![\"\"](\"https:\/\/images.crowdspring.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/27130959\/new-lake-1373369_1280.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"illustration](\"https:\/\/assets.crowdspring.com\/marketing\/landing-page\/leadership-style-hero-560.png\")
<\/div>Morning<\/b><\/h3>\n
The morning is the start of a new day, and how you kick off the day can affect the rest of your day.<\/p>\n
Many famous entrepreneurs and business owners<\/a> swear by an early start.<\/p>\n Apple CEO Tim Cook famously starts his day<\/a> at the ungodly hour of 3:45 am. Many others get going around 4 am.<\/p>\n That many people start their day at 4 am is no coincidence. A report in the Wall Street Journal<\/a> said that 4 am may be the most productive time of the day.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you have peace and quiet and you\u2019re not concerned with people trying to get your attention, you\u2019re dramatically more effective and can get important work done, so they have that part right,\u201d says psychologist Josh Davis, director of research at the NeuroLeadership Institute.\u00a0\u201cBy waking up at 4 a.m., they\u2019ve essentially wiped a lot of those distractions off their plate. No one is expecting you to email or answer the phone at 4 a.m. No one will be posting on Facebook. You\u2019ve removed the internal temptation and the external temptation.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n As mentioned earlier, many people exercise in the morning.<\/p>\n Here are a few other things you should consider adding to your morning routine include:<\/p>\n The daytime is when most of us get the bulk of our work done.<\/p>\n Staying productive throughout the day (especially close to the dreaded 3pm slump<\/a>) can be a challenge.<\/p>\n Here’s what you can add to your daytime routine to help maintain your workflow:<\/p>\n The end of the day for some people is just another time to get work done.<\/p>\n While this may work for you, it’s worth considering a change to your evening routine.<\/p>\n Famed composer Beethoven understood the power<\/a> of a quiet, work-free evening. He rarely wrote music in the evenings, choosing instead to take long walks and reading or visiting with friends.<\/p>\n Psychiatrist Carl Jung sought out\u00a0the company of his family at dinner time.\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ve realized that somebody who\u2019s tired and needs a rest, and goes on working all the same, is a fool,\u201d he said<\/a>.<\/p>\n The evening is also an excellent time to reflect on the day and think about what went right, wrong, or just plain weird. Use the evening to wind down from work and carve out self-care time for you to pursue other interests or company.<\/p>\n Whatever you end up choosing, think about how it will help (or hinder) you the next day. Some people may love exercising at night, but if it ends up keeping you awake afterward, you may need to reevaluate.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Jack Dorsey<\/a> is possibly one of the busiest founders today, working as CEO for Twitter and Square, two prominent companies.<\/p>\n How does Dorsey juggle the responsibilities of two companies? He gives each day of the week a theme<\/a>.<\/p>\n The way I found that works for me is I theme my days. On Monday, at both companies, I focus on management and running the company\u2026Tuesday is focused on product. Wednesday is focused on marketing and communications and growth. Thursday is focused on developers and partnerships. Friday is focused on the company and the culture and recruiting. Saturday I take off, I hike. Sunday is reflection, feedback, strategy, and getting ready for the week.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n While most of us aren’t in Dorsey’s position running two large companies, the idea of breaking up your time into themes can still work for us, too.<\/p>\n One way of implementing this is to think about single-tasking.<\/p>\n Many studies, including this famous one<\/a>\u00a0from Stanford,\u00a0have shown that attempting to do more than one task at the same time is not only inefficient, it can adversely affect your ability to make right decisions.<\/p>\n The example to the right shows how one company manages time. Email is only checked three times a day, with each day dedicated to completing a maximum of one to three tasks.\u00a0\u201cMaximize single-tasking,\u201d it says, and\u00a0\u201cminimize chat.\u201d<\/p>\n Theming your days, and incorporating single-tasking into your routine can help you turn a disorganized, hectic day into a much more streamlined and effective one.<\/p>\n Another powerful tool you can add to your daily routine is journaling.<\/p>\n Many successful entrepreneurs<\/a> have discovered the power of the journal, and use it to write down their experiences, reflections, and ideas before they get lost in the bustle of a busy week.<\/p>\n Writing about your day is an excellent way to clear your head, reduce stress, track your progress toward goals, and incorporate gratitude as a way of improving your mood.<\/p>\n Journaling can be as simple as keeping a daily log, but there are also many different ways you can structure your journals to get the most out of them.<\/p>\n One very popular method is the five-minute journal<\/a>.<\/p>\n It has a simple structure: at the beginning of the day\u00a0you write for roughly five minutes\u00a0about what you’re grateful for, what would make the day great, and an affirmation to start things off on a positive note.<\/p>\n That evening you write down three awesome things that happened that day, and one thing you could have improved, and how you could have done it.<\/p>\n Another popular system is the Bullet Journal<\/a>. It’s different than the five-minute journal in that it’s less about capturing what happened in the day and more about organizing what’s to come.<\/p>\n No matter which system you adopt, the act of writing is a compelling thing to add to your daily rituals. Make journaling a part of your routine and chances are you’ll notice benefits that spread throughout the day.<\/p>\n If there’s one word that goes hand-in-hand with routines, it’s habits. After all, a routine is nothing more than a habit you repeat on a daily basis.<\/p>\n What’s the best way to establish a habit? We wrote about this in our look at\u00a0productivity apps<\/a>:<\/p>\n One of the best techniques for establishing a good habit came from an unexpected place: comedian Jerry Seinfeld. His process works like this<\/p>\n There are a number of apps that help you track your habit-building progress and we mention some of those in that article<\/a>. A couple of others worth looking into include:<\/p>\n Momentum Habit Tracker<\/b> Habit-bull<\/b> Habitica<\/b>\n
Daytime<\/b><\/h3>\n
\n
Evening<\/b><\/h3>\n
Theming and Singletasking<\/h2>\n
Journaling<\/h2>\n
Habit tracking<\/h2>\n
\n
\nAvailable for iOS<\/a>
\nFree, with in-app purchases<\/p>\n
\nAvailable for iOS<\/a> and\u00a0Android<\/a>
\nFree, with in-app purchases<\/p>\n
\nAvailable for iOS<\/a>\u00a0and Android<\/a>
\nFree, with in-app purchases<\/p>\nWrapping up<\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/images.crowdspring.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/06164948\/startup-blog-master-cta.png\")
<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"