May 19, 2025 • 30 mins
That annoying alarm sound marks your transition from dreamland to reality—and what you do in the moments after it rings could determine your entire day. Are you hitting snooze and unknowingly sabotaging your productivity?
In this eye-opening episode, peak performance coach Brian Bosley reveals why that tempting nine-minute snooze isn't the gift you think it is. Science shows it triggers "sleep inertia," leaving your brain confused for up to six hours afterward. Your focus, processing speed, strategic thinking, and emotional regulation all take massive hits—all for nine extra minutes under the covers.
But there's good news: transforming your morning doesn't require dramatic overhauls. Brian walks through simple, proven steps to reclaim your first waking hour: hydrating properly, moving your body briefly, visualizing success, reading meaningful content, journaling thoughts, practicing gratitude, and planning intentionally. Each element creates the foundation for a day where you control your destiny rather than surrendering to external demands.
What makes morning routines so powerful? They offer rare moments of complete self-determination in days otherwise controlled by bosses, family needs, and algorithm-driven distractions. After coaching high-achievers for 29 years, Brian identifies lack of control as the primary driver of disengagement, anxiety, and depression. Your morning routine is your first daily opportunity to break that pattern.
Try Brian's challenge: banish the snooze button for three weeks, gradually adding one morning practice each week. Use the "Five Second Rule" to get moving before your brain can object. Your future self—and everyone who interacts with your best version—will thank you. Subscribe and share your morning transformation journey with us!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Announcer (00:00):
Hello and welcome to the Bamboo Lab Podcast with your
host, peak Performance Coach,Brian Bosley.
Are you stuck on the hamsterwheel of life, spinning and
spinning but not really movingforward?
Are you ready to jump off andsoar?
Are you finally ready to sculptyour life?
If so, you've landed in theright place.
(00:21):
This podcast is created andbroadcast just for you, all of
you strivers, thrivers andsurvivors out there.
If you'd like to learn moreabout Brian and the Bamboo Lab,
feel free to reach out toexplore your true peak level at
wwwbamboolab3.com.
Brian (00:54):
That, for most of us, is the most annoying sound in our
lives.
It's morning, you're cozy inyour warm bed and that damn
alarm goes off, whether it's 4o'clock, 5 o'clock, 6, 7, 8, 9,
10, or even 11 o'clock am forsome people.
We are so afraid of getting upand tackling the day and, quite
(01:20):
frankly, that noise is kind ofthat first reminder that we're
back from our dreamland andheading back to reality.
How do you handle those momentsright after you hear that sound
?
What is your morning routine?
(01:41):
For most people, their morningroutine is alarm goes off.
You hit the snooze button once,twice, maybe three times.
You get up, you jump in theshower, you grab coffee and you
go to work.
Anyone who lives in a coldclimate knows you don't get into
(02:05):
a car at 7 o'clock in themorning, start it and go.
You let the car warm up, youlet the oil cycle through the
engine.
Our minds and our bodies are nodifferent.
If you truly want to change anyaspect of your life, whether it
(02:35):
be financial, physical,romantic, your mindset, your job
, your family, if you want tocut bad habits out and increase
better habits into your life, itall starts once you hear that
sound.
What I'm here today to do is toshare with you what I've learned
about morning routines, what Iuse myself that has helped me
(02:59):
dramatically, and what I'velearned through research from
experts around the country andaround the globe.
Actually, I want to tell you alittle bit about the dangers of
snooze.
And you all know who you areout there who just love that
(03:20):
snooze button.
We think automatically thatwhen we hit that little button
which, if you look on your cellphone and that alarm goes off,
the snooze button is right inthe middle and it's a big button
to push, the stop button is onthe bottom, it's much smaller.
So that temptation is not justingrained in us, it's culturized
(03:43):
into us.
Just ingrained in us, it'sculturized into us.
But that snooze button, thatextra nine minutes of sleep you
get, is killing you figurativelyand maybe in some cases
literally.
Sleep is incredibly importantto us.
That seven to eight hours weget every night is crucial to
(04:08):
all that we do throughout therest of the day.
But those extra nine minutes,they are destroying so much of
what you're trying to accomplishand the person you're trying to
become.
And here's why when you go tobed at night, you fall asleep.
(04:30):
Your brain then works on sleepcycles and those sleep cycles
are 75 to 90 minutes long andyou go through roughly four of
those every night.
Your brain kind of cyclesthrough this deep sleep coming
out, a little bit deep sleep,coming out a little bit
throughout the night.
Then, roughly the last twohours before your body is
(04:52):
accustomed to waking up, itbegins to wake up.
Your brain slowly comes out ofthat sleep cycle.
Then the alarm goes off.
Now you have two options youcan jump right out of bed and
start your day, or you can hitthat button and get another nine
(05:18):
minutes of sleep.
But what happens in that nineminutes is your brain now having
the last couple of hours beentrying to wake up.
When it's now time to get up andyou hit the snooze button and
go back to sleep, it starts tocycle through another sleep
cycle.
You go into something calledsleep inertia.
Nine minutes later you hearthat stupid sound again, that
(05:44):
damn sound for the second time.
Now your brain has not gonethrough the two hours to try to
wake up.
It's still in the middle of asleep cycle.
It's still in sleep inertia.
So when you get up at that time, or you maybe even hit it a
second or third time.
Your brain is completely effedup.
It thinks it's in the middle ofthe night and yet you're trying
(06:07):
to get it up and to get yourday started.
And that sleep inertia, whoa,and really what happens?
There is, the cortisol regionof your brain is in that sleep
cycle and because you hit thesnooze button and then four
minutes, nine minutes later getup, your brain now for the next
(06:30):
four hours is completelyconfused.
For the next four hours andsome experts say four to six
hours your focus levels will bedramatically down, the speed at
which your brain can processinformation is lowered, your
strategic thinking isminimalized, your anxiety and
(06:52):
depression can elevate, and yetwe think that's the best way to
start our days.
The most important moments inour day is that first hour, and
(07:15):
yet we're starting our days inthis just completely convoluted
way.
The thing is, most people think, oh, it's not a big deal, I hit
my snooze once or twice.
I don't really see any effect.
That's because you've never nothit your snooze once or twice.
I don't really see any effect.
That's because you've never nothit your snooze and you don't
(07:37):
know the capacity of your brainand your body and what you can
accomplish if you just simplyget out of bed and start your
day.
So much literature, so muchresearch, so much information on
the internet, youtube, podcasts, books on tape that discuss
this exact challenge that wehave as human beings.
And, trust me, I understand theneed, or the desire anyway, to
(07:59):
stay in bed.
I live in Michigan and also inWisconsin.
These are not the warmestweather states.
Our mornings are not exactlythe kind you jump up to and see
a beautiful ocean and the sun,the sunrise, and it's 70 degrees
already.
It can be negative zero.
(08:20):
The wind can be flying throughthe trees, snow coming left to
right.
I understand that temptationand that comfort we gain by
staying in bed for another nineminutes, but that nine minutes
(08:43):
is literally destroying all thatyou want to accomplish.
Now people say well, I knowpeople who hit the snooze button
all the time and they're highlysuccessful.
Sure, there's anecdotalevidence to everything.
People say well, I know peoplewho hit the snooze button all
the time and they're highlysuccessful.
Sure, there's anecdotalevidence to everything.
There are outliers to everysituation.
But one thing I would tell you,and I would challenge them, is,
(09:04):
if they didn't do that, theywould be even more successful,
even happier, more well-adjusted, physically more healthy, more
intelligent and better at almosteverything they do during the
course of the day.
(09:24):
One of the books that changed mylife several years ago was a
book called the 5 am Club byRobin Sharma Amazing, amazing
book.
I would highly recommend it.
It's a fable, so it's a storyyou follow, but within that
(09:48):
fable and that story, you learnso much about how important our
mornings are.
That story you learn so muchabout how important our mornings
are.
One of the things I'm justgoing to share with you is some
simple things we can do in themorning.
Now, anybody who's followedthis podcast for the past few
(10:09):
years understands I'm not aperson who believes in making
dramatic changes in life.
I believe in starting small,getting some successes and wins
under your belt and growing fromthere.
So if you are the type ofperson who does hit the snooze
once or twice or three times,gets up, jumps in the shower,
grabs coffee and goes to work,I'm not expecting, nor would I
(10:30):
even coach you on implementingall of these things tomorrow,
but what I would challenge youon is to try one thing that I'm
going to recommend.
First thing, the most highlyrecommended thing I can say is
(10:50):
what I've already said Eradicatethe snooze button from your
life.
The old saying you snooze, youlose couldn't apply better here.
When you snooze in the morning,you lose the rest of the day.
Put your alarm clock or yourphone across the room.
(11:15):
Force your body to get up,because you all know you've done
it before when you had to getup and you couldn't hit that
snooze.
You had an important meeting,or maybe you were going hunting
that morning, or you're startingon vacation.
You have to get to the airport.
You know you can get up withoutthe snooze.
And they have to get to theairport.
You know you can get up withoutthe snooze.
And what do you notice?
(11:36):
Within about 15 seconds ofstanding up, you feel pretty
good.
Once you stand up for just afew moments, that desire to go
back into bed eradicates, itdissipates relatively quickly.
So you know, create yourenvironment for success.
(11:57):
Design it for success.
One thing the alarm clock orphone should be across the room
forcing you to get up.
I've had clients in the pastthat that didn't even work for
them.
They were such heavy snoozeusers.
So I recommended they get onAmazon and buy this little
(12:19):
dancing or jumping alarm clockand literally what it is is it
sits on your nightstand orsomewhere in your room.
When it goes off in the morningit pops up and it starts
bouncing around your bedroom andyou have to catch it.
I'm not saying I recommend that.
That would annoy the hell outof me.
But if you try all the othertechniques and they don't work,
(12:42):
that could be a very, veryeffective last ditch effort.
No snooze, it's not giving younine minutes, it's costing you
another four hours of your day,up to six hours of your day of
low productivity, foggy thinking, poor decision-making,
(13:06):
increases in anxiety anddepression.
So it's kind of like bendingover dollars to pick up dimes.
Would you rather have fourhours or nine minutes?
I'd take the four hours.
So, first of all, do not underany circumstances hit that
(13:31):
snooze button.
Number two first thing in themorning hydrate.
Drink 16 minimum ounces ofwater every day.
A little tip to that that couldadd a lot to it.
Freshly squeeze lemon juice inyour water with a pinch of
Celtic sea salt.
(13:52):
Oh my goodness, it tastes greatfor one thing, but it just gets
your body moving.
Next thing move your body.
Do something, even if it's 10minutes.
Go for a walk, do some crunches, some sit-ups, some stretching,
(14:19):
jumping jacks, whatever it is.
Get your body moving, get thatblood flowing, only for 10
minutes.
You don't have to do much morethan that.
If you can go for a long run orget on the treadmill or go to
the gym or do yoga, oh mygoodness, by all intents and
purposes, go do that.
But if nothing else, move itfor 10 minutes.
(14:46):
Next thing visualize your day,visualize your life.
If you want to go back to aformer podcast episode, I
believe we did back in 2022 on Ithink we did two episodes on
your true peak identity, tpi Goback and listen to that.
Visualize who you want tobecome that.
(15:15):
Visualize who you want tobecome.
Do daily affirmations, maybeprayer.
You know, if you have a book onaffirmations that you read
every day, read that, but thinkabout who you want to become
that day.
Think about who you want tobecome for the rest of your life
.
This needs to take no more thana minute or two.
(15:36):
Next, read.
You could do Audible if youwant.
You could listen to a podcastif you want, but I'm a firm
believer there is nothing morepowerful than sitting down with
your eyes and reading a book orreading an article.
Grab a highlighter, grab a pen.
(15:58):
Note the important things youread that day.
You don't have to read long.
Read for 10 minutes.
Read five pages, learnsomething and get your mind
flowing.
Next, journal, write somethingdown.
(16:21):
It can be one sentence on howyou feel right now.
It could be a full page, butjust journal some thoughts, some
feelings.
Get some of that stuff out.
Your brain has just spent thepast seven to eight hours
processing information.
Now that information is readyto be put on paper.
Maybe something you thought ofan idea, a quote, a learning.
(16:45):
Maybe write down the three winsyou had the day before a
learning.
Maybe write down the three winsyou had the day before.
Maybe write down a dream youhad.
Or simply just write down I'mkind of feeling shitty today and
I don't know why.
Or write down I'm feelingincredibly positive and
energetic today and here's why Ithink that's happening.
(17:07):
And then, once you're donejournaling on that same paper or
journal, write down three tofive things that you are
grateful for at that moment.
You know I've stated thisresearch so many times in the
podcast that the University ofCalifornia, berkeley, did a
study several years ago showingthat for every one positive
(17:31):
thing we notice in our lives andin the world.
We notice nine negative things.
That's the way our brain hasworked.
We have this little part of ourbrain called the amygdala.
It's the size and shape of analmond.
It is in our brains to detectdanger and of course, it has
kept our species alive formillennia because it's so
(17:51):
powerful.
It saw, you know, warringtribes that kept us on the alert
for warring tribes or animalattacks or typhoons and bad
weather.
So we were always on the alert.
Well, thankfully for most of usanyway, we don't have those
existential threats any longer.
We don't have a pack of wolvesat our door when we open up the
(18:12):
garage.
We don't have warring tribescoming to rape and pillage our
village.
We get weather alerts longbefore they hit us.
But that amygdala is stillthere.
It's still detecting danger, itstill wants job security, it
wants to keep us safe and itwants to keep us in our comfort
(18:34):
zone.
It's the primary reason why wehave road rage, because we sense
everything is danger.
But in reality we know there arenot nine negative things to
every one positive.
There are probably a negativethings to every one positive.
There are probably a thousandpositive to every one negative
and with the corporate mediaconstantly throwing negative
(18:56):
news at us and trying tofear-monger us, I can see why
our media is still so strong inus.
So we see negative andnegativity is no way to start
the day.
You deserve to have a verypositive, productive and
prosperous day, every single day, so showing gratitude is one of
(19:18):
the most important things wecan do.
Just write down three to fivethings you are grateful for at
that moment.
They can be big things, theycan be small things, they can be
average-sized things.
Moment they can be big things,they can be small things, they
can be average size things.
And then, from there, plan yourday, plan your day out.
(19:43):
Just look at your calendar,look at your to-do list.
Get mentally and emotionallyready for the things you are
about to accomplish that day.
Some things to avoid Do not lookat your email, your texts, your
social media.
Give your brain one hour before, after you wake up, before you
(20:04):
jump on any othercorrespondences, because
anything that somebody posted onFacebook or any response they
might have had to a post you puton Instagram, it can wait an
hour.
You know our brains have beenevolving for hundreds of
thousands of years and it'sreally only been in the past few
years that we've had thisquantity of information thrown
(20:29):
at us.
Our brains are not even closeto being ready for all this
information that we get throughthe corporate media and TV, or
through podcasts like this, even, or, you know, social media and
all the just so muchinformation so quick and so
(20:49):
readily available at ourfingertips.
Give your brain an hour ofspending time with you, building
you up, getting yourself readyemotionally, mentally,
physically and spiritually,before you then go on and get
other people's information,because you think about our days
(21:10):
.
Most of our days are withinsomeone else's control.
Our children, our companies,our jobs, our boss and managers,
our professors, our teachers,sometimes our own friends and
family dominate our day, and oneof the things I've learned in
(21:33):
the 29 years of coachinghigh-end professionals is that
the number one cause that I seeof people becoming disengaged in
life and getting stuck on thathamster wheel and in some cases,
the number one cause fordepression and anxiety is a
sense of having lack of controlin their lives.
(21:53):
Somebody always wants this.
My boss is demanding thisproject to be done.
My kids are screaming at mefrom the other room.
My professors tell me we haveto do this presentation next
Tuesday.
It's nonstop.
And then, when we're not beingtold by someone else what to do
or what they need from us, we'regetting on YouTube, we're
(22:14):
getting on Facebook, we'regetting on TikTok and we're
sitting there being absorbedinto their world.
Trust me, I'm a TikTok fiend.
I'm a fanatic with it.
I had to take it off my cellphone because it was too much of
a distraction.
But they all are pulling at usand they're trying to control.
They're trying to control usfor clicks, for eyeballs, they
(22:39):
want advertising, they want tomake money and we are simply
just servants to their creationof wealth.
So give yourself that first hourwhere you have full control.
You have full control onwhether or not you get up when
that alarm goes off no snooze.
(23:02):
You have full control overdrinking a big glass of water,
hydrating first thing.
Over drinking a big glass ofwater Hydrating first thing, of
moving your body for 10 minutesOf visualizing, reading
affirmations.
You have full control over whatyou read and put into your
(23:22):
brain first thing in the morning, what you journal and what you
show gratitude for, and you havefull control over on how well
you plan out your day.
Now I do have a client who Ithink of very I hold in high
(23:44):
regards Great guy.
He's having a difficult timewith the snooze button.
So in two days I'm going tohave the pleasure of telling him
there is an anecdote to it.
Now I just learned this overthe past couple of weeks If you
in fact are not going to avoidthe snooze button and you're
(24:08):
going to hit it a couple oftimes every morning, you do.
There is an anecdote.
If you jump into an ice coldshower when you get out of bed,
that can snap that sleep inertiaout of you.
It can wake up your brain sothat you don't have that four
(24:28):
hours of working far less thanyour peak level.
So I think the best question isis when really you think about
all the things I mentioned, thatdrinking water, the exercise,
visualizing, reading, journaling, planning the day you know, all
those great things.
The number one, most importantfulcrum habit is to not hit the
(24:53):
snooze button to wake upinstantly.
The best way to do that is tofollow Mel Robbins.
Her book is the Five SecondRule and her claim and I believe
it deeply from the researchthat others have done is that if
you think of something for morethan five seconds, you're
probably going to not do it.
So if you think I'm going to goexercise and you wait five
seconds before you get up,you're probably not going to
(25:15):
exercise.
If your alarm goes off and youwait five seconds before you get
out of bed, you're probablygoing to stay in bed and hit the
snooze button.
So I don't like the five, Idon't like the five seconds
themselves, but the five secondrule is this you start as soon
as that alarm goes off.
You go five, four, three, two,one up.
I do three, two, one.
If I have a hard time gettingout of bed at 5 am when my alarm
(25:35):
goes off which thankfully mostof the time I don't, because I
do go to bed early, but when Ido, I just say in my head three,
two, one and get up.
Try that, just try it, or don't, because you can do the other
thing I mentioned, which is getup after another 9, 18, or 27
(25:56):
minutes and you can jump into anice-cold shower for three to
four minutes, your choice.
Personally, I think theice-cold shower is something we
should all do anyway and I'verecommended it so many times on
the podcast and to clients andto family and friends.
But that's one recommendationand coaching aspect that I get
(26:22):
pushback on the most.
So what I gathered is mostpeople don't like cold showers.
So I guess you have threeoptions.
You can, at the sound of thatalarm, say 3, 2, 1 and get up
and start your day, control yourmorning, set the pattern for
(26:44):
the rest of your day of what youwant to accomplish and who you
want to be, for the rest of yourday, of what you want to
accomplish and who you want tobe.
Number two you can hit thesnooze button one or two times
and get up and take an ice coldshower and then still do those
things like hydrate, exercise,journal, etc.
Or you could just say I'm goingto continue to hit the snooze
(27:05):
button two to three times, I'mgoing to get up, jump in the
shower, warm shower, hot shower,I'm going to grab my coffee and
I'm going to go.
And what I would say to you isI feel pity for the people who
have to work alongside you forthose first four hours of the
day, because I believe this,when we don't prepare ourselves
(27:29):
for the day, we are, in myopinion, dishonoring the people
we work around, whether it'scolleagues, whether it's
classmates, whether it's family,children, friends,
grandchildren because we are notable to give them our best.
Because we are not able to givethem our best Because we are
(27:51):
not at our best.
Now, I know this is a little bitpreachy and I'm okay with that,
because I firmly believe thatthis is one area we can all
control.
And it's amazing how manyquestions I get from people.
What would you say is the mostimportant thing for success in
the world?
What is something I can do thatwill increase my confidence, my
(28:16):
attitude, my wealth, my abilityto attract a romantic partner,
my ability to be a better fatheror mother, whatever it might be
?
We all want the answers,answers, but oftentimes, when we
hear the answers well, we shrugthem away because they're a
(28:38):
little inconvenient.
This is the most inconvenientthing you can do if you're used
to staying in bed.
After that, alarm goes off and Iwill challenge you to try it
(29:00):
for three weeks and I will beshocked if you, in three weeks,
are pleasantly surprised and youare honored to look into that
person, into the eyes of thatperson in the mirror, it will
literally change who you arehonored to.
Look into the eyes of thatperson in the mirror, it will
literally change who you are.
And again, you don't have tostart by doing all of them.
Start with the snooze button,avoiding the snooze button.
(29:22):
Do that for a week, then thenext week, add in the water,
then add in the exercise and addin the visualization and then
add in the reading and thejournaling and the gratitude and
the planning out your day.
Maybe over the course of thenext seven, eight weeks you just
add one a week.
However you want to do it, Iwill promise you that if you do
(29:47):
these things and migrate theminto your morning routine, you
will hardly recognize the personyou are in 365 days.
So remember one thing folks Goback to that old saying mom and
dad told us years and years agoyou snooze, you lose.
(30:12):
Thank you everyone for tuning inthis week.
I would be honored if you wouldsubscribe.
Hit that like button.
That helps keep our algorithmsgoing and gets more and more
people across the globelistening to us and hearing some
of the great guests we bring on.
And please rate and review us.
I respect and appreciate eachand every one of you.
(30:33):
Until next time, please get outthere and strive to give and be
your best.
Show love and respect to othersand to yourself, first of all
by having a strong morningroutine, and then get out there
and live consciously Until nexttime.
Hello and welcome to the Bamboo Lab Podcast with your
host, peak Performance Coach,Brian Bosley.
Are you stuck on the hamsterwheel of life, spinning and
spinning but not really movingforward?
Are you ready to jump off andsoar?
Are you finally ready to sculptyour life?
If so, you've landed in theright place.
(00:21):
This podcast is created andbroadcast just for you, all of
you strivers, thrivers andsurvivors out there.
If you'd like to learn moreabout Brian and the Bamboo Lab,
feel free to reach out toexplore your true peak level at
wwwbamboolab3.com.
Brian (00:54):
That, for most of us, is the most annoying sound in our
lives.
It's morning, you're cozy inyour warm bed and that damn
alarm goes off, whether it's 4o'clock, 5 o'clock, 6, 7, 8, 9,
10, or even 11 o'clock am forsome people.
We are so afraid of getting upand tackling the day and, quite
(01:20):
frankly, that noise is kind ofthat first reminder that we're
back from our dreamland andheading back to reality.
How do you handle those momentsright after you hear that sound
?
What is your morning routine?
(01:41):
For most people, their morningroutine is alarm goes off.
You hit the snooze button once,twice, maybe three times.
You get up, you jump in theshower, you grab coffee and you
go to work.
Anyone who lives in a coldclimate knows you don't get into
(02:05):
a car at 7 o'clock in themorning, start it and go.
You let the car warm up, youlet the oil cycle through the
engine.
Our minds and our bodies are nodifferent.
If you truly want to change anyaspect of your life, whether it
(02:35):
be financial, physical,romantic, your mindset, your job
, your family, if you want tocut bad habits out and increase
better habits into your life, itall starts once you hear that
sound.
What I'm here today to do is toshare with you what I've learned
about morning routines, what Iuse myself that has helped me
(02:59):
dramatically, and what I'velearned through research from
experts around the country andaround the globe.
Actually, I want to tell you alittle bit about the dangers of
snooze.
And you all know who you areout there who just love that
(03:20):
snooze button.
We think automatically thatwhen we hit that little button
which, if you look on your cellphone and that alarm goes off,
the snooze button is right inthe middle and it's a big button
to push, the stop button is onthe bottom, it's much smaller.
So that temptation is not justingrained in us, it's culturized
(03:43):
into us.
Just ingrained in us, it'sculturized into us.
But that snooze button, thatextra nine minutes of sleep you
get, is killing you figurativelyand maybe in some cases
literally.
Sleep is incredibly importantto us.
That seven to eight hours weget every night is crucial to
(04:08):
all that we do throughout therest of the day.
But those extra nine minutes,they are destroying so much of
what you're trying to accomplishand the person you're trying to
become.
And here's why when you go tobed at night, you fall asleep.
(04:30):
Your brain then works on sleepcycles and those sleep cycles
are 75 to 90 minutes long andyou go through roughly four of
those every night.
Your brain kind of cyclesthrough this deep sleep coming
out, a little bit deep sleep,coming out a little bit
throughout the night.
Then, roughly the last twohours before your body is
(04:52):
accustomed to waking up, itbegins to wake up.
Your brain slowly comes out ofthat sleep cycle.
Then the alarm goes off.
Now you have two options youcan jump right out of bed and
start your day, or you can hitthat button and get another nine
(05:18):
minutes of sleep.
But what happens in that nineminutes is your brain now having
the last couple of hours beentrying to wake up.
When it's now time to get up andyou hit the snooze button and
go back to sleep, it starts tocycle through another sleep
cycle.
You go into something calledsleep inertia.
Nine minutes later you hearthat stupid sound again, that
(05:44):
damn sound for the second time.
Now your brain has not gonethrough the two hours to try to
wake up.
It's still in the middle of asleep cycle.
It's still in sleep inertia.
So when you get up at that time, or you maybe even hit it a
second or third time.
Your brain is completely effedup.
It thinks it's in the middle ofthe night and yet you're trying
(06:07):
to get it up and to get yourday started.
And that sleep inertia, whoa,and really what happens?
There is, the cortisol regionof your brain is in that sleep
cycle and because you hit thesnooze button and then four
minutes, nine minutes later getup, your brain now for the next
(06:30):
four hours is completelyconfused.
For the next four hours andsome experts say four to six
hours your focus levels will bedramatically down, the speed at
which your brain can processinformation is lowered, your
strategic thinking isminimalized, your anxiety and
(06:52):
depression can elevate, and yetwe think that's the best way to
start our days.
The most important moments inour day is that first hour, and
(07:15):
yet we're starting our days inthis just completely convoluted
way.
The thing is, most people think, oh, it's not a big deal, I hit
my snooze once or twice.
I don't really see any effect.
That's because you've never nothit your snooze once or twice.
I don't really see any effect.
That's because you've never nothit your snooze and you don't
(07:37):
know the capacity of your brainand your body and what you can
accomplish if you just simplyget out of bed and start your
day.
So much literature, so muchresearch, so much information on
the internet, youtube, podcasts, books on tape that discuss
this exact challenge that wehave as human beings.
And, trust me, I understand theneed, or the desire anyway, to
(07:59):
stay in bed.
I live in Michigan and also inWisconsin.
These are not the warmestweather states.
Our mornings are not exactlythe kind you jump up to and see
a beautiful ocean and the sun,the sunrise, and it's 70 degrees
already.
It can be negative zero.
(08:20):
The wind can be flying throughthe trees, snow coming left to
right.
I understand that temptationand that comfort we gain by
staying in bed for another nineminutes, but that nine minutes
(08:43):
is literally destroying all thatyou want to accomplish.
Now people say well, I knowpeople who hit the snooze button
all the time and they're highlysuccessful.
Sure, there's anecdotalevidence to everything.
People say well, I know peoplewho hit the snooze button all
the time and they're highlysuccessful.
Sure, there's anecdotalevidence to everything.
There are outliers to everysituation.
But one thing I would tell you,and I would challenge them, is,
(09:04):
if they didn't do that, theywould be even more successful,
even happier, more well-adjusted, physically more healthy, more
intelligent and better at almosteverything they do during the
course of the day.
(09:24):
One of the books that changed mylife several years ago was a
book called the 5 am Club byRobin Sharma Amazing, amazing
book.
I would highly recommend it.
It's a fable, so it's a storyyou follow, but within that
(09:48):
fable and that story, you learnso much about how important our
mornings are.
That story you learn so muchabout how important our mornings
are.
One of the things I'm justgoing to share with you is some
simple things we can do in themorning.
Now, anybody who's followedthis podcast for the past few
(10:09):
years understands I'm not aperson who believes in making
dramatic changes in life.
I believe in starting small,getting some successes and wins
under your belt and growing fromthere.
So if you are the type ofperson who does hit the snooze
once or twice or three times,gets up, jumps in the shower,
grabs coffee and goes to work,I'm not expecting, nor would I
(10:30):
even coach you on implementingall of these things tomorrow,
but what I would challenge youon is to try one thing that I'm
going to recommend.
First thing, the most highlyrecommended thing I can say is
(10:50):
what I've already said Eradicatethe snooze button from your
life.
The old saying you snooze, youlose couldn't apply better here.
When you snooze in the morning,you lose the rest of the day.
Put your alarm clock or yourphone across the room.
(11:15):
Force your body to get up,because you all know you've done
it before when you had to getup and you couldn't hit that
snooze.
You had an important meeting,or maybe you were going hunting
that morning, or you're startingon vacation.
You have to get to the airport.
You know you can get up withoutthe snooze.
And they have to get to theairport.
You know you can get up withoutthe snooze.
And what do you notice?
(11:36):
Within about 15 seconds ofstanding up, you feel pretty
good.
Once you stand up for just afew moments, that desire to go
back into bed eradicates, itdissipates relatively quickly.
So you know, create yourenvironment for success.
(11:57):
Design it for success.
One thing the alarm clock orphone should be across the room
forcing you to get up.
I've had clients in the pastthat that didn't even work for
them.
They were such heavy snoozeusers.
So I recommended they get onAmazon and buy this little
(12:19):
dancing or jumping alarm clockand literally what it is is it
sits on your nightstand orsomewhere in your room.
When it goes off in the morningit pops up and it starts
bouncing around your bedroom andyou have to catch it.
I'm not saying I recommend that.
That would annoy the hell outof me.
But if you try all the othertechniques and they don't work,
(12:42):
that could be a very, veryeffective last ditch effort.
No snooze, it's not giving younine minutes, it's costing you
another four hours of your day,up to six hours of your day of
low productivity, foggy thinking, poor decision-making,
(13:06):
increases in anxiety anddepression.
So it's kind of like bendingover dollars to pick up dimes.
Would you rather have fourhours or nine minutes?
I'd take the four hours.
So, first of all, do not underany circumstances hit that
(13:31):
snooze button.
Number two first thing in themorning hydrate.
Drink 16 minimum ounces ofwater every day.
A little tip to that that couldadd a lot to it.
Freshly squeeze lemon juice inyour water with a pinch of
Celtic sea salt.
(13:52):
Oh my goodness, it tastes greatfor one thing, but it just gets
your body moving.
Next thing move your body.
Do something, even if it's 10minutes.
Go for a walk, do some crunches, some sit-ups, some stretching,
(14:19):
jumping jacks, whatever it is.
Get your body moving, get thatblood flowing, only for 10
minutes.
You don't have to do much morethan that.
If you can go for a long run orget on the treadmill or go to
the gym or do yoga, oh mygoodness, by all intents and
purposes, go do that.
But if nothing else, move itfor 10 minutes.
(14:46):
Next thing visualize your day,visualize your life.
If you want to go back to aformer podcast episode, I
believe we did back in 2022 on Ithink we did two episodes on
your true peak identity, tpi Goback and listen to that.
Visualize who you want tobecome that.
(15:15):
Visualize who you want tobecome.
Do daily affirmations, maybeprayer.
You know, if you have a book onaffirmations that you read
every day, read that, but thinkabout who you want to become
that day.
Think about who you want tobecome for the rest of your life
.
This needs to take no more thana minute or two.
(15:36):
Next, read.
You could do Audible if youwant.
You could listen to a podcastif you want, but I'm a firm
believer there is nothing morepowerful than sitting down with
your eyes and reading a book orreading an article.
Grab a highlighter, grab a pen.
(15:58):
Note the important things youread that day.
You don't have to read long.
Read for 10 minutes.
Read five pages, learnsomething and get your mind
flowing.
Next, journal, write somethingdown.
(16:21):
It can be one sentence on howyou feel right now.
It could be a full page, butjust journal some thoughts, some
feelings.
Get some of that stuff out.
Your brain has just spent thepast seven to eight hours
processing information.
Now that information is readyto be put on paper.
Maybe something you thought ofan idea, a quote, a learning.
(16:45):
Maybe write down the three winsyou had the day before a
learning.
Maybe write down the three winsyou had the day before.
Maybe write down a dream youhad.
Or simply just write down I'mkind of feeling shitty today and
I don't know why.
Or write down I'm feelingincredibly positive and
energetic today and here's why Ithink that's happening.
(17:07):
And then, once you're donejournaling on that same paper or
journal, write down three tofive things that you are
grateful for at that moment.
You know I've stated thisresearch so many times in the
podcast that the University ofCalifornia, berkeley, did a
study several years ago showingthat for every one positive
(17:31):
thing we notice in our lives andin the world.
We notice nine negative things.
That's the way our brain hasworked.
We have this little part of ourbrain called the amygdala.
It's the size and shape of analmond.
It is in our brains to detectdanger and of course, it has
kept our species alive formillennia because it's so
(17:51):
powerful.
It saw, you know, warringtribes that kept us on the alert
for warring tribes or animalattacks or typhoons and bad
weather.
So we were always on the alert.
Well, thankfully for most of usanyway, we don't have those
existential threats any longer.
We don't have a pack of wolvesat our door when we open up the
(18:12):
garage.
We don't have warring tribescoming to rape and pillage our
village.
We get weather alerts longbefore they hit us.
But that amygdala is stillthere.
It's still detecting danger, itstill wants job security, it
wants to keep us safe and itwants to keep us in our comfort
(18:34):
zone.
It's the primary reason why wehave road rage, because we sense
everything is danger.
But in reality we know there arenot nine negative things to
every one positive.
There are probably a negativethings to every one positive.
There are probably a thousandpositive to every one negative
and with the corporate mediaconstantly throwing negative
(18:56):
news at us and trying tofear-monger us, I can see why
our media is still so strong inus.
So we see negative andnegativity is no way to start
the day.
You deserve to have a verypositive, productive and
prosperous day, every single day, so showing gratitude is one of
(19:18):
the most important things wecan do.
Just write down three to fivethings you are grateful for at
that moment.
They can be big things, theycan be small things, they can be
average-sized things.
Moment they can be big things,they can be small things, they
can be average size things.
And then, from there, plan yourday, plan your day out.
(19:43):
Just look at your calendar,look at your to-do list.
Get mentally and emotionallyready for the things you are
about to accomplish that day.
Some things to avoid Do not lookat your email, your texts, your
social media.
Give your brain one hour before, after you wake up, before you
(20:04):
jump on any othercorrespondences, because
anything that somebody posted onFacebook or any response they
might have had to a post you puton Instagram, it can wait an
hour.
You know our brains have beenevolving for hundreds of
thousands of years and it'sreally only been in the past few
years that we've had thisquantity of information thrown
(20:29):
at us.
Our brains are not even closeto being ready for all this
information that we get throughthe corporate media and TV, or
through podcasts like this, even, or, you know, social media and
all the just so muchinformation so quick and so
(20:49):
readily available at ourfingertips.
Give your brain an hour ofspending time with you, building
you up, getting yourself readyemotionally, mentally,
physically and spiritually,before you then go on and get
other people's information,because you think about our days
(21:10):
.
Most of our days are withinsomeone else's control.
Our children, our companies,our jobs, our boss and managers,
our professors, our teachers,sometimes our own friends and
family dominate our day, and oneof the things I've learned in
(21:33):
the 29 years of coachinghigh-end professionals is that
the number one cause that I seeof people becoming disengaged in
life and getting stuck on thathamster wheel and in some cases,
the number one cause fordepression and anxiety is a
sense of having lack of controlin their lives.
(21:53):
Somebody always wants this.
My boss is demanding thisproject to be done.
My kids are screaming at mefrom the other room.
My professors tell me we haveto do this presentation next
Tuesday.
It's nonstop.
And then, when we're not beingtold by someone else what to do
or what they need from us, we'regetting on YouTube, we're
(22:14):
getting on Facebook, we'regetting on TikTok and we're
sitting there being absorbedinto their world.
Trust me, I'm a TikTok fiend.
I'm a fanatic with it.
I had to take it off my cellphone because it was too much of
a distraction.
But they all are pulling at usand they're trying to control.
They're trying to control usfor clicks, for eyeballs, they
(22:39):
want advertising, they want tomake money and we are simply
just servants to their creationof wealth.
So give yourself that first hourwhere you have full control.
You have full control onwhether or not you get up when
that alarm goes off no snooze.
(23:02):
You have full control overdrinking a big glass of water,
hydrating first thing.
Over drinking a big glass ofwater Hydrating first thing, of
moving your body for 10 minutesOf visualizing, reading
affirmations.
You have full control over whatyou read and put into your
(23:22):
brain first thing in the morning, what you journal and what you
show gratitude for, and you havefull control over on how well
you plan out your day.
Now I do have a client who Ithink of very I hold in high
(23:44):
regards Great guy.
He's having a difficult timewith the snooze button.
So in two days I'm going tohave the pleasure of telling him
there is an anecdote to it.
Now I just learned this overthe past couple of weeks If you
in fact are not going to avoidthe snooze button and you're
(24:08):
going to hit it a couple oftimes every morning, you do.
There is an anecdote.
If you jump into an ice coldshower when you get out of bed,
that can snap that sleep inertiaout of you.
It can wake up your brain sothat you don't have that four
(24:28):
hours of working far less thanyour peak level.
So I think the best question isis when really you think about
all the things I mentioned, thatdrinking water, the exercise,
visualizing, reading, journaling, planning the day you know, all
those great things.
The number one, most importantfulcrum habit is to not hit the
(24:53):
snooze button to wake upinstantly.
The best way to do that is tofollow Mel Robbins.
Her book is the Five SecondRule and her claim and I believe
it deeply from the researchthat others have done is that if
you think of something for morethan five seconds, you're
probably going to not do it.
So if you think I'm going to goexercise and you wait five
seconds before you get up,you're probably not going to
(25:15):
exercise.
If your alarm goes off and youwait five seconds before you get
out of bed, you're probablygoing to stay in bed and hit the
snooze button.
So I don't like the five, Idon't like the five seconds
themselves, but the five secondrule is this you start as soon
as that alarm goes off.
You go five, four, three, two,one up.
I do three, two, one.
If I have a hard time gettingout of bed at 5 am when my alarm
(25:35):
goes off which thankfully mostof the time I don't, because I
do go to bed early, but when Ido, I just say in my head three,
two, one and get up.
Try that, just try it, or don't, because you can do the other
thing I mentioned, which is getup after another 9, 18, or 27
(25:56):
minutes and you can jump into anice-cold shower for three to
four minutes, your choice.
Personally, I think theice-cold shower is something we
should all do anyway and I'verecommended it so many times on
the podcast and to clients andto family and friends.
But that's one recommendationand coaching aspect that I get
(26:22):
pushback on the most.
So what I gathered is mostpeople don't like cold showers.
So I guess you have threeoptions.
You can, at the sound of thatalarm, say 3, 2, 1 and get up
and start your day, control yourmorning, set the pattern for
(26:44):
the rest of your day of what youwant to accomplish and who you
want to be, for the rest of yourday, of what you want to
accomplish and who you want tobe.
Number two you can hit thesnooze button one or two times
and get up and take an ice coldshower and then still do those
things like hydrate, exercise,journal, etc.
Or you could just say I'm goingto continue to hit the snooze
(27:05):
button two to three times, I'mgoing to get up, jump in the
shower, warm shower, hot shower,I'm going to grab my coffee and
I'm going to go.
And what I would say to you isI feel pity for the people who
have to work alongside you forthose first four hours of the
day, because I believe this,when we don't prepare ourselves
(27:29):
for the day, we are, in myopinion, dishonoring the people
we work around, whether it'scolleagues, whether it's
classmates, whether it's family,children, friends,
grandchildren because we are notable to give them our best.
Because we are not able to givethem our best Because we are
(27:51):
not at our best.
Now, I know this is a little bitpreachy and I'm okay with that,
because I firmly believe thatthis is one area we can all
control.
And it's amazing how manyquestions I get from people.
What would you say is the mostimportant thing for success in
the world?
What is something I can do thatwill increase my confidence, my
(28:16):
attitude, my wealth, my abilityto attract a romantic partner,
my ability to be a better fatheror mother, whatever it might be
?
We all want the answers,answers, but oftentimes, when we
hear the answers well, we shrugthem away because they're a
(28:38):
little inconvenient.
This is the most inconvenientthing you can do if you're used
to staying in bed.
After that, alarm goes off and Iwill challenge you to try it
(29:00):
for three weeks and I will beshocked if you, in three weeks,
are pleasantly surprised and youare honored to look into that
person, into the eyes of thatperson in the mirror, it will
literally change who you arehonored to.
Look into the eyes of thatperson in the mirror, it will
literally change who you are.
And again, you don't have tostart by doing all of them.
Start with the snooze button,avoiding the snooze button.
(29:22):
Do that for a week, then thenext week, add in the water,
then add in the exercise and addin the visualization and then
add in the reading and thejournaling and the gratitude and
the planning out your day.
Maybe over the course of thenext seven, eight weeks you just
add one a week.
However you want to do it, Iwill promise you that if you do
(29:47):
these things and migrate theminto your morning routine, you
will hardly recognize the personyou are in 365 days.
So remember one thing folks Goback to that old saying mom and
dad told us years and years agoyou snooze, you lose.
(30:12):
Thank you everyone for tuning inthis week.
I would be honored if you wouldsubscribe.
Hit that like button.
That helps keep our algorithmsgoing and gets more and more
people across the globelistening to us and hearing some
of the great guests we bring on.
And please rate and review us.
I respect and appreciate eachand every one of you.
(30:33):
Until next time, please get outthere and strive to give and be
your best.
Show love and respect to othersand to yourself, first of all
by having a strong morningroutine, and then get out there
and live consciously Until nexttime.
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