Get Busy Before You Start Work

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14 things successful people do before breakfast

Do you do 14 things before work? This report from the World Economic Forum spells out how to make the most of your mornings

Many people think that squeezing in breakfast before work is a feat in itself. However, research from the World Economic Forum states that successful people make the most of their mornings.

They have released a list of 14 things that successful people do in the mornings before the first meal of the day.

It includes exercising, spending quality time with the family, networking over coffee and working on a personal-passion project.

The WEF states: "Those among us who have managed to find professional success and eke out a life actively embrace this philosophy. They must set aside their first hours of the day to invest in their top-priority activities before other people’s priorities come rushing in."

 This is backed up by science - Laura Vanderkam, a time-management expert and the author of “What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast", cites the famous finding of Roy Baumeister, a Florida State University psychology professor, that willpower is like a muscle that becomes fatigued from overuse.

Diets are easy to keep up with during the day, for example, but often fall flat in the evening when our bodies and willpower get tired.

However, rest assured that you don't have to do all 14 every day before you munch your museli - just a selection.

The WEF says: "While they might not do all of these things every morning, each has been found to be an effective way to start the day."
  1. Wake up early - according to Laura Vanderkam, 90% of executives wake up before 6am on weekdays. PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi, for example, wakes at 4 a.m. and is in the office no later than 7 a.m. Meanwhile, Disney CEO Bob Iger gets up at 4:30 to read, and Twitter and Square CEO Jack Dorsey is up at 5:30 to jog 
  2. Drink water instead of coffee. Drinking water in the morning apparently helps you feel more alert, rehydrates your body, and kickstarts your metabolism 
  3. Exercise - beyond the fact that exercising in the morning means they can’t later run out of time, Vanderkam says a pre-breakfast workout helps reduce stress later in the day, counteracts the effects of high-fat diet, and improves sleep 
  4. Work on a top-priority business project 
  5. Work on a personal-passion project 
  6. Invest in family time, like reading stories to the kids or cooking a big breakfast together. 
  7. Connect with spouses before you are tired from the day's activities 
  8. Make your bed - this leads to a happier and more productive day 
  9. Network over coffee 
  10. Meditate to clear your mind 
  11. Write down things you're grateful for 
  12. Plan and strategise for the day ahead - Using the mornings to do big-picture thinking helps you prioritize and set the trajectory of the day 
  13. Check your email 
  14. Read the news
Some people have been sceptical about the list:

Successful people apparently get round to eating breakfast at about 4pm. https://t.co/f64eaMJQ6O
 — James Ball (@jamesrbuk) November 2, 2015
 






However, there is no doubt that getting organised before work does lead to a more productive day.



Vocabulary:

to spell out -

to make the most of sth -


to squeeze in -


a feat in itself -


to state -

to release (a list, a report) -

to eke out (a life) -



to embrace -

to set aside -



to invest in sth -

to rush -


to back sb/sth up -


a finding -

willpower (n) -

overuse (n) -

to keep up with sth/sb -


to fall flat (a plan) -

rest assured -

to munch -

to kickstart sth -

beyond the fact -

to run out of sth (time, money) -




a workout -

to counteract -

a spouse -

big-picture (adj) -

to set a trajectory -

to get round to doing sth -



let alone -



to lead up to sth -


How many of the 14 are you able to do first thing?

Here  are some of the ideas explained in more detail.  Source: businessinsider.com

Comments

José said…
Hi Graham,
Ms. Helena Horton must know that the first thing that I do after I go up is eat anything. I can't move without eat anyting. After it I begin the day and then, my activity depends on if it's the working day or not.
Generally speaking, I don't do all 14 things that normal people do before breakfast, I do following things:
1. Wake up early. Yes, but before 7 am.
2. Drink water intead of coffee. Neither water nor coffee.
3. Exercise. I go walking to the work and by underground.
4. Work a top-priority business proyect. No I don't like business.
5. Work on a personal-passion proyect. Yes, my hobby.
6. Invest in family time. Now no.
7. Connect with spouses. No, I'm monogamist.
8. Make your bed. No.
9. Network over coffee. Before the breadfast no.
10.Meditate to clear your mind. Yes.
11.Write down things you're grateful for. Yes.
12.Plan and strategise for the day ahead. Yes.
13.Ckeck your email. No.
14.Read the news. No.
In my opinión I don't be among successful people.

See you.
Saturday, 28 November, 2015
Graham said…
Hi José,

I'm like you - I can't function until I have my breakfast. And by breakfast, I mean more than a coffee. It's the same every day. I stumble around the kitchen wondering what to make and then once ready, I take it back to bed. I have breakfast in bed watching the news. And then, I hurry off to work.

I usually walk to work. It takes me about 25 minutes.


Hi Graham,
Ms. Helena Horton must know that the first thing that I do after I get up is eat something. I can't move without eating something. After that, I begin the day and then, my activity depends on if it's a working day or not.
Generally speaking, I don't do all 14 things that normal people do before breakfast, I do the following things:

3. Exercise. I go walking to work or by underground.
4. Work on a top-priority business proyect. No I don't like business.
7. Connect with spouses. No, I'm a monogamist.
9. Network over coffee. Not before breakfast.

In my opinion, I am not among the successful people.


And if that what it takes to be successful, I won't even try.


Sunday, 29 November, 2015
Milu said…
Hi Grahan!!
Definetely I am not a succesful person. Squeezing in time to perform such an amount of compulsory tasks makes me cringe.



Saturday, 17 November, 2018
Graham said…
Hello Helema! :D

According to this theory, I am not a successful person either. More often than not, it is a struggle to get moving in the morning.


I am definitely not a successful person. Squeezing in time to perform such an amount of compulsory tasks makes me cringe.


I like the expression (though not the feeling) "makes me cringe". I wonder how you define it Let's talk about it in class.

The adjective would be "cringeworthy".

eg The way that he sucks up to the boss is cringeworthy.
Monday, 19 November, 2018
Blanca said…
Hi Graham,

I am definitly not a successful person. It seems that I don't have willpower even in the mornings. I have tried in the past to make some of the things mentioned in the article, like doing exercise or drinking water with lemmon, but I am not a persistent person so after a while I stop doing it.

But whenever I have to much work I do prefer to get up early and go to the office when there's no one around. I am more productive at mornings. When I was a student, I'd rather get up early to study than go to bed late. So I should keep trying. I would be happy if at least I could exercise in the morning.
Wednesday, 28 November, 2018
Graham said…
Hello Blanca,

I tend to procrastinate in the morning. I like to take my time . If I ever have to go without breakfast for some reason, I'm even grumpier than I normally would be in the morning.

When I was training for a marathon, I would get up early and head out without any real breakfast. That was tough.



I am definitely not a successful person. It seems that I don't have willpower even in the mornings. I have tried in the past to do some of the things mentioned in the article, like doing exercise or drinking water with lemon, but I am not a persistent person so after a while I stop doing it.

But whenever I have too much work, I do prefer to get up early and go to the office when there's no one around. I am more productive in the mornings. When I was a student, I'd rather get up early to study than go to bed late. So I should keep trying. I would be happy if at least I could do some exercise in the morning.
Sunday, 02 December, 2018
Unknown said…
To spell out - explain something in a very clear way with details.
To make the most of sth - to take full advantage of something because it may not last long.

E.g:
EN: This report from the World Economic Forum spells out how to make the most of your mornings.
SP: Este informe del World Economic Forum explica como aprovechar al máximo las mañanas.

To squeeze in - To manage to do something or see someone in a short period of time or when you are very busy.
A feat in itself - something difficult needing a lot of skill, strength, courage, etc. to achieve it.

E.g:
EN: Many people think that squeezing in breakfast before work is a feat in itself.
SP: Mucha gente piensa que apretar en el desayuno antes del trabajo es en sí dificil de conseguir.

To state - To say or write something, especially clearly and carefully.

E.g:
EN: Research from the World Economic Forum states that successful people make the most of their mornings.
SP: Estudios del World Economic Forum sostienen que las personas exitosas aprovechan al máximo las mañanas.

To release (a list, a report) - to allow something to be shown in a public or to be available for use.

E.g:
EN: They have released a list of 14 things that successful people do in the mornings.
SP: Han publicado una lista de las 14 cosas que las personas exitosas hacen por las mañanas.

To eke out (a life) - to use something slowly or carefully because you only have a small amount of it.
To embrace - to accept something enthusiastically.

E.g:
EN: Those among us who have managed to find professional success and eke out a life actively embrace this philosophy.
SP: Aquellos de nosotros que intentan encontrar éxito profesional y vivir la vida activamente aceptan esta filosofía.

To set aside - to save something, usually money or time, for a special purpose.
To invest in sth - to buy something because you think it will be useful, even if you think it is expensive.
To rush - To go or do something very quickly.

E.g:
ES: They must set aside their first hours of the day to invest in their top-priority activities before other people's priorities come rushing in.
EN: Ellos deben reservar sus primeras horas del dia en invertir en sus actividades mas prioritarias antes de que las prioridades de otra gente se den prisa.

To back sb/sth up - to support or help someone or something

E.g:
ES: This is backed up by science.
EN: Esto esta apoyado por la ciencia.

A finding - A peace of information that is discovered during an official examination of a problem, situation or object.
Willpower (n) - The ability to control your own thoughts and the way in which you behave.
Overuse (n) - To use something too often or too much.

E.g:
ES: Cites the famous finding of Roy Baumeinster, a Florida State University psychology professor, that willpower is like a muscle that becomes fatigued from overuse.
EN: Cita los famosos descubrimientos de Roy Baumeinster, un profesor de pscologia de la Florida State University, esa determinación es como un musculo que se fatiga del sobreutilizarse.
Sunday, 12 February, 2023
Graham said…
Afternoon Alex,

Let's see if I hear you attempting some of these expressions in future classes. I wonder where you found these expressions from. You should occasionally make up some of your own examples.

To spell out - explain something in a very clear way with details. (Be careful with this Phrasal. Do I have to spell it out? - this can sound like Are you stupid?)
To make the most of sth - to take full advantage of something because it may not last long.
E.g.
EN: This report from the World Economic Forum spells out how to make the most of your mornings. 😍

To squeeze in - To manage to do something or see someone in a short period of time or when you are very busy.
A feat (in itself) - something difficult needing a lot of skill, strength, courage, etc. to achieve it.
E.g.
EN: Many people think that squeezing in breakfast before work is a feat in itself. 😍

To state - To say or write something, especially clearly and carefully.
E.g.
EN: Research from the World Economic Forum states that successful people make the most of their mornings. 😍

To release (a list, a report) - to allow something to be shown in a public or to be available for use.
E.g.
EN: They have released a list of 14 things that successful people do in the mornings. 😍

To eke out (a life) - to use something slowly or carefully because you only have a small amount of it.
To embrace - to accept something enthusiastically.
E.g:
EN: Those among us who have managed to find professional success and eke out a life actively embrace this philosophy.

To set aside - to save something, usually money or time, for a special purpose.
To invest in sth - to buy something because you think it will be useful, even if you think it is expensive.
To rush - To go or do something very quickly.

E.g.
They must set aside their first hours of the day to invest in their top-priority activities before other people's priorities come rushing in. 😍

To back sb/sth up - to support or help someone or something / to support by saying or showing sth is true (respaldar/corroborar)
E.g.
ES: This is backed up by science.
EN: Esto está respaldado por la ciencia.

A finding - A peace of information that is discovered during an official examination of a problem, situation or object.
Willpower (n) - The ability to control your own thoughts and the way in which you behave.
Overuse (n) - To use something too often or too much.
E.g.
ES: Cites the famous finding of Roy Baumeinster, a Florida State University psychology professor, that willpower is like a muscle that becomes fatigued from overuse. 😍
Tuesday, 14 February, 2023
María Rossignoli Montero said…
Hi Graham!

From the 14 things within the list I can barely do two... One is drinking water, and the second is making my bed, and the last one I don't do every single morning.
About the others, I definitely don't do them.
I don't like spending time with my loved ones at such an early time in the mornings, probably if I wake up before 7 am I'll be really moody.
Also, it's really odd for me waking up before 8:00. For me that's already early. So, there's no way am I waking up at 4 or 5 am.
As for as working out, I usually do in the evenings. Ocassionally I can do it in the mornings if it's weekend, but just after having breakfast. Once I went to the gym without having breakfast and I felt like I was going to faint.
About the other things in the list, I think it could be a good idea to do some of them, like check my emails, meditate or plan my day.
Tuesday, 12 December, 2023
Graham said…
Evening Maria,

If this is what you have to do to be successful, then I am fine with being a failure.


Of the 14 things within the list, I can barely do two... One is drinking water, and the second is making my bed, and the last one (do you mean n.14 or the latter?) I don't do every single morning.

I definitely don't do any of the others.

I don't like spending time with my loved ones at such an early time in the morning, probably if I wake up before 7 am I'll be really moody.

It's also really odd for me to wake up before 8:00. For me that's already early so there's no way I would wake up at 4 or 5 am. / No way would I wake up at 4 or 5 am.

As far as working out is concerned, I usually do it in the evenings. Occasionally, I can do it in the mornings if it's the weekend, but just after having breakfast. Once I went to the gym without having breakfast and I felt like I was going to faint.

As for the other things on the list, I think it could be a good idea to do some of them, like check my emails, meditate or plan my day.
Sunday, 17 December, 2023
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