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Education

When we slowly give up on our
commitments and easily justify When we slowly give up on
why we can't live up to them, aren't
we experiencing the ultimate our commitments and easily justify why
punishment or taking our own life?
we can't live up to them, aren't we
I love what Jocko Willink wrote in experiencing the ultimate punishment
Discipline Equals Freedom. "NO MORE.
No more excuses. No More: 'I'll start or taking our own life?
tomorrow.' No more: 'Just this once.'
No more accepting the shortfalls of
my own will. No more taking the and routines may change as the rhythm of life changes. My routine today is
easy road. No more bowing down to much different than it was when my children were younger, and the hands-on
whatever unhealthy or unproductive demands of parenting were present. Be flexible and open to trying new things
thoughts that float through my mind." that support your outcomes.
The morning ritual So, what must you become to get what you want? What routines and habits
will you need to create to realize your greatness? Knowing that we plan most
The most important habit I've effectively in 90-day increments and form a new habit or replace a negative
developed, by far, is the morning habit every quarter, what will your life look like after one year, three years or
ritual. Through practicing my 10 years?
morning ritual, I've come to
understand that I create each day
either intentionally or by default. Marc Beauchamp is author of Survive and Thrive in the Merchant Services Industry and founder
By practicing this daily, purposeful of Bankcard Life, a community for payments professionals. He is offering a free copy of his book
ritual, I'm ensuring that my actions to all payments professionals at www.bankcardlife.com/greensheet. Marc welcomes your com-
are aligned with my purpose, values ments and feedback at marcb@surviveandthrive.biz.
and goals. This has helped me achieve
more than I ever thought possible.

The key is purposeful practice, as
Anders Ericsson points out in this
book Peak, "Purposeful practice has
several characteristics that set it
apart from what we might call 'naïve
practice,' which is essentially just
doing something repeatedly, and
expecting that repetition alone will
improve one's performance."

Purposeful practice is deliberate,
focused and well-defined. Just as
the body responds to exercise, the
brain reacts to these new routines.
It affects homeostasis, which is a
system's tendency to do what it
needs to do to maintain stability.
With deliberate, purposeful practice,
you are challenging homeostasis—
getting out of your comfort zone—
and forcing your brain to adapt and
expand.

The purpose of the morning ritual is
to prepare you for the day ahead, get
centered and set your intention, so
you can perform at optimal levels the
entire day. Your morning ritual must
be just that: yours. It may take time to
develop a ritual that serves you best,

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