Originally Published on betterhumans.coach.me on Oct 27, 2016 By Mark Moschel
You likely have a personal morning routine. It’s a productive, healthy, and energizing way to begin your day.
But do you have a morning routine for your team?
At Dry Farm Wines, we are experimenting with a morning ritual. We’ve now been doing it daily for 2 months.
Here’s what we do.
1. Meditation
We begin our morning with a short meditation. Eyes closed, deep breathing, and peaceful silence.
In the Art Of Learning, Josh Waitzkin talks about starting slow to go fast. In the busyness of every day life, I often find myself going fast immediately. I wake up to a racing mind, arrive at the office with a racing mind, and eventually go to bed with a racing mind.
To be effective, we must slow down.
Close your eyes. Take a few deep breaths.
Start slow.
2. Gratitude
At the end of meditation, with eyes still closed, we go around the table and share what we are grateful for.
Often it is each other.
The warmth and positivity that fills the room in this time is palpable.
I am grateful to be alive this morning, to be here with people I love, and to be working on a mission I believe in.
I am grateful for the magnificence of the clouds this morning as I drove to work and the backdrop of mountains on the horizon of the beautiful Napa Valley.
And I am grateful for you. Thank you for reading this, for striving to become a better human every day, and for encouraging me to do the same.
When you do this with other people, the effect on team chemistry and morale is profound.
3. Journaling
We then journal as a team. Someone asks three questions and we take 1–2 minutes to write down our thoughts for each.
Each week we rotate who asks the questions.
Some questions have been:
- Who do you want to show up as today?
- What’s one thing that, if fully completed today, would make today a great day?
- Who are you striving to be?
This journaling exercise kickstarts our creative thinking. It’s free-form and stream-of-thought. No filters. It’s just putting your thoughts onto paper.
Your thinking brain turns back on.
4. Affirmations
After the three questions, we write three affirmations in our journal.
The first is a business affirmation. It’s a team milestone we will reach together in the near future.
The next two are decided by the same person who asked the questions. They are usually lifestyle affirmations.
- Be bold. Be grateful. Be love.
- I will be …
- I am …
Affirmations prime your mind with the intentions you want to bring to the day.
5. Stand up
We then close our journals, stand up, and do our daily stand.
Going around the table:
What was accomplished yesterday?
What is being done today?
What is blocking me or what will I need help with today?
Stand brings us back to a tactical mindset as we transition into the workday.
Summary
This routine takes 20-30 minutes.
If you think you can’t afford 30 minutes for a team morning routine, then your team probably needs it most.
Our team now realizes that we can’t afford not to do it.
Have you tried a morning routine with your team? If so, what’s worked well and what hasn’t worked for you?
Partner and Health Evangelist at @DryFarmWines. Aspiring writer with 3rd-grade drawing abilities. @Bulletproofexec conference emcee. Previously CTO @Factor75.