The role of healthy and supportive habits in the process of discovering your life purpose and building a harmonious life - part 1
This article is the first in a series titled "The role of healthy and supportive habits in discovering your life purpose and building a harmonious life." In each article, I'll describe one of the most valuable habits we can introduce into our lives. All habits that support us act as a protective shield for a sense of peace and resilience, not only in everyday life but also in demanding and stressful situations. The role of healthy and supportive habits is also invaluable for developing concentration, increasing self-esteem, living in Presence, connecting with our creativity, discovering our life purpose and pursuing it, and creating what's known as "Loose Discipline," a combination of being disciplined and being in flow with life, which makes room for everything important to us daily. In this article, we'll address the first habit: paying attention to how we start our day.
Quality mornings
One of the most important habits we often work on in Living in Harmony and Meaning is implementing quality mornings, where we aim to address the four most important aspects of our well-being first thing in the morning after waking up. These include physical, emotional, spiritual, and developmental aspects, and are inspired by Robin Sharma's fantastic work and book, "The 5 AM Club." Does this mean you have to start getting up at 5 AM? Not necessarily, however, it may be the case. The idea behind implementing quality mornings is to choose one practice you enjoy in each area and dedicate 15 minutes to it. Quality mornings are the foundation we build for each day; days turn into weeks, weeks into months, and months turn into years. Having a set of practices you enjoy in each of these areas will contribute to the incredible growth of your days and help you become more focused and organized. We sometimes wake up in the morning feeling stiff and sleepy, our minds racing with thoughts, and our emotions can be agitated. It's during this crucial time that we define our day and its quality. When we cultivate morning harmony, we begin the day from a completely different place within ourselves. The morning energy will carry us throughout the day, and the gradually built momentum will influence every aspect of our lives.
For me, what helps me most in the first, physical aspect is morning exercise, often in the form of a morning walk in the local forest or various warm-up exercises; sometimes it's light yoga. We don't want to do a workout here, but warm up the body, muscles, and joints. In terms of emotional well-being, for many years now, I've been using the letting go technique, where I pay attention to emotions within and feel them nonjudgmentally. This is a powerful practice, and when used regularly, it evolves into an automatic and natural habit. I allow myself this session for as long as I need, and when I feel "synchronized," I move on to the next practice. Spiritually, it's often prayer, although for many years, it was writing "morning pages," where I poured my thoughts out on paper. It's also a powerful practice, in which we connect with what's within us at the level of emotions, thoughts, and whatever's currently happening in our lives. It's also a beautiful practice of connecting with our creativity, and in my case, several years of writing evolved into writing books and using this form of creative expression as one of my main tools. The final aspect is to dedicate 15 minutes, for example, to studying something worthwhile, reading a few pages of a book, or listening to a podcast you enjoy and that enriches your life. This way, in an hour, we can nurture the four most important aspects of our inner well-being, and we will continually grow, and our lives will evolve with us.
Establishing the habit of quality mornings can be quite challenging at first, although the power of motivation is key. I'd heard of Robin Sharma's book several times before, and I sensed its valuable knowledge and experience, and as soon as I had the opportunity, I bought it. I immediately felt that what I was reading was exactly what I needed. I stumbled upon the book at Johannesburg airport, and as soon as I entered the bookstore, my attention and gaze immediately landed on it. I bought it practically without a second thought, and while still at the airport, I began reading and highlighting the most valuable pieces, and as soon as I returned to Poland, I began following the author's advice and waking up an hour earlier to ensure I had time for a full, quality morning. It wasn't easy at first, but I quickly adapted to the habit, and the sense of satisfaction I felt after just a few days was also a great feeling. I also quickly realized that I was much more present and focused throughout the day, which created an extraordinary feeling of invigoration. I continued working on the habit for the next few months, culminating in the realization that a quality morning routine happens naturally. Over time, it will evolve, and practices can change, enriching mornings with variety. The order of specific aspects may also change, but I want to assure you that if you stay consistent with your morning routine, your life will begin to blossom in amazing ways.
If you need support in establishing the habit of quality mornings, I encourage you to read the book "5 Morning Club," which provides incredible inspiration and the scientific basis for all the best practices described there. I also invite you to join a series of online classes where we work on implementing the most powerful habits. You can learn more about them in the “Online events” section: Online events — Marcin Kozakowski.
