The First 20 Minutes of the Morning

by Raymund Tamayo

Have you ever thought about the first 20 minutes of your waking time every morning?

What habits have you built for that first 20 minutes?

How do you jumpstart your day the right way?

For me, like a right-handed basketball player who puts his right foot forward before taking a jump shot, it’s important to start the day on the right foot.

I have learned that I have to make the effort and decision to start my day right if I want to live a more purposeful life.

Most of the time, here’s what I do during the first 20 minutes of every morning:

1. Wake at 5:30 a.m. I would want to wake up earlier, and I sometimes do when I also slept earlier.

2. Go to the bathroom and wash my face. I also usually take a pee. By the time I’m done with it, I’m awake enough to face the day.

3. Sit still and think. What I do next is sit on a chair and think. I’ll sit still for about 5 minutes, and just focus on my breathing, pay attention to my breath as it goes in and out of my body.

Then I reflect for about 10 minutes. That thinking could be in the form of prayer and meditation, or going over a list of things I’m thankful of.

That’s it, that’s what I do for the first 20 minutes of every morning to start my day right.

After that, I go on doing the rest of my morning ritual and that is reading the Bible, writing insights and ideas, posting articles on my blog (like this one!), enjoying breakfast with my wife, and other hygienic stuff.

The first 20 minutes of the morning may differ from person to person, but I believe that starting your day with prayer and thanksgiving is very important for a more meaningful, successful, and happy life.

It’s such a small thing to implement, yet sometimes small things can make a huge difference in our life. I highly recommend you try it.

How do you spend your first 20 minutes every day? Please share in the comments!