Have you ever noticed that becoming great at anything takes a big commitment of time and focused energy? You can observe a lot of similarities between great thinkers, leaders, business people and actors, writes Tim Racette, speaking at TradersExpo Chicago July 23.
When it comes to becoming a great trader, there are a lot of habits that we can cultivate from the greats of the world. Everything from developing a process for making decisions, to ensuring our daily habits are leading us down a healthy path, separate from the goal we are striving to achieve.
One of the best and most common traits common among the greats is a morning routine. Morning routines do a number of things for us. They get us awake and going in the morning, they spark our creative mind, and they put a little check mark in the accomplishment category for the day.
My morning routine is quick and simple, but it’s enough to put me in a great mental state to start the day.
Try this morning routine for one week, first thing in the morning, as soon as you get out of bed (even before checking your phone) and I bet you’ll notice an increase in productivity and focus during your morning.
Each of the five exercises should be done for a minute each in any order.
1. Exercise – This is a short and sweet minute with a few movements to get the blood flowing. Try 20 squats, 20 pushups, or a 1-minute plank.
2. Read – Pick up a book and read a page or two. This may not seem like a lot but reading even just a few paragraphs is enough to spark your creativity and generate some good ideas.
3. Meditate – Spend one minute with your eyes closed, deep breathing, relaxing, focusing on your breath. If a thought comes to you, acknowledge it and then return to a state of peace.
4. State your affirmations – I keep a sheet of paper with my yearly goals written down along with a variety of statements that I want to reaffirm each day. Make these statements positive, short and motivating.
5. Express gratitude – Think of three things you’re grateful for. This can be anything as simple as waking up with a fresh start on the day, spiritual gratitude towards God or being thankful for a good friend or success in your life.
Once you get in the routine you can spend more time in any one area as you’d like. If you want to read a few more pages, go for it. If you want to meditate for an extra minute, by all means do. The idea here is to have something simple and quick that you can do every single day to put you in a healthy and motivated state of mind.
Cheers to a great trading day!
Learn more about successful trading at EminiMind.com.
