What are you doing before breakfast?

Laura Vanderkam (What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast) believes much of your life can be defined by what you do before breakfast. She  has written a fascinating ebook which demonstrates that many very successful people use mornings as a time to get things done.

But, it’s not what you think. These aren’t people driven to accomplish more and more. They aren’t scurrying around, always late and always behind. Actually, it’s just the opposite. By rising early and using the best part of the day for the most important goals, they are able to live an unhasseled life–something we all crave and need. Successful people use the mornings to do the most important things. Vanderkam encourages people to use the time before breakfast to nurture your career, nurture your family, and nurture yourself.

The reason is clear. Once the day begins we are pulled by competing events for our time. In the early morning, people don’t want or need our time. I learned this lesson as I taught seminary students. I usually arrived an hour early for the day’s work. When students “had” to see me, I often offered them that time. I learned quickly that most students didn’t “need” to see me as much as they assumed.

Since most emergencies don”t occur before breakfast, that time is left for you to do the things which really matter. Vanderkam surveyed a number of very successful people and learned they used the mornings to great advantage. For example, many used the mornings just as you would expect–as a quiet time to spend with God, for exercise, and for special time to share with family.

All of this resonates with me. Doing the most important things first opens up the day for emergencies, unhurried conversations, and freedom to accomplish even more.

Vanderkam says mornings are so important because the mornings are the times that make us think we have no time. If we only use the morning to get out the door, we feel rushed and behind for the rest of the day. “The madness of mornings is the key reason most of us believe we have no time. We have time, but it’s consumed by sound and fury that culminates in few accomplishments beyond getting out the door” (p. 11).

How are you using your mornings?

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