Best Self Morning Routine (Detailed Description)

Producing one podcast for The Impact of Leadership takes about 5 hours (at a minimum).   Booking the interview, researching guests, creating an outline, doing the interview, recording the intro/outro, editing audio (Nico does this), editing headshots, uploading to WordPress...it all adds up. Then there’s the audiograms/social media kit.   We’ve published over 130 podcasts since January of 2019. That’s a lot of hours put in.   Patrick and I launched the IOL Community in September of 2021 to bring more value to more leaders.   All these efforts have been fueled by a passion to equip, connect and grow leaders while having fun.   And that is still the case.   But I need a break.     Unplug, Untangle In episode 114, Dr. Michalea O’Donnell told us we can’t do it all. She speaks directly to symptoms of burnout and uses an analogy of traveling with her kids.   “When we’re in the car, and my kids are trying to watch a show on their tablets, often their headphone cord gets all twisted up. And there’s not really a good way to sort it out unless you unplug and then untangle it. It’s the same with leaders.”   “First, you unplug. Then you untangle.”   Since recording her episode, that phrase has stuck with me over the last few months.   All of the mental space I had for creativity and brainstorming was occupied by thoughts of the next steps.   Plus, I have a full-time job with CCB Technology, where I lead a team of thirteen.   IOL is a startup with only two employees—me and Patrick. It’s not that easy to leave and get coverage.   So, what do you do? Keep running until you either have more help or die. For me, there was a third option.   Prep, Step Back, Rejoin Patrick saw it coming and said, “I’d rather have you take a break now and come back than burn out and walk away.”   Good leadership.     But how? I do everything for the podcast, minus editing. Every other week I publish a blog. Emails daily come in about guests for the podcast and new members.   “It FEELS like this thing we’ve built will come to a screeching halt if I step back.”   Not true. The house won’t fall if I go for a walk.     There’s a lot of prep work to take a step back, though. Here’s what we did. ·         We met multiple times about “who’s doing what and when.” ·         Dates were established for my break ·         I outlined every step for producing a podcast in case Patrick wants to jump in o   Roughly twenty steps, eight follow-along videos, and seven email attachments ·         All the necessary re-releases are uploaded and scheduled for publishing   Those four bullet points were about 20-25 hours of work. And the regular stuff still had to be completed.   It’s been worth it. Patrick has what he needs, and he knows I’m not disappearing.     The prep has been done. The step-back part is next. So that I can rejoin with renewed vision and energy.     You Can’t Give What You Don’t Have My encouragement to you as a leader is to step back and get some oxygen if you feel the fire shrinking.   You might have to get creative and also put in 2x the hours upfront to pause.   Not doing it will have worse ramifications than powering through.   If you have thoughts or questions about this blog, hit me up. I’m easy to find on LinkedIn.   I’d be happy to expand on my mental state, goals, things I was beginning to slip on...etc.   It might take a few weeks for me to get back to you, though 😊   NEED MORE?  Hire us to speak at your next event Check out our library of 125+ podcasts aid in your growth as a leader! Go to our YouTube and LinkedIn pages for more encouraging content.  

I went without coffee for 94 days. I wanted to understand my relationship with caffeine better. At the time, my average intake was 400-500mg of caffeine a day.    During those few months, there were several lessons learned. What follows are the main ones.    Morning Routines Matter  The first three days of the coffee fast, I toughed it out with zero mg of caffeine. Of course, it's sick, but I wanted to see what would happen.   One of the first things I noticed was how I automatically went to flip on the kettle after drinking my ACV and water.    No coffee broke my morning routine, and I felt it.   One HUGE help was incorporating Mud/Wtr into my routine. It wasn't coffee, but it was hot, brown, and had the action of making coffee. It made me feel like my morning routine was back together.   As I'm typing this, it seems so dumb, but it happened to me.   Who Am I Anymore?!  My personality has a bend toward extroversion. On the DiSC assessment, I'm an iD, Enneagram; I'm a 7/8, 3/2. I like to have a good time, if the spotlight shines on me, I won't shy away from it, but I also don't need it.     One of the curious pieces to this experiment was the idea of who people know me to be. For example, if I've been ingesting a solid amount of caffeine for the last several years then people know me to be caffeinated.    Why does that matter?    Maybe it doesn't.    I wondered if people knew me as me or a version of me that was keyed up a notch or two. Maybe I'm not that nice of a guy. So what's the real me?   (geez, that got philosophical, I'll bring it back to practical)   Caffeine Is a Drug The two most popular things people say to me when talking about the coffee fast are:  I think I could do that.  I have no desire to do that.  A close third is "you're a psychopath."   Check this article out if you're interested. The short version is,    "Coffee contains caffeine, a natural stimulant responsible for coffee's addictive properties." "Caffeine is the most widely used drug in the world."    I think you could kick caffeine  You will detox, which is horrible   Mushrooms & Sleep Are Awesome I will not say that the Mud/Wtr concoction I drank boosted my outlook on life, and I certainly didn't see any psychedelic colors. (Mud/Wtr is a mushroom coffee alternative, yep, I'm that guy)   Since swapping my regime of Mud/Wtr for decaf in the morning, I do not have the same energy level or mental clarity I did in month 3 of the coffee fast. Not at all.   I also was getting better sleep during the fast from about day 35ish. Specifically, I felt like I was sleeping deeper.    It's hard to explain, but if you go to the bathroom at night and struggle with a racing mind, you know it's hard to turn that off. Or maybe the slightest noise disrupts your sleep.    Shallow sleep vs. deep sleep.    I'd wake up, go to the bathroom, and cash out right away when I laid back down.   Maybe it was the shrooms, lack of caffeine, or something else. But my sleep was better.    *Two things need to be said at this point: I typically could fall asleep quickly before the coffee fast I also did an alcohol fast that overlapped with the first 30 days of the coffee fast.  To chase the sleep/alcohol rabbit, read this article    More Than Caffeine  We crave comfort. Physically, emotionally and spiritually.    Our bodies can go further than we typically push them. However, our natural bend toward comfort constantly combats our potential.    Here's a post that will get likes but most won't do anything with: Comfort and growth are mutually exclusive.  You will find a way IF you want something strong enough. Me too.    Here's a list of things we probably don't want bad enough: Health Financial freedom Intentional parenting  Spiritual depth  A side hustle Lasting joy     Here's a list of small ways to begin training yourself to embrace discomfort: Do wall sits or leg lifts while brushing your teeth $20 automatic transfers into a savings account Take cold showers for a week/month/year Set 'do not disturb' times on your phone Think about this      The Impact of Leadership exists to equip, connect and grow leaders while having fun. Bring us on your podcasts, into your company, and connect with us on social media.    We're rooting for you.  You're not alone.   NEED MORE?  Check out the IOL Community Groups to connect with like-minded leaders! Go to our YouTube and LinkedIn pages for more encouraging content.   We've got over 100 podcasts to aid in your growth as a leader