Speaker 1: Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.
Speaker 1: Good Morning. This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.
Speaker 1: Today's tip is about a simple morning ritual that can
Speaker 1: change your entire day. I'm taking this tip from my
Speaker 1: friend Neil Pasricha's new book You Are Awesome. How to
Speaker 1: Navigate Change, Wrestle with failure, and live an intentional life.
Speaker 1: His two minute ritual involves writing three sentences, each of
Speaker 1: which involves a different aspect of a positive mindset. The
Speaker 1: first sentence, he writes interestingly enough, gets its heft from
Speaker 1: the power of confession. Religious listeners might be familiar with
Speaker 1: this concept in its more sacramental form. You go tell
Speaker 1: the priest your sins and express your contrition for them.
Speaker 1: He tells you that you are forgiven. The saying is
Speaker 1: that confession is good for the soul, and that's probably true.
Speaker 1: Fears and anger and regrets weigh us down. Confession doesn't
Speaker 1: change what has happened, and if you've hurt someone, confession
Speaker 1: doesn't get you out of taking responsibility for that, but
Speaker 1: mentally it gives us the freedom to move forward. Past
Speaker 1: Rica notes that you don't actually have to be religious
Speaker 1: to experience some of the power of mental release. So
Speaker 1: he begins his mornings by writing out this sentence, I
Speaker 1: will let go of fill in the blank. And this
Speaker 1: is where he confesses an anxiety, a feeling like jealousy,
Speaker 1: or anything else weighing him down. He vows to move
Speaker 1: forward from this negativity the second sentence, I am grateful
Speaker 1: for fill in the blank. Lots of studies have attempted
Speaker 1: to quantify the health effects of a gratitude practice, and
Speaker 1: I think some of this research is overblown, but it
Speaker 1: makes intuitive sense that focusing on the good helps you
Speaker 1: see more of the good. Past Richa recommends writing down
Speaker 1: very specific things you're grateful for. We can always be
Speaker 1: grateful for family, friends, and health. It's more effective for
Speaker 1: framing purposes to notice something like the good WiFi at
Speaker 1: a coffee shop, or the excellent dessert that was included
Speaker 1: with your kid's meal at a restaurant and that you
Speaker 1: got to consume because your kid is humorously picky. Finally,
Speaker 1: this sentence, I will focus on fill in the blank.
Speaker 1: He writes down three intentions for the day. What small
Speaker 1: goals are most worth accomplishing in the next twenty four hours.
Speaker 1: By choosing these items and keeping the list very short,
Speaker 1: he massively increases the chances that they actually get done,
Speaker 1: and progress is motivational. Filling in the blanks on these
Speaker 1: three sentences, I will let go of, I am grateful for,
Speaker 1: and I will focus on takes very little time. Two
Speaker 1: minutes isn't much, but as Neil notes, were awake for
Speaker 1: about a thousand minutes a day, it's humbling to think
Speaker 1: that two minutes can affect the other. But if you
Speaker 1: try this two minute ritual, I'm guessing that you'll start
Speaker 1: the day with a different outlook too. In the meantime,
Speaker 1: this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making
Speaker 1: the most of our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to
Speaker 1: hear from you. You can send me your tips, your questions,
Speaker 1: or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook
Speaker 1: and Instagram at Before Breakfast Pod that's b E the
Speaker 1: number four, then Breakfast p o D. You can also
Speaker 1: shoot me an email at Before Breakfast podcast at i
Speaker 1: heeart media dot com. That Before Breakfast is spelled out
Speaker 1: with all the letters. Thanks so much, I look forward
Speaker 1: to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is a production of
Speaker 1: I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from I Heart Radio,
Speaker 1: visit the I heart Radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever
Speaker 1: you listen to your favorite shows.