10 Minutes a Day

I truly believe in beginning and ending the day with a positive mindset. My partner and I begin setting the tone of the day at the breakfast table. As we’re eating breakfast, we read “Our Mission Statement,” and then we ask each other these three questions, which help us set the tone to each create a great day:

1) What are you grateful for today?
2) What are you excited about today?
3) What’s one thing you MUST get done today?

We also take a few minutes at the end of the day to journal. It took me a long time to buy into the power of journaling, but I trusted that it would be a great way to end the day and reflect so I began doing it awhile back. However, when I first started, I found it hard to sit down with my journal and pen and just start writing. Some nights I would sit there and have no idea what to write about, but I would just start writing and things would come. I would write about the day and how it went – really anything that came to me.

Recently, I was strolling around Barnes & Noble and I came across a book called “Building the Best You” by Caroline Harper. It’s a two-year discovery journal that provides the same questions each day to journal about. What I like is that it only takes about 5 minutes to answer all the questions. I’m all about manageable habits that are easy to do and anyone can do them. Everyone can spare 5 minutes every night to reflect on their day.

Another feature of the journal is to go back a year later and answer the same questions next to the same date last year and see what changes occurred.

If you are interested in ordering the book, you can get it at my bookstore here

If you already have a journal you write with and would like to start incorporating the questions in the book, here are the questions that you can start writing about tonight:

1) What did I do today?
2) What did I feel today?
3) What am I grateful for today?
4) What challenged me today?
5) How can I overcome that challenge?
6) What did I savor today?

Will you dedicate 5 minutes in the morning to ask yourself or your significant other or your children the first three questions to start the day, and then will you commit to spending 5 minutes every night answering these six questions? That is 10 minutes total a day that can become a habit that can change your day for the better.

A day changed for the better over time is a life transformed for greatness. Gift yourself this time every morning and evening. Just 10 minutes a day. You deserve it.

If you would like to commit to 10 minutes a day for a week, comment on my Facebook page and let me know.  The accountability will help you stick to your commitment!