Here are twenty-one simple ideas to help power up your day and make it great.

Why not adopt a Magic Morning Routine? Time you dedicate consistently to set up your day for success. You can incorporate some of these ideas in to that or add them elsewhere to supercharge your productivity throughout the day.

Make Music Playlists to Fuel Your Purpose

Music can energise, galvanise and inspire. It can also calm, de-stress and soothe.

Use energising music when you are exercising or cleaning or sailing along through your tasks, getting them out the way.

Use soothing music when you need to de-stress or centre yourself, such as during meditation.

Making separate playlists to suit your mood can really help make your day more productive.

21 Success Habits To Power Up Your Day. Consultancyand Coaching

Cut The Coffee…

What!!!! I hear you cry!

Even if you’re addicted to caffeine, try to cut it down to no more than two or three cups a day. Any more than that, and the energising effects are reversed. You will be prone to side effects like:

  • Upset stomach
  • Nervousness
  • Palpitations
  • Insomnia
  • Tiredness

And if you must drink coffee later in the day, switch to decaffeinated after 3 p.m.

…. cherish and savour each cup – you won’t notice the change so much then!

Learn Your Way

Everyone has a predominant learning style, or even a mix of styles. Decide which type of learning is most effective for you:

  • Visual 

You find it easier to learn from graphics, videos, cartoons, diagrams, webinars or infographics.

  • Aural

You’ll pick an MP3 file or a podcast over a webinar or article any day!

  • Kinesthetic

You need to learn “hands on”—by doing things, touching them; jumping right into a new platform or software

  • Verbal

You prefer the written word—transcripts, written instructions, articles—in fact, you can read an article faster than you can watch a video.

Once you have determined your best learning style or styles, honour it. Get rid of that written “To do” list if verbal learning is last on your preferences list. Dictate that article, if you’re an aural learner. Draw little icon-pictures instead of writing things down or use a mind-map, if you’re a visual learner.

If you cater to your preferred learning style(s) you will find that tasks flow easier and you remember things better, leaving you with more time, focus and energy.

Put Your Day On Auto Pilot

Why do something from scratch when you can automate it, using resources, apps, tools and templates?

Use timers, tracking apps, scheduling suites—whatever makes tasks easier for you or helps you perform tasks and take care of responsibilities more efficiently.

Yes, it might take a little time to sort, but when you whizz through your day, you’ll appreciate the time you put in to get there.

Don’t Sweat The Small Stuff!

Sometimes easier said than done!

Throw out any task that isn’t absolutely essential. If you can’t throw it out, delegate or outsource it. That goes for household chores like cleaning—hire a cleaning lady—or food shopping too—most supermarkets allow you to order over the internet and have your groceries delivered.

Just Say “No”

Ever find yourself in a reactive state, where your routine slips out of control? Chances are, you’re agreeing to take on other tasks and responsibilities, when you should be saying “no”.

Protect your routine by learning to respect your own boundaries. Never give excuses or reasons why you can’t do something (this just encourages argumentative pressure). Just tell them “No. My plate is full.”

“No” can be a full sentence in its own right and is there for you to use.

Don’t – Yes Don’t – Multi-Task

No longer are we expected to be multi-tasking machines. Numerous studies now claim that multi-tasking reduces productivity and focus. 

A better idea: Plan your day ahead of time—either at the end of the day before, or in the morning as part of your routine, away from the computer.

Planning and prioritising often reduces or eliminates reactive behavior—which can include multi-tasking!

Take Frequent Breaks

Don’t just think lunchtime will do as a break. If you spend your days sitting at a computer, schedule a break every hour (two at the max) and use a timer with an alarm to remind you, until it becomes a habit. Then get up. Walk around. Walk round the block. Do some exercises: Or just lie flat with your legs on a pillow, letting your mind wander and your back rest.

Make the breaks short—ten to fifteen minutes, maximum.

When you go back to the computer, you may find that the break stopped you from going off on a tangent, getting too involved in extraneous research or gave you the perfect opening for your next video. Solutions may suddenly present themselves, or your day will just get back into focus, so you can zoom in on your priorities.

If you’re not convinced: Before you try this, track and assess how much you actually accomplish during your regular week. Then add the breaks, track and assess. Was there a difference? Did you get more accomplished, even though you took breaks? The same? Less?

Eat Healthy Snacks

As part of your morning routine, prepare or select healthy snacks to take with you. Protein bars, fresh fruit, fresh veggie sticks, cheese, mini one-serving cans of tuna, nuts—whatever takes your fancy.

Remember to include healthy drink options too—sachets of green tea, or water with lemon or lime – why not grab one of those fashionable re-useable water bottles which hold fruit to deliciously infuse your water…

Breakfast Like a King!

Many people like carbs or something “light” for breakfast—but your brain and energy levels will do better if you eat a breakfast that is balanced. That means including protein and fresh produce too.

If you really don’t want to eat bacon and eggs, there are lots of healthier alternatives. A glass of milk or yogurt for protein; protein powder mixed in with porridge or with a smoothie; a protein bar plus an apple (that gives you all the protein and carbs you could want).

Adding spinach to your smoothie also gives you those crucial “leafy greens”—and you won’t taste spinach. It becomes a neutral flavor in smoothies.

Start Work At The Same Time Every Day

Even if you’re self-employed and you live to be flexible, keep yourself to one set time slot—and that’s starting work at the same time every day. No matter how flexible you are the rest of the day, getting yourself into the habit of sitting down to work at the same time every day will help you accomplish more—and avoid procrastination.

Reward Your Own Performance

It’s a well-known fact: If there’s a reward at the end of a difficult road, people are far more likely to stay the course. What is your ideal reward for being productive? 

Remember that rewards are not always tangible. While it’s nice to eat a truffle every time you exceed seeing three clients a day, you can also indulge in rewards like using a Fitbit to measure the number of steps you take; or going for a swim, if you shave an hour off your work time.

The important thing is to identify the type of reward that would appeal to you—and set it up so you can achieve it. (It should be neither too unreachable nor too easy, for the best emotional impact.)

Find A Productivity Buddy

Some people find it really inspiring to exercise with others or have an accountability buddy to help them stick to a new routine. Find a peer or friend that wants to increase productivity too, and discuss how you can help each other—and cheer each other on.

Re-Tune for Optimum Performance

You’ve likely made adjustments at the beginning of the day, but to make your morning routine extra-effective, get into the habit of stopping for a quick “tune up”—just after lunch is ideal.

Review where you are in your day. Exercise or meditate, if you need to. Refocus and tweak your day’s calendar, if you’ve run into snags or miscalculations.

Read Daily For Inspiration

Find inspiring books or blogs relevant to your goals or professional field or life state. Bookmark them and subscribe. Choose one article / chapter a day, and read it.

(Search the internet using keywords like “best personal development blogs”etc.)

Reduce Time Spent on Difficult & Uninspiring Tasks

If you know it’s going to kill you if you exercise for fifteen minutes in the morning, exercise for five. If you know you’re going to hate devoting a timed hour to cleaning out your inbox, just unsubscribe from six contacts; or delete twenty letters.

The important thing—especially if you’re trying to take on a new resolution or activity—is to get into the habit of doing it first. (Worry about “how long” later, when the habit is firmly adopted!)

Schedule Time For Your Projects

Physically schedule time for your own projects on your calendar.

You’ll be much more likely to start your project and not let it get bumped by some other task or issue.

Switch Off

Disconnect from the net and close your browsers unless you are actively researching or uploading/downloading.

Turn off your phone.

Concentrate only on your top priorities for the day—and don’t turn your devices again until you’re done.

And…. for a great night’s sleep – switch off well before you plan to sleep!

Understand The Difference Between Urgent & Important

Especially when the urgency is true for someone else—not you.

Urgency is often unfortunately paired with reactivity: And that’s a counter-productive state and trait.

Schedule your important tasks so they don’t become urgent.

Catch Ideas As They Happen

When you’re in a productive zone, ideas tend to fly at you out of nowhere.

Make sure you devise and adopt a system to keep track of them: A physical notebook in your purse and one each beside your bed and favorite chair; an app such as Evernote on your computer or iPhone; even a Rolodex and index cards.

You may think you’ll remember those ideas later, but it’s a proven fact that most people don’t: So make sure you catch them while they’re hot!

Set Time Limits For Tasks

If you often find that the more you try to complete something, the more work it seems to generate, meaning you never finish, then give yourself a time limit—and focus on meeting that deadline. 

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