clothes, packing lunch, or making a to-do list, which is a habit of former American Express CEO Kenneth Chenault, can help achieve a smooth start to the day.
3. Focus on what matters: Successful people often start their day focusing on big picture goals, gratitude, and planning. This can take the form of meditation, journaling, reading, or a quiet walk, as well as clearly identifying your primary goals for the day.
4. Move around and hydrate: Many successful people incorporate physical movement into their morning routine, whether it be jogging, power walking, or a personal workout session. Hydrating, such as drinking a liter of water in the morning, is also a crucial part of starting the day right.
5. “Eat the frog” first thing in the morning: The frog in this analogy, coined originally by Mark Twain, is the most daunting task you face that day. Tackling it first thing in the morning can give a sense of accomplishment and make the rest of the day seem easier. That said, depending on personal preferences and work style, one can also start with smaller tasks– or “tadpoles” – to build a bit of momentum.

By Brit Joiner for Trello
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Five takeaways:

1. The author’s decades of experience in holistic medicine, as well her learned wisdom as a 102-year-old, have shown her that the happiest and healthiest people are those who are able to let go of things or experiences that no longer serve them- who do not ruminate over things they cannot control or the perceptions of others.
2. The writer is empowered by knowing that whenever she notices a burdensome thought or unwelcome interaction making itself present in her life, she gets to choose whether to let it bother her. Remember your own power to control and repel negativity.
3. Developing the ability to repel negativity creates the mental space necessary to engage deeply, create, and think openly.
4. Physically let go of worry: The writer of the article has found it helpful to actually perform a physical ritual when filled with worry. First, identify the worrisome thought. Then visualize it as a small object and hold that small object in your hand. Look at it and squeeze it into nothingness.
5. The article emphasizes appreciating the flow of life and acknowledging that sometimes it’s necessary to let go. By releasing stuckness and regret– by forgiving oneself, you embrace the happiness and fulfillment that comes with an unburdened mind.

By Dr. Gladys McGarey for CNBC
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Five takeaways:

1. New research shows that the well-known idea of a “bucket list”–a list of thrilling experiences one wants to have before they die– does not actually track with the immediate priorities of those faced with the end of their lives (such as those with terminal diseases).
2. Research in fact shows that people tend to prefer familiar experiences more when they are reminded that their days are limited. In some cases, they can regret moments of thrill-seeking or short sighted decision making throughout their lives.
3. Even when not facing death, many people just don’t seem to like exiting their comfort zone or breaking their routines. In 2017, a poll by a British soup company found that 77 percent of U.K. workers had consumed the exact same lunch every day for nine months and that one in six people had done so for at least two years.
4. While new and unexpected experiences can be rewarding– they often show a huge spike in dopamine release and more intense sense of pleasure– they do not bring the type of enduring happiness that can arise with familiar comforts, which may bring less adrenaline but hold greater sentimental value or sense of emotional ease.
5. While globe-trotting trips and adrenalized experiences have value, prioritizing the meaningful connections in your life will ensure that you don’t reach the end of your life wishing you had spent more time on them.

From Richard A. Friedman at The Atlantic:
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