5 Common Morning Rituals of Successful Entrepreneurs
Entrepreneurship is all about staying motivated and dedicated to a single cause with the will to persevere the longest amidst adversities and hardships. However, in spite of possessing all of these qualities only a handful of people succeed as entrepreneurs. But how is that possible? What is it that this small group of successful entrepreneurs have that others don’t?
After having looked into the life routines of more than 100 successful entrepreneurs, it is safe to conclude that successful people have a few common set of morning rituals that gives them an edge over others. What are these rituals and how does it give these people an edge over their competition? We take a look at them here!
1. Early to Rise
Almost 85% of successful entrepreneurs rise up before 6:30 am in the morning. Waking up early gives them the time to mentally prepare themselves for the hectic work day ahead. Richard Branson, Founder of Virgin Group and author of Losing My Virginity talks about the amazing benefits of getting up early in the morning. Branson who has made it a routine to get up at 5 am in the morning makes a strong pitch that getting up early makes room for exercising, family time and a healthy breakfast to kick start ones’ day.
Other entrepreneurs who have made getting up early a way of life are Tim Cook (CEO of Apple), Howard Schultz (CEO of Starbucks) and Indra Nooyi (CEO of PepsiCo).
2. Exercise
Successful entrepreneurs make it a point to workout early in the morning. The profound benefits of working out early makes it hard to miss out on one. Jack Dorsey, Co-founder of Twitter and Square wakes up at 5.30 am in the morning for a little meditation and then puts on his running shoes for a 6-mile jog. He says that the rush of endorphins a.k.a happy hormones after his morning run makes it extremely easy to have a positive outlook on the work day that lies ahead.
3. Meditation
Every day is hectic in the life of an entrepreneur. To tackle the work day stress, it is important to stay calm and collected at all times. Meditation is one sure shot way to clear the mind of unwanted thoughts and focus all energy towards a sole goal. Arianna Huffington, Co-founder and Editor-in-Chief of The Huffington post believes in the incredible power of meditation. After a resounding 8 hours of sleep, Huffington makes it a point to meditate for 30 minutes before kick-starting her day.
According to the self-made millionaire, meditation has enabled her to focus on the tasks that lay ahead for the day. It has also made her reduce stress levels and get more things done in lesser time.
4. Reading
The reason why some people are more successful than others is that they stay ahead of their competition at all times. Entrepreneurs who are successful make time to expand their knowledge through reading. They believe in the saying “Reading is Knowledge and Knowledge is Power!“.
Tim Armstrong, Chairman and CEO of AOL gets up as early as 5 am in the morning to fit in some reading before getting a good workout to begin the day. The first two hours in the morning according to Armstrong are for reading and exercising.
5. Healthy Breakfast
The first meal of the day is called ‘Breakfast’ for a reason. It is similar to breaking a mini fast you had while you were sleeping for a good 7 to 8 hours. This is why it is very important to have a healthy breakfast that boosts you for the tasks lying ahead for the day. Entrepreneurs like Jeff Bezos, Founder of Amazon and Payal Kadakia, Founder and CEO of ClassPass make sure that they have a healthy breakfast before beginning a day.
While Bezos prefers to avoid morning meetings to have a relaxed breakfast with his wife, Payal Kadakia makes sure that she takes fruits and vitamin supplements for breakfast along with citrus green tea for a sharper mind.
