5 Keys To Success For Monday Mornings

August 13, 2012 in Success with 13 Comments

Monday mornings.

They come every…Monday morning.

For some people, they are the start of another new, exciting adventure. For others, they are the beginning of another long, dreary, 7-day stretch.

Monday mornings. They come every…Monday morning.

I love Monday mornings! (I know some are saying, “I hate this guy.”) For me, Monday mornings truly are the start to another new and exciting adventure. They don’t drain me, they energize me. Monday mornings are filled with opportunities for significant growth and accomplishments. Monday mornings give me another 7-day chance to invest my life in what matters most. And Monday mornings create yet another 168-hour time frame to make a difference. (Some of you are now saying, “Wow, I really, REALLY hate this guy!”)

My view of Monday mornings isn’t just a hopeful wish. There are certain practices I follow that allow me to start each week right. What follows are 5 keys to success for Monday mornings that, when practiced, allow me to live it forward at the beginning of each week so that I can look back at the end of the week and realize I invested myself well into the roles that matter most. These 5 keys to success allow me to grow personally, invest well in the lives of my family, serve my community, and add value to my clients.

5 Keys To Success For Monday Morning

1. Pop Up. One of the keys to success for Monday mornings is to “pop up” out of bed and get an early start. Rolling out of bed at 8 or 9 AM keeps us for getting a head start to our week. Getting up at 5 or 6 AM in order to hit the ground running is one of the most important keys to success for starting our week off right.

2. Purpose. One of the reasons I want to pop up and get an early start is so I can reconnect with my purpose. I’m using “purpose” here in the broadest manner possible, so I’m not only talking about reconnecting with my life’s purpose statement. I’m also talking about reconnecting with my values and goals as well. The way I do this comprehensive reconnect is through a discipline I call leading my life from quiet.

3. Positive. While leading my life from quiet, I pay special attention to my attitude. I focus on creating an optimistic, positive, thankful mindset. Gratitude for life, gratitude for my blessings, and even gratitude for my problems and challenges are keys to success that allow me to take 100 percent responsibility for my life first thing on Monday morning. This attitude check is one of the keys to success that enables me to start my week off in the right frame of mind.

4. Plan. I map out my plan for the week every Monday morning as well. Some people do this Sunday evening, but I wait until Monday morning for two reasons. First, Sunday afternoon and evening is family time. I love relaxing and hanging out with my wife and kids, and I want to be fully invested in these moments without being distracted by thinking about the future. Second, since I “pop up” early on Monday morning, I have plenty time to plan out what’s I need to focus on during the upcoming week.

5. Proactive Priorities. When I plan out my week, I don’t create a To-Do List. I create a Goal-Getting list that includes what I call 20 Percent Activities and 1 Percent Activities. This list is based on the Pareto Principle and is core to the system I use to set and achieve goals. This Goal-Getting system is one of the best keys to success I embrace because it empowers me to proactively focus on the priorities that matter most to me.

Question: How are you starting off your week? Are you practicing the 5 keys to success for Monday mornings?

 

 

  • http://www.jmlalonde.com Joe Lalonde

    I use point number 1 a lot. It definitely helps to pop out of bed and get out of it as fast as possible. The longer I stay in bed, the less I want to get out and the worse I feel when I actually do.

    • http://www.liveitforward.com/ Kent Julian

      Absolutely!

  • http://www.thindifference.com/ Jon M

    Great points and reminders here, Kent. Too often, we get drug down, and our Mondays start catching up rather than popping up. Entering the week with a positive approach will set our tone and the tone of those around us. Thanks! Jon

    • http://www.liveitforward.com/ Kent Julian

      So true, Jon. It’s so good to be able to say, “I love Mondays!”

  • http://www.liveitforward.com/ Kent Julian

    So true, energy and fuel does come from purpose and passion!

  • http://intentionaltoday.com/ Ngina Otiende

    I like # 1 and try to live by it – am not always able to do it, esp when i work late into the night/early morning hours. But definitely rising early makes a difference.

    I love your 6B’s. Powerful way to live.

  • Derek Olsen

    Love it. 3 & 5 are my favorites. It is so important to realize and accept the fact that we are responsible for our own attitude, actions, and life. This mindset should lead to a positive attitude every time. How amazing is it that we are responsible for a life, our own life? What a gift! “Proactive Priorities.” That is a cool little catch phrase. I still find myself reacting to unwanted situations instead of creating the situation that I want. But I am getting better at this. I love the idea of basing your actions on your priorities. That is a must. Otherwise you could end up really busy but accomplishing the wrong things.

    I recently started an event called M.A.M. Stands for Massive Action Monday. (#MassiveActionMonday for those on Twitter) I choose one major project that I have been working on and use Monday to focus all my time and efforts on that project. On Monday I try my hardest to finish or at least make a huge amount of progress on that one project. So far it is working really well. I just have to keep in mind that balance is important and try not to burn myself out. But like you Kent, I love what I do so much that I am almost always in danger of burn out from working to much! I am learning to take breaks and even days off. Crazy, I used to HATE Mondays.

    • http://www.liveitforward.com/ Kent Julian

      Thanks for sharing so much of yourself, Derek! I really appreciate it.

      Love the #MassiveActionMonday. I’m going to try to remember to look for that hashtag on Mondays.

      Keep living it forward, Derek.

  • http://alanamokma.wordpress.com/ Alana Mokma

    I’m getting there! I have Mondays off right now, so it works well to pop up and get started early. One think I need to work on is after I have my initial workout and journaling session to take it a step further and create the goals for my week.

    I appreciate how your posts have break-downs in how to do things. I’m pretty good at big-picture, but breaking down into the step-by-step can be more difficult.

    • http://www.liveitforward.com/ Kent Julian

      Alana, thank you so much for compliment. I appreciate it!

      I love seeing you live it forward. It’s so much fun to watch you grow, learn, develop, and take steps each and every week. Keep at it!

  • http://ericcswanson.com/ Eric C Swanson

    I’ve started getting up extra early to get my day going. It started after reading your Goal Getting book. It’s challenging doing this with two little kids, but I have been very successful. I’ve finished a book or so a month since starting this and reviewing my goals.
    I don’t want to be a TGIFer anymore, so I look forward to Mondays at 4:45 AM

    • http://www.liveitforward.com/ Kent Julian

      Love “don’t want to be a TGIFer anymore.” You’re becoming a “TGIMer!”