Photo by Alan Levine (CC0 1.0 Deed)
Written by Raymond Salas
My first article published on this site was called "The Secrets of My Success." In this post, I shared the mental, emotional, and spiritual guidelines that have helped me the most. The response to this article was very positive and encouraging, which inspired me to write more.
So, a big "thank you" to the 610,000+ readers and visitors that have followed since then!
Since starting this site, my focus has always been to share the most powerful tools, wisdom, inspiration, and resources that I personally find to be helpful, useful or beneficial in some way.
With this in mind, here are the fifteen daily habits, practices, and routines that have brought me the greatest benefits, rewards, and success to date:
15 Most Powerful Daily Habits for Success
- Get a good night's sleep.
I have found that getting a good night's sleep impacts my energy level, mood, feelings of well-being, and body in a very positive way. And, when I don't get one, I can definitely feel this too.
- Keep a gratitude list.
When I first wake up in the morning and just before sleep, I take a few minutes to call to mind what I am grateful for at that moment. I either write it down in a gratitude journal or picture it mentally. This always sets a positive tone for the day (or sleep, when done at bedtime).
- Practice visualization.
I also use visualization for greater success. My daily visualization usually consists of picturing my "ideal day." If I were to wake up in my ideal day, I ask myself: What would it look like? What would it feel like? I try to imagine all of this for about five minutes (or longer, whenever possible). When I am done, I take a deep breath and let it go.
- Practice yoga.
I have found a daily yoga routine called the "Five Tibetans" to be very helpful for me. Not only do I feel great afterwards, but it can be done at home; no special equipment is required; and the entire routine takes about fifteen minutes to complete.
- Meditate.
For me, meditation calms the mind, relieves stress, and restores balance on all levels. Currently, I meditate daily for about 10-15 minutes focusing either on my breathing or the ancient Sanskrit mantra "So-Hum" (mentally repeating "so" as I breathe in and "hum" as I breathe out.) Very powerful!
- Drink a power smoothie for breakfast.
In the book "Spent: End Exhaustion and Feel Great Again" (previously published as "Revive: Stop Feeling Spent and Start Living Again"), Dr. Frank Lipman recommends starting every day with a power smoothie for breakfast.
My favorite is my own variation of the "workday power smoothie" recipe taken from the book.
Workday Power Smoothie Recipe:
- 4 ounces of almond milk
- 4 ounces of spring water
- 1 scoop of greening powder
- 1 scoop of berry powder (optional)
- 1 scoop of protein powder
Put all of the ingredients into a blender bottle and shake. It's ready in less than a minute. No blender required.
I love this recipe because it's so quick and easy to make!
- Exercise regularly.
For my regular exercise, I enjoy playing softball, doing high intensity interval training (HIIT) and riding my exercise bike 3-5 days every week. The key word for me here is "enjoy." I don't exercise just to exercise. I exercise because I enjoy it and it feels good. This is essential for me for staying motivated with my exercise routine every week.
- Enjoy the powerful benefits of walking.
In addition to my regular exercise, I try to enjoy the powerful benefits of walking as much as possible. The way that I look at it is: A car isn't designed to remain parked. Well, neither is the body. If you leave either one parked for too long, they will not operate as well as they were deigned or built to.
- Eat a G.I. diet.
The glycemic index or "G.I." diet focuses on eating whole grains and other foods low on the glycemic index, which takes your body longer to break down.
What are the benefits of a "G.I." diet?
- Increased energy
- Decreased risk of heart attack
- Decreased risk of stroke
- Decreased risk of diabetes
- Increased fiber intake which promotes regularity (always a good thing)
- Low in fat
- Boosts levels of HDL (“good” cholesterol)
- Eat fresh, organic, and whole foods whenever possible.
I have noticed that I feel best when I eat foods that are fresh (not canned), organic (grown without pesticides), and whole foods (made with ingredients that you can pronounce and that are actually foods, not artificial).
- Eat more raw food.
I have also discovered that when I eat more raw foods in my diet:
- I feel better;
- Have more energy;
- Think more clearly;
- Have less mood swings;
- And I sleep better.
- Drink plenty of water.
For my daily water consumption, I follow these guidelines from "Your Body’s Many Cries For Water" by F. Batmanghelidj, MD:
- Drink ½ of your body weight in ounces every day. For example, if you weigh 160 pounds, drink 80 ounces of pure water every day (ideally consumed in 8 -10 ounce portions spread throughout the day).
- Drink your water daily before each meal and a couple of hours after each meal, upon awakening every morning, before exercise, and any other time you are thirsty.
- Dr. B. notes that it is important not to meet this minimum daily requirement for water with juices, soft drinks, or other beverages. Although they may contain water, he says to drink pure water only.
"Drink much more water than you are accustomed to drinking, and let it be 90% of the liquids you consume…When you drink a lot of water—every function of your body works more efficiently."- Abraham-Hicks
- Use sea salt.
I stopped using all table salt when I discovered the many benefits of sea salt. Now, when I shop, I also try to buy only foods that use sea salt instead of table salt to enjoy more of these benefits.
- Have an "electronic sundown."
What's an "electronic sundown"?
As I explained in "How to Get A Good Night's Sleep":
"Turn your TV, cell phone, and computer off at 10 p.m. (or earlier). Yes, this includes handheld devices like Blackberrys, iPhones, and Treos, and all wireless connections.
The electromagnetic frequencies (EMFs) from cell phones, wireless computers, and other devices can drain our energy and affect our health. If you must keep them on, keep them as far away from your head as possible and out of the bedroom, if possible."
- Forgive others (and yourself).
At the end of each day, I try to think if there is anyone that I need to forgive, including forgiving myself. If there is, I picture the person in my mind's eye and say something like: "I forgive you completely. I release you and let you go." Then, I take a deep breath and let them go.
How powerful is forgiveness?
“Forgiveness will remove all sense of weakness, strain and fatigue from your mind. It will take away all fear and guilt and pain. It will restore the invulnerability and power God gave (you) to your awareness.”- A Course In Miracles"To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you."- Lewis B. Smedes