The first hour

I often take the first hour of every day for granted. That is going to change.

What each of us does during that first hour after waking up shapes the rest of our day. Notice how the rest of your day goes when you are more relaxed in the morning versus rushed. There is a noticeable difference the way you show up and interact with the world around us.

In today's modern society, it is hard to turn off the world around us. We are all so connected with one another and our devices are always at arms length away. For me, my first interaction is turning off my alarm on my phone. I have gotten better but sometimes you do a quick "what did I miss" look at your notifications and social media profiles.

I am going to stop doing that. Self-reflection and introspection is critical to me. Integrating a morning routine that allows me to connect more within myself will allow me to show up as the best version of myself daily. This means more journaling and meditation and less scrolling.

Things will always be going on around the world. We choose to get sucked into the dramas and storylines, but the most important storyline lies right within yourself. What updates do you have? What new things have you discovered? What makes the external more important than yourself?

By turning inward, setting your daily intentions, and expressing gratitude each morning you will discover more about yourself in ways that you never knew were possible. I also feel it is important to recognize that this does not mean we have to be perfect or we are always needing to improve.

Perfection and constant need to improve is not the end goal. It is about that endless curiosity about who I am at my core. Nothing in life is permanent and circumstances and situations are always changing around us. Once we begin to understand who we are, we can begin to navigate these changes with more understanding and purpose. This begins during that first hour.