The 5am {Hack}
Tags: productivity, mindset, creativity
Published: 2020-11-27 08:50:41

## _The fresh start_

>*RISE UP, Start fresh, see the bright opportunity in each day.* – Paulo Coehlo

You know that side hustle you wanted to start or that skill you planned to add to your repertoire. In this day of constant distraction it seems there is not enough time in the day to do any of this, or is there?

### _The 5am club_

I discovered Robin Sharma´s [the 5am club](https://www.amazon.com/AM-Club-Morning-Elevate-Life/dp/1443456624) book a few months ago during the peak of the global pandemic we are experiencing. The story really connected with me and I only wish I had heard some of this valuable advice earlier. The beauty of starting a day on your terms, not much can compare to that. I won´t reveal all of the book’s gems here, I will let you discover them for yourself.

### _Let the Hacking begin_

So, following [Simon Sinek´s](https://www.amazon.com/Start-Why-Leaders-Inspire-Everyone/dp/1591846447/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3R4M6V678HW9E&dchild=1&keywords=start+with+your+why&qid=1606465855&sprefix=start+with+your+why%2Cstripbooks-intl-ship%2C803&sr=8-1) advice, I started with my WHY. Given an extra 2 to 3 hours every morning, are you going to focus this time to kickstart your side hustle, build your MVP for a Startup, or continue your professional education as I’m doing? I am halfway through an intense 6 month online Web Developer Bootcamp spending my morning focused on crunching the hours of video lessons. I have also dedicated more time to doing yoga, meditation and mindfulness than I would otherwise have.

### _The important bits_

Among the essential things I would suggest placing your alarm a couple of meters away, so you have to get up and out of your warm and cozy bed and take your first morning steps, and don’t even think about hitting the snooze button. 

I usually have a glass of water as soon as possible after waking up, hydrating my mind and body. 
I then stumble into the living room where I have my training mat setup for a 20-minute high intensity workout (I love Billy Blanks Taebo workouts) after this I will make a green tea or coffee depending on the day and mood and go into my study room to do some focused work for approximately 1 hour with small 10 min evenly spaced breaks in between to stretch and breath in the fresh morning air.

At around 8 am I usually start feeling hungry and will have breakfast keeping it fairly light and vitamin-rich to start the day. I don’t work full time so my son´s who usually wakes up around this time will want to have breakfast with me and then a bit of playtime before school.

### _Breath in, breath out and relax_

The rest of the morning I spent tidying up around the house and perhaps a meditation or mindfulness session to calm the mind. The important thing is that by this time I have done more than most people and feel more accomplished in general. It is vital that you get to bed by 9pm to get 8 hours of sleep, which your body will thank you for later. A relaxing bath/shower and sleep-inducing tea before bed always work for me. 

### _Morning flow state_

It´s best to keep your phone out of the room you studying/working in if possible and to leave your computer's Wi-Fi switched off if you use it to study or work, it will only cause a distraction. I try to keep the light ambiance low with only a desk lamp, occasionally I play soft lo-fi tunes in the background and keep [f.lux](https://justgetflux.com/) turned on throughout the morning to reduce eye strain. Prepare everything the night before and keep your work area distraction-free with only the essential material you need to work. I also keep a journal on the desk, just for jotting down anything that pops into my head and for practicing my daily gratitude.

### _Stone Riley – the billionaire_

According to the 5am club´s protagonist you will be doing what the top 5% of the most successful Athletes, business titans, and other high achievers get accomplished daily. It will take around 66 days for the 5am wake up to become a habit (22 days to destroy your existing bad habits, 22 to install the new habit, and to then integrate it into your daily routine a further 22 days).
However you decide to spend your time, be persistent, and work hard. Success is a marathon, not a sprint. 

>*The secret of getting ahead is getting started. Sometimes you have to just let go and see what happens. Last night I lost the world and gained the universe* – C Joybell C.

Credits to <span><a href="https://unsplash.com/@dsmacinnes?utm_source=unsplash&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_content=creditCopyText">Danielle MacInnes</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/4096-x-4096-morning-success?utm_source=unsplash&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_content=creditCopyText">Unsplash</a></span> for the cover photo.