“Everyonceinawhile,youreadabookthatchangesthewayyoulookatlife.Butitissoraretofindabookthatchangesthewayyouliveyourlife.TheMiracleMorningdoesboth,andfasterthanyoueverthoughtpossible.IhighlyrecommendHalElrod’slatestbook.”

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“AtfirstIthoughtHalhadlosthismind—whyonearthwouldanyonegetupsoearlyonaregularbasis?!?! Iwas skeptical…until I tried it.When I implementedHal’s strategies Inoticedanimmediatedifferenceinmypersonalandprofessionallife.TheMiracleMorningwillshowyouhowtotakecontrolofyourlife,regardlessofyourpast.Ihighlyrecommendit.”

—JOSHSHIPP,TVshowhost,author,andteenbehaviorexpert

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—DR.IVANMISNER,NYTimesbestsellingauthorandFounderofBNITM

“IloveHalElrod.Heisapowerfulteacher,andamanofgreatinsightandhighintegrity.Readinghisfirstbook,TakingLifeHeadOn!completelychangedthewayIliveeachday,and I’ve been waiting patiently for his next book. All I can say is thatThe MiracleMorningwasdefinitelyworth thewait.Halgivesus theblueprint forcreating thesuccess,happinessandprosperitythatmayhaveeludedus,andhe’smadeitsosimplethatanyonecanturntheirlifearound—nomatterwhattheircircumstances.”

—DEBRAPONEMAN,Co-authorofChickenSoupfortheAmericanIdolSoulandFounderofYestoSuccess,Inc.

“TheMiracleMorningtrulychangedmylife.Ithasallowedmetofinallystarttappingintomy full potential, which ultimately led me to a path of expanded consciousness thatcontinues to revealnewopportunitiesandabilities. It is theONLYway tostartyourday,therightway.”

—NICKCONEDERA,FilmDirector,SHARP:TheWorld’sFinestMovie

“TheMiracleMorning is the most game changing, paradigm-shifting book sinceThe 4-HourWorkweek .Hal livesandbreathes thehabits thathe instills inothers,and thisbookwillshowyouhowtotakeyourlifeandbusinesstothenextlevelandbeyond.”

—BRADWEIMERT,CEOofEasyPayDirect,www.EasyPayDirect.com

“Asaspeaker,author,andbusinessmarketingconsultant, I see thebiggest thingholdingpeoplebackfromachievingthesuccesstheywantisnotthattheydon’tknowwhattodo;it’s finding thetimeandmotivation to dowhat they know.HalElrod has literally solvedthis problem.TheMiracleMorninggivesyou the timeandmotivationyouneed tocreatethesuccessyouwant,nomatterhowbusyyouare.Ihighlyrecommendit.”

—JAMESMALINCHAK,featuredonABC’shitTVshowSecretMillionaire,co-authorofChickenSoupfortheCollegeSoul

andfounderofwww.MillionaireSpeakerSecrets.com

“If youare ready to leavemediocritybehindyou andmaximizeyourpotential, read thisbook, plain and simple.TheMiracleMorning givesyou thekey tounlockyourpersonalpower and tap into the abilities that allow ordinary people to become extraordinary. Ihighly recommendyou learn frommygood friend,HalElrod, and discoverTheMiracleMorningforyourself.”

—GAILLYNNGOODWIN,Founder&AmbassadorofInspirationatwww.InspireMeToday.comandvotedoneof2009’s

Top25MostInspirationalPeopleOnTwitter

“TheMiracleMorning isapersonalgrowthsavior. It’s theonetool thatwillallowyoutoputalltheothersintheirplace.Iwouldn’ttakelife,Hal,oryourselftooseriously...ButTheMiracleMorningdeservesintenseconsiderationasyour#1weaponagainstfailure.”

—JONBERGHOFF,NationalSalesManager,Vitamix

“TheMiracleMorning is sensational! It provides fresh insights intohowwecan changeourlivesbysimplychanginghowwewakeupeachday.Halhascreatedsomethingveryspecial here that will no doubt transform many lives and enable you to fulfill yourpotential.”

—BENGAYIII,best-sellingauthorofTheClosersIandTheClosersII

“Ican’tdecidewhat’smore inspiring—HalElrodorhisMiracleMorning.What Ican tellyouisthatifyouwanttochangeyourlife,thereisnoonebettertoshowyouhowthanYoPal Hal, and no single strategy will get you there faster thanTheMiracleMorning. Butdon’ttakemywordforit,experienceitforyourself.”

—ADAMSHEPARD,authorofScratchBeginningsandTheBestFourYears

THEMIRACLEMORNINGREALLIFESUCCESSSTORIES&RESULTS

»JustReadaFew,toSeeWhat’sPossibleforYOU…

“I amon day 79 ofTheMiracleMorning, and since I began, I havenotmissed a singleday.Honestly, this is theFIRSTtimeI’veeversetout todosomethingandhaveactuallystuckwithitformorethanjustacoupleofdaysorweeks!Inowlookforwardtowakingupeveryday.It’sincredible,TheMiracleMorninghascompletelychangedmylife.”—MelanieDeppen,Entrepreneur(Selinsgrove,PA)

“A fewmonths ago, I decided to tryTheMiracleMorning.My life is changing so fast Icannotkeepup!I’msuchabetterpersonbecauseofthis—andit’sinfectious.Mybusinesswas struggling, but after I startedThe Miracle Morning I was amazed at how, just byworkingonmyselfeveryday,Iwasabletoturnitallaround!”—RobLeroy,SeniorAccountExecutive(Sacramento,CA)

“After beginningThe Miracle Morning in December, 2009, as a college student at UCDavis, I noticed profound changes immediately. I quickly began to achieve long-desiredgoals more easily than I would have ever expected. I lost weight, found a new love,attainedmybestgradesever,andevencreatedmultiplestreamsofincome—allinlessthantwomonths! Now, years later,TheMiracleMorning is still an integral part ofmy dailylife.”—NatanyaGreen,YogaInstructor(Sacramento,CA)

“EverydaythatIdoTheMiracleMorning,notonlydoIfeelamazing,butIhaveactuallylost 25 lbs onThe Miracle Morning.I have never been happier, healthier, and moreproductive! Inowgetmoredone inaday thanIever thought tobepossible in thepast.Oh,anddidImentionthatI’velost25pounds?”—WilliamHougen,DistrictExecutive(Gresham,OR)

“TheMiracleMorningmakeseverydayfeellikeChristmas.Literally.NowIevendoitontheweekends.”—JosephDiosana,Realtor(Houston,TX)

“WhenIfirstheardaboutTheMiracleMorning,Ithoughttomyself,‘thisissocrazythatitjustmightwork!’Iamacollegestudenttaking19unitsandworkingfulltime,sothatleftmewithzero timetoworkonmygoals.BeforeI learnedTheMiracleMorning, Iused towake up between 7-9am every day—because I had to get ready for class—but now Iconsistentlywakeupat5am. Iam learningandgrowingsomuch throughdailypersonaldevelopment,andIamLOVINGTheMiracleMorning!”—MichaelReeves,CollegeStudent(WalnutCreek,CA)

“I’ve been usingTheMiracleMorning for 10months. Since then,my income hasmorethan doubled, I am in the best shape ofmy life, and never have I beenmore present tocreatingbettermemorieswithfamilyandfriendsthanIhavesinceafterIstarted.Needlesstosay,IamaHUGEfan!”—MikeMcDermott,RegionSalesManager(Davis,CA)

“Idon’treallyknowwhat tosay,other thanthatmydaysare100timesbetterwhenIdoTheMiracleMorning.”—JoshThielbar,BusinessDevelopmentConsultant(Boise,ID)

“I’m on my 83rd consecutive day ofThe Miracle Morning and just wish I had knownaboutitsooner.ItisamazinghowmuchclarityInowhavethroughouttheday.Iamabletofocusonmyworkandothertaskseachdaywithsomuchmoreenergyandenthusiasm.ThankstoTheMiracleMorning,Iamexperiencingarichermoreabundantwayofliving—bothinmypersonalandprofessionallife.”—RayCiafardini,DistrictManager(Baltimore,MD)

“After implementingThe Miracle Morning for only 3 weeks, I was able to quit takingmedication for energy that I’ve been taking for over 3 years!TheMiracleMorning haschangedmylifeinmanyways,andI’msureitwillchangeyours.”—SarahGeyer,CollegeStudent(Minneapolis,MN)

“TheMiracleMorningstartedmeonawholenewchapterinmylife.Itcandothesameforyou.Thankyou,Hal!”—AndrewBarksdale,Entrepreneur(Vienna,VA)

©2012HalElrodInternational,Inc.Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproducedortransmittedinanyformorbyanymeans,mechanical or electronic, including photocopying and recording, or by any informationstorage and retrieval systems,without permission inwriting from the author or publisher(except by a reviewer,whomay quote brief passages and/or showbrief video clips in areview).Disclaimer:The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for everysituation.Thiswork is soldwith the understanding that theAuthor andPublisher are notengagedinrenderinglegal,accounting,orotherprofessionalservices.Neither theAuthornor the Publisher shall be liable for damages arising here from. The fact that anorganization or website is referred to in this work as a citation or a potential source offurther information does not mean that the Author or the Publisher endorses theinformation that the organization or website may provide or recommendations it maymake.Further,readersshouldbeawarethatinternetwebsiteslistedinthisworkmayhavechangedordisappearedbetweenwhenthisworkwaswrittenandwhenitisread.

CoverDesign:LesHeifner,RedRattler.co

EditingandInteriorLayout:JoelDandSueCanfield,SomedayBox

Thisbookisdedicatedtomyfavoritepeopleintheworld—myfamily.Mom,Dad,Hayley,mykind,loving,supportivewife,

Ursula,andourtwochildren—SophieandHalsten,IloveyouallmorethanIcanputintowords.

Thisbookisalsoinlovingmemoryofourangel,mysister:AmeryKristineElrod

»ANotetoYou,theReaderNomatterwhereyouareinyourliferightnow—whetheryou’re

currently succeeding at the highest level you’ve ever imagined, oryou’restrugglingtofindyourway,thereisatleastonethingIknowwe have in common (probably a lotmore thanone, but one that Iknowforsure).Wewanttoimproveourlives,andourselves.Thisisnottosuggestthatthereisanythingwrongwithusorourlives,butashuman beings we were born with the innate desire and drive tocontinuously grow and improve. I believe it’swithin all of us.Yet,mostofuswakeupeveryday,andlifeprettymuchstaysthesame.

Asanauthor,keynotespeaker,andsuccesscoach,mylife’sworkistoteachpeoplehowtofulfilltheunlimitedpotentialthatiswithineach of us.As a dedicated student of human potential and personaldevelopment, I can say with absolute certainty, thatThe MiracleMorningisthemostpractical,results-oriented,andlifetransformingmethod Ihaveever encountered for improvingeveryaspectofyourlife.

For high achievers,The Miracle Morning is a total gamechanger, allowingyou to attain that elusivenext leveland takeyourpersonalandprofessionalsuccessfarbeyondwhatyou’veachievedinthepast.Whilethiscanincludeincreasingyourincome,growingyourbusiness, sales, or revenue, it’s often more about discovering newways toexperiencedeeper levelsof fulfillmentandbalance inareasof your life that you may have neglected. This can mean makingsignificantimprovementswithyourhealth,happiness,relationships,finances,spirituality, or any other areas that are at the top of yourlist.

For thosewho are in themidst of adversity, enduring times ofstruggle—be it mental, emotional, physical, financial, or relational—TheMiracleMorninghasproventimeandtimeagaintobetheone

thing that can empower anyone to overcome seeminglyinsurmountablechallenges,makemajorbreakthroughsandturntheircircumstancesaround,ofteninaveryshortperiodoftime.

Whether youwant tomake significant improvements in just afew key areas, or you are ready for a major overhaul which willradically transform your entire life—so your current circumstanceswillsoonbecomeonlyamemory—you’vepickeduptherightbook.You are about to begin amiraculous journey using a revolutionaryprocess that isguaranteedto transformany—orevery—areaofyourlife…allbefore8:00a.m.

The Miracle Morning has already transformed the lives ofthousandsofpeoplearoundtheworld(includingmyown),anditcanabsolutely be the catalyst to transform yours. I consider it a greathonortosharethiswithyounow,andIhavedoneeverything inmypower to ensure that this book will truly be a life-changinginvestment of your time, energy, and attention. Thank you forallowingmetobeapartofyourlife,amiraculousjourneytogetherisabouttobegin.

Withloveandgratitude(always).

“YoPal”Hal

CONTENTS

ASpecialInvitation:TheMiracleMorningCommunityIntroduction:MyStory,andWhyYoursIsTheOneThatMatters1.It’sTimeToWakeUpToYourFULLPotential2.TheMiracleMorningOrigin:BornOutofDesperation3.The95%RealityCheck4.WhyDidYOUWakeUpThisMorning?5. The 5-Step Snooze-Proof Wake Up Strategy (For the Snooze-

aholics)6. The Life S.A.V.E.R.S. - Six Practices Guaranteed To SaveYou

FromaLifeofUnfulfilledPotential

6.1LifeS.A.V.E.R.S.-SisforSilence6.2LifeS.A.V.E.R.S.-AisforAffirmations

6.3LifeS.A.V.E.R.S.-VisforVisualization

6.4LifeS.A.V.E.R.S.-EisforExercise

6.5LifeS.A.V.E.R.S.-RisforReading

6.6LifeS.A.V.E.R.S.-SisforScribing7.The6-MinuteMiracle(ForTheBusyPeople)8. Customizing Your Miracle Morning To Fit Your Lifestyle and

AchieveYourHighestGoals&Dreams

9. FromUnbearable ToUnstoppable: TheReal Secret To FormingHabitsThatWillTransformYourLife(In30Days)

10.TheMiracleMorning30-DayLifeTransformationChallenge(andFastStartKit)

ConclusionAnEssentialBonus:TheEmailThatWillChangeYourLifeAcknowledgementsAbouttheAuthor

—ASPECIALINVITATION—

Fans and readers ofThe Miracle Morning make up anextraordinary community of like-minded individuals who wake upeach dayon purpose, dedicated to fulfilling the unlimited potentialthat iswithineachofus.AscreatorofTheMiracleMorning, itwasmy responsibility to create an online space where readers and fanscould go to connect, get encouragement, share ideas, support oneanother,discussthebook,postvideos,findanAccountabilityPartner,andevenswapsmoothierecipesandexerciseroutines.

Just go towww.MyTMMCommunity.com to joinTheMiracleMorning Community of inspired, like-minded miracle makers andachievers.HereyoucanconnectwithotherswhoarealsopracticingTheMiracleMorning—manyofwhomhavebeendoingitforyears—togetadditionalsupportonyourjourney.

I’ll bemoderating theCommunity and checking in regularly. Ilookforwardtoseeingyouthere!

Ifyou’dliketoconnectwithmeonTwitter,follow@HalElrod,and on Facebook atFacebook.com/YoPalHal. Please feel free tosendmeadirectmessage,leaveacomment,oraskmeaquestion.Idomybesttoanswereverysingleone,solet’sconnectsoon!

Thereareonlytwowaystoliveyourlife.Oneisasthoughnothingisamiracle.Theother

isasthougheverythingisamiracle.—ALBERTEINSTEIN

Miraclesdonothappenincontradictionwithnature,butincontradictionwithwhatweknowaboutnature.

—SAINTAUGUSTINELifebeginseachmorning.

—JOELOLSTEEN

INTRODUCTION:MyStory,andWhyYoursIsTheOneThatMatters

December 3rd, 1999—life was good. No, it was great. At 20yearsold,myfirstyearofcollegewasbehindme.Ihadspentthelast18monthsbecomingoneofthetop-producingdistributorsfora$200-million marketing company, earning more money than I had everimaginedIwouldbeatthatage.Ihadalovinggirlfriend,asupportivefamily,andthebestfriendsaguycouldaskfor.Iwastrulyblessed.

Youmight say Iwas on top of theworld.Therewas noway Icouldhaveknownthatthiswasthenightmyworldwouldend.

11:32p.m./Driving70mphSouthboundOnHwy99We’dlefttherestaurant,andourfriends,behind.Itwasjustthe

two of us now.My girlfriend, tired from the evening’s events,wasdozinginthepassengerseat.Notme.Iwaswide-awake—eyesgluedto the road in front, waving my finger in the air like a baton as IquietlyconductedthemelodiesofTchaikovsky.

Stillinastateofeuphoriafromthenight’sevents,sleepwasthefurthestthingfrommymind.Rocketingdownthefreewayat70milesperhourinmybrandnewwhiteFordMustang,Iwasonlytwohoursremoved fromgiving thebest speechofmy life. I had receivedmyfirststandingovation,andIwaselated.Infact,Idesperatelywantedtoshoutoutmyfeelingsofgratitudetoanyonethatwouldlisten,butmy girlfriend was asleep, so she was no use. I considered callingMom and Dad, but it was late; they might already be in bed.Should’vecalled.ButIsimplyhadnowayofknowingthatmomentwouldbemylastopportunitytospeaktomyparents—oranyone—forquitesometime.

AnUnimaginableRealityNo, I don’t recall seeing theheadlightsof amassiveChevrolet

truckcomingdirectlyatme. Inan instantofperverse fate, the full-size Chevy pickup, traveling at an estimated 80 miles per hour,smashed head on into my undersized, and under-matched FordMustang. The following seconds played out in slow motion,Tchaikovsky’s commanding melodies orchestrating our wickeddance.

Themetal framesofour twovehicles collided—screamingandscreeching as they twisted and broke. The Mustang’s airbagsexplodedwithenoughforcetorenderusunconscious.Mybrain,stilltraveling at seventy miles-per-hour, smashed into the front of myskull, destroying much of the vital brain tissue that made up myfrontallobe.

Upon impact, the tail end ofmyMustangwas shoved into thelaneonmyright,makingmydriver’s-sidedooranunavoidabletargetfor the car behind me. A Saturn sedan, driven by a 16-year-old,crashedintomydoorat70milesperhour.Thedoorcollapsedintotheleft side ofmy body. The frame of themetal roof caved in onmyhead, slicing open my skull and nearly severing my left ear. Thebones of my left eye socket were crushed, leaving my left eyeballdangerously unsupported. My left arm broke, severing the radialnerve in my forearm and shattering my elbow, while my fracturedhumorousbonepiercedtheskinbehindmybicep.

My pelvis was given the impossible task of separating theSaturn’s front end from my car’s center console, and failed. Itfractured in three separate places. Finally, my femur—the largestbone in the human body—snapped in half, and one end spearedthroughtheskinofmythighandtoreaholeinmyblackdressslacks.

Bloodwas everywhere.Mybodywas destroyed.Mybrainwas

permanentlydamaged.Unable towithstand the immense physical pain,my body shut

down, my blood pressure dropped, and everything went black as Iplungedintoacoma.

YouOnlyLive…Twice?What happened next was nothing short of incredible—what

manyhavecalledamiracle.Theemergencyrescueteamsarrived,and,usingthejawsoflife,

firefighterscutmybloodybodyfromthewreckage.Whentheydid,Ibledout.Myheartstoppedbeating.Istoppedbreathing.

Clinically,Iwasdead.Theparamedicsimmediatelyputmeontherescuehelicopterand

worked determinedly to save my life. Six minutes later, theysucceeded.Myheart started to beat again. I breathed clean oxygen.Thankfully,Iwasalive.

I spent six days in a coma, andwoke to the news that Imightnever walk again. After seven challenging weeks of recovery andrehabilitation in the hospital, learning towalk all over again, Iwasreleased to my parents’ care—back into the real world. With 11fractured bones, permanent brain damage, and a now ex-girlfriendwhobrokeupwithmeinthehospital,lifeasIknewit,wouldneverbethesame.Believeitornot,thiswouldturnouttobeagoodthing.

Whilecoming togripswithmynewrealitywasn’teasy,andattimesIcouldn’thelpbutwonder—whydidthishappentome?—Ihadtotakeresponsibilityforgettingmylifeback.Insteadofcomplainingabout how thingsshould be, I embracedhow thingswere. I stoppedputtingenergyintowishingmylifewereanydifferent—intowishingbad things didn’t happen to me—and instead focused 100% onmaking the best of what I had. Since I couldn’t change the past, I

focused on moving forward. I dedicated my life to fulfilling mypotential and achieving my dreams so I could discover how toempowerotherstodothesame.

And,asaresultofchoosingtobegenuinelygratefulforallthatIhad,unconditionallyacceptingofallthatIdidn’t,andacceptingtotalresponsibility forcreating all that I wanted, this potentiallydevastatingcaraccidentultimatelybecameoneofthebestthingsthateverhappened tome.Hingingonmybelief thateverythinghappensfor a reason—but that it isour responsibility to choose the mostempoweringreasons for thechallenges,eventsandcircumstancesofourlives—Iusedmyaccidenttofuelatriumphantcomeback.

2000Ayearthatbeginswithmelyinginahospitalbed—broken,but not defeated—ends quite differently. Despite not having a car,evenlessofashort-termmemory,equippedwitheveryexcuseintheworldtositathomeandfeelsorryformyself,IreturnedtomysalespositionatCutco.Ihadthebestyearinmycareer,andfinished#6inthecompany(amongstover60,000activesalesreps).Allthis,whilestillrecovering—physically,mentally,emotionally,andfinancially—frommywreck.

2001 Having learned some invaluable life lessons from myexperience, it was time to turn my adversity into inspiration andempowerment forothers. I started speakingandsharingmystoryathigh schools and colleges. The responses from students and facultywere overwhelmingly positive, and I embarked on a mission toimpactyouth.

2002My good friend, JonBerghoff, encouragedme towrite abook about my accident, to further inspire others. So, I startedwriting.As quickly as I started, I stopped. I’m nowriter.Essays inhighschoolwerechallengingenough,letaloneabook.Afterrepeatedattempts that always endedwithme staring atmy computer screen,frustrated,itdidn’tlooklikeabookwasinthecards.Idid,however,

finishinCutco’sTop10forthe2ndyearinarow.2004Totrymyhandatmanagement,Iacceptedthepositionas

SalesManagerfortheSacramentoCutcooffice.Ourteamwentontofinish#1 in thecompanyandbreak theall-timeannual record.Thatfall, I also reached my highest personal sales milestone and wasinducted into the company’s hall of fame. Feeling that I’daccomplished everything Iwanted to accomplishwithCutco, itwastime to pursue my dream of becoming a professionalkeynote/motivational speaker. Imightevenwrite thatbook thathadbeenswimmingaroundinmyheadthelastcoupleofyears.IalsometUrsula.WewereinseparableandIhadthisfeelingthatshecouldbetheone.

February2005Sitting in theaudienceatwhat I intended tobemylastCutcoconference,Icametoapainfulrealization:I’veneverfulfilledmypotential. Sure, I’dwon some awards andbroken a fewrecords,butwatchingfrommyseatasthetwotopperformerscollectthe highest annual award that Cutco offers—the covetedRolex—IrealizedthatI’dneverfullycommitted,atleast,notforanentireyear.Iwouldn’t be able to livewithmyself if I left the company beforefulfillingmypotential.Ihadtogiveitonemoreyear,butthistimeIhadtogiveitmyall.

2005 Despite the late start to the year, I set a goal to nearlydoublemybestsalesyearever.Iwasterrified,butcommitted.Ialsoconcluded that I had an obligation towrite that book and sharemystorywiththeworld.Iworked365daysstraight,sellingandwriting,with a level of disciplinewhich eludedme the first 25years ofmylife.IwasfueledbypassiontodowhatIhadneverdonebefore: toventure frommy painfully comfortable realm of mediocrity—fromwhich I operated my entire life—into the space of beingextraordinary.By the year’s end, I reached both ofmy goals,morethan doublingmy previous best sales year and completingmy first

book.It’sofficial:anythingispossiblewhenyouarecommitted.Spring2006Myfirstbook,TakingLifeHeadOn:HowtoLove

theLifeYouHaveWhileYouCreatetheLifeofYourDreamshit#7onthe Amazon bestseller list. Then, the unthinkable happened. Mypublisherfledthecountrywith100%ofmybest-sellingroyaltiesandwasneverheardfromagain.Myparentsweredevastated;Iwasnot.Ifthere’s one thing that I’ve learned from my car accident, it’s thatthereisnopointindwellingonorfeelingbadabouttheaspectsofourlives that we can’t change. So, I didn’t. I’ve also learned that, byfocusingonwhatwecan learn fromourchallengesandhowweusethemtoaddvaluetothelivesofothers,wecanturnanyadversityintoanadvantage.So,Idid.

2006 Without almost zero knowledge of what the professionentails,IaccidentallybecamealifeandbusinessSuccessCoachwhenaforty-somethingfinancialadvisoraskedmeifIwouldcoachhim.Iagreed.Iendeduplovingit.Myfirstclientsawmeasurableresultsinhis life and business, and Iwas passionate about helping others, astheircoach.At just26, theoddsofmesucceedingasaprofessionalcoachwereprobablyslimtonone,butit’ssoinlinewithmypurposein life, Iwent for it anyway.My coaching business took off, and Iwentontocoachhundredsofentrepreneurs,salespeople,andbusinessowners.

Shortlyafter,IgavemyfirstpaidspeechwhenIwashiredbytheBoysandGirlsClubsofAmericatobethefeaturedkeynotespeakerattheir national conference. Although I’d been speaking to largebusiness audiencesmadeupofprimarily salespeople andmanagers,since1998,withmyspikyhair,(somewhat)youthfulappearance,andnickname“YoPal”Hal,impactingyoungpeoplewasthewaytogo.Istarted speaking and sharing my story at local high schools andcolleges.

2007The year my life fell apart. The United States economy

crashed.Overnight,my incomewascut inhalf.Myclients couldn’tafford coaching. I couldn’t pay my bills, including my housepayment. I was $425,000 in debt, and devastated. Mentally,physically,emotionally,andfinancially—Ihitrockbottom.NeverinmylifehaveIfeltsohopeless,overwhelmed,anddepressed.Atalossfor how to fix my life yet again, I desperately sought answers toinsurmountable problems. I read self-help books, attend seminars,evenhiredacoach—butnothingworked.

2008Theyearmylifebegantoturnaround.Ifinallyconfessedtoaclosefriendhowbadthingshadgotten(whichIhadsuccessfullykept a secretupuntil thispoint).Hisquestion:Areyouexercising?Myanswer:Icanbarelygetoutofbedinthemorning—so,no.“Startrunning,”hesaid.“It’llhelpyoufeelbetterandthinkclearer.”Ugh,Ihaterunning.Iwasdesperate, though,soI tookhisadviceandwentforarun.TherealizationsIhadonthisrunbecameaturningpointinmy life (details inChapter2: TheMiracleMorningOrigin–BornOut of Desperation), and I had the inspiration to create a dailypersonal development routine that I hoped would enable me todevelopintothepersonIneededtobetosolvemyproblemsandturnmylifearound.Incredibly,itworked.VirtuallyeveryareaofmylifetransformedsofastIcalleditmy“MiracleMorning.”

Fall 2008I continued developingmy Miracle Morning,experimentingwithvariouspersonaldevelopmentpracticesandsleepschedules, and researching how much sleep we really need. Myfindingscompletelyshatteredtheparadigmsandperceptionsheldtruebymostpeople,includingme.Lovingtheresults,Ishareditwithmycoachingclients,who loved it justasmuch.They told their friends,family,andco-workersaboutit.Unexpectedly,IbeganseeingpeopleI’d nevermet posting on Facebook and Twitter abouttheirMiracleMornings(moreonthatlater).

2009Mybestyearyet.Imarriedthewomanofmydreams.We

gotpregnantandgavebirthtoourdaughter(canIsay“we”oristhatmore of ashe thing?) My coaching businesswas thriving; I had awaiting list for clients. My speaking career took off. I was givingtalks andkeynotemessages at high schools, colleges, and corporateand non-profit conferences.The Miracle Morning spread likewildfire. I got emails every day from people telling me it waschanging their life. I knew itwasmy responsibility to share itwiththeworld,andthatwritingabookwasthebestwaytodothat.Slowly,Ibegantowriteagain.Makenomistake,I’mstillnowriter—butIamcommitted.AsmygoodfriendRomacioFulcheralwayssays,“Thereisalwaysaway…whenyou’recommitted.”

TakingYOURLifeHeadOnI share my story with you to offer evidence of what can be

overcomeandachieved,nomatterhowdifficultyourchallengesare.IfIcouldgofrombeingfounddead, toldIwouldneverwalkagain,goingbrokeandfeelingsodepressedthatIdidn’twanttogetoutofbed in themorning, to creating the life ofmy dreams, there are nolegitimateexcusesforyounottoovercomeanylimitationsthathaveheld you back from achieving everything you want for your life.None.Zip.Nada.

I believe it is crucial for us to embrace the perspective thatanything another person has overcome or accomplished is simplyevidencethatanything—andImeananything—youneedtoovercomeorwanttoaccomplishispossibleforyou,nomatterwhatyourpastorcurrentcircumstances.Itbeginswithacceptingtotalresponsibilityforevery aspect of your life and refusing to blame anyone else. Thedegree towhichyouaccept responsibility foreverything inyour lifeispreciselythedegreeofpersonalpoweryouhavetochangeorcreateanythinginyourlife.

It is important tounderstand that responsibility isnot thesameas blame. While blame determines who is at fault for something,responsibility determines who is committed to improving things.Thinkingbacktomyaccident,whileIwasn’tatfaultforthecrash,Iwasresponsibleforimprovingmylife—formakingmycircumstanceswhatIwantedthemtobe.Itreallydoesn’tmatterwhoisatfault—allthatmattersisthatyouandIarecommittedtoleavingthepastinthepast and making our livesexactly the way we want them to be,startingtoday.

It’sYourTime,ThisisYourStoryKnow that wherever you are in your life right now is both

temporary, and exactly where you are supposed to be. You havearrived at this moment to learn what you must learn, so you canbecome thepersonyouneed tobe to create the lifeyou trulywant.Even when life is difficult or challenging—especiallywhen life isdifficultandchallenging—thepresentisalwaysanopportunityforustolearn,grow,andbecomebetterthanwe’veeverbeenbefore.

You are in the process ofwriting your life story, and no goodstory is without a hero or heroine overcoming their fair share ofchallenges. In fact, the bigger the challenges, the better the story.Sincetherearenorestrictionsandnolimitstowhereyourstorygoesfromhere,whatdoyouwantthenextpagetosay?

Thegoodnewsisthatyouhavetheabilitytochange—orcreate—anythinginyourlife,startingrightnow.I’mnotsayingyouwon’thavetoworkforit,butyoucanquicklyandeasilyattractandcreateanythingyouwantforyourlifebydevelopingintothepersonwhoiscapable of doing so. That’s what this book is about—helping youbecomethepersonyouneedtobetocreateeverythingyouhaveevery

wantedforyourlife.Therearenolimits.

GrabaPenBeforeyoureadanyfurther,pleasegrabapenorpencilsoyou

canwrite in this book.As you read,mark anything that stands outwhich you may want to come back to later. Underline, circle,highlight,foldthecornersofpagesandtakenotesinthemarginssoyou can come back and quickly recall the most important lessons,ideas,andstrategies.

Personally,Iusedtostrugglewiththis,becauseIamabitofanobsessive-compulsiveperfectionist,andanalaboutkeepingmythingslooking clean andneat.Then I realized that I needed toget over it,because the purpose of a book like this is not for it to remainuntouched,butrathertomaximizethevalueweextractfromit.Now,ImarkupallofmybookssoIcanrevisitthemanytimeandquicklyrecapture all of the key benefits, without having to read the entirebookagain.

Okay,withyourpeninhand,let’sgetstarted!Thenextchapterofyourlifeisabouttobegin…

—1—

It’sTimeToWakeUpToYourFULLPotential

“Life’stooshort”isrepeatedoftenenoughtobeacliché,butthistimeit’strue.Youdon’thaveenoughtimetobebothunhappyandmediocre.It’snotjustpointless;it’spainful.

—SETHGODIN

You’vegottowakeupeverymorningwithdeterminationifyou’regoingtogotobedwithsatisfaction.

—GEORGELORIMER

Whyis it thatwhenababyisborn,weoftenrefer to themas“themiracleoflife,”butthengoontoacceptmediocrityforourownlives?Wherealongthewaydidwelosesightofthemiraclethatweareliving?

Whenwewereborn,everyoneassuredusthatwecoulddo,have,and be anythingwewantedwhenwe grew up. So, now that you’vegrownup,areyoudoing,having,andbeinganythingandeverythingyou’veeverwanted?Orsomewherealong theway,didyouredefine“anythingandeverything” to includesettling for less thanyou trulywant?

I recently readan alarming statistic: The averageAmerican is20lbs.overweight,$10,000indebt,slightlydepressed,dislikeshisorherjob,andhaslessthanoneclosefriend.Evenifonlyafractionofthisstatisticistrue,Americansneedsomeseriouswakingup.

What about you? Are you maximizing your potential andcreating the levels of success that you trulywant—inevery area ofyourlife?Orarethereareasofyourlifewhereyou’resettlingforlessthanyou reallywant? Areyousettling for less thanyou’recapableof, and then justifying that it’s okay? Or are you ready to stopsettling,soyoucanstartlivingyourbestlife—youknow,thelifeofyourdreams?

CreatingYour“Level10”LifeOneofmy favorite sentimentsever sharedbyOprahwaswhen

shesaid,“Thebiggestadventureyoucanevertakeistolivethelifeofyourdreams.”Icouldn’tagreemore.Sadly,sofewpeopleevercomeclose to living the life of their dreams that the phrase itself hasbecomecliché.Mostpeopleresignthemselvestoalifeofmediocrity,passively acceptingwhatever life gives them. Even peoplewho arehighly successful in one area, such as business, tend to settle formediocrity in another area, such as their health or relationships.Asbestselling author, Seth Godin has so eloquently put it, “Is there adifferencebetweenaverageandmediocre?Notsomuch.”

There is nothing that says you have to settle for less than youtrulywant,justbecauseeverybodyelsedoes.Youcanbecomeoneofthe few people that actually live the extraordinary life all of usdeserve. Happiness. Health. Money. Freedom. Success. Love. Youreallycanhaveitall.

Ifwe’remeasuring success, satisfaction, and fulfillment in anyareaofourlivesonascaleofonetoten,weallwantLevel10,right?I’venevermet anyonewho said, “Nah, I justwantLevel7 health. Idon’twant to be too healthy and have toomuch energy.”Or, “Youknow,I’mreallyokaywithaLevel5relationship.Ilikefightingwithmysignificantother,enjoynothavingmyneedsmet,anddon’twantustobetoohappy.”

WhatifItoldyouthatcreatingyourbestlife—yourLevel10life—and takingyour levelsofsuccess,happiness,health,andfinancialprosperitybeyondwhatyouhaveeverexperiencedbeforeisnotonlypossible,it’ssimple?

WhatifItoldyouthatitallstartswithhowyouwakeupinthemorning, and that there are small, simple stepsyoucan start takingtoday thatwill enable you to become the person you need to be tocreatethelevelsofsuccessyoutrulywantanddeserve—ineveryareaofyourlife?Wouldyougetexcited?Wouldyouevenbelieveme?Somewon’t.Peoplehavebeenjaded.They’vetriedeverythingunderthe sun to fix their lives, their relationships, and they’re still notwheretheywanttobe.Iunderstand.I’vebeenthere.Then,overtime,Ilearnedafewthingsthatchangedeverything.I’mofferingyoumyhandandinvitingyoutotheotherside,thesidewherelifeisnotonlygood,it’sextraordinaryinawaywehaveonlyimagineditcouldbe.

ThisBookBuildsThreeImperativeArguments:§ You are just as worthy, deserving, and capable of creating and

sustaining extraordinary health, wealth, happiness, love, andsuccess inyour life,asanyotherpersononearth.It isabsolutelycrucial—not only for the quality of your life, but for the impactyou make on your family, friends, clients, co-workers, children,community, and anyone whose life you touch—that you startlivinginalignmentwiththattruth.

§ Inorderforyoutostopsettlingfor less thanyoudeserve—inanyarea of your life—and to create the levels of personal,professional, and financial success you desire, you must firstdedicatetimeeachdaytobecomingthepersonyouneedtobe,onewho is qualified and capable of consistently attracting, creating,andsustainingthelevelsofsuccessyouwant.

§ How you wake up each day and your morning routine (or lack

thereof)dramaticallyaffectsyourlevelsofsuccessineverysinglearea of your life. Focused, productive, successful morningsgenerate focused, productive, successful days—which inevitablycreate a successful life—in the same way that unfocused,unproductive, and mediocre mornings generate unfocused,unproductive, and mediocre days, and ultimately a mediocrequality of life. By simply changing theway youwake up in themorning,youcantransformanyareaofyour life,faster thanyoueverthoughtpossible.

ButHal,IamNOTa“MorningPerson”What if you’ve already tried waking up earlier, and it hasn’t

worked?“I’mnotamorningperson,”yousay.“I’manightowl.”“There’snotenoughtimeintheday.”“Besides,Ineedmoresleep,notless!”That was all true for me, too, beforeThe Miracle Morning.

Regardless of your past experiences—even if you’ve had troublewaking up and getting going in the morning for your entire life—thingsareabouttochange.

TheMiracleMorning works foreveryone’s lifestyle (I’llbreakitdowninChapter8:CustomizingTheMiracleMorningToFitYourLifestyle and Achieve Your Highest Goals & Dreams ) and you’regoingtobeblownawaybyhowmuchmoreenergy,motivation,andtimeyou’regoing tohave,with increasedproductivity,significantlyless stress, improved health andwaymore vitality and joy. I knowthis because thousands of people around the world have alreadytransformedtheirlivesusingTheMiracleMorning.TherippleeffectsI’ve experienced in my life, and observed from countlessMiracle

Morningenthusiasts,arejaw-dropping.These newbie “early risers”—from entrepreneurs, salespeople,

andCEOs to stay-at-homemoms, high school and college students,andeveryoneinbetween—aresoexcitedabouttheprofound,positivechangesthey’veexperiencedthatmanyareevenpostingvideosabouttheirresultsonYouTube,andthensharingthemwiththeirfriendsonFacebookandTwitter.

HowWillTheMiracleMorningTransformYourLife?I’ve received hundreds of emails and messages from people

about howTheMiracleMorning has completely changed their life.Forsome, ithasallowed themto tap intoadeepersenseofpurposeand meaning in their lives. For others, it’s meant increasedproductivity,lessstress,greaterhappiness,andincreasedincome.Formost,it’sgiventhemmorepurposeful,pricelesstime topursuetheirdreamsandtheprojectsthey’vebeenputtingoffforfartoolong.

Just read a few of the Success Stories in the opening pages ofthisbook,andyouwillsee theprofoundeffects.You’llseereal-liferesults, such as,“My life is changing so fast, I can’t keep up…Mybusinesswas struggling, but after I startedTheMiracleMorning, Iwasamazedathow,justbyworkingonmyselfeveryday,Iwasabletoturnitallaround.”And,“I’monday79ofTheMiracleMorningandhaven’tmissedasingleday.ThisistheFIRSTtimeI’veeversetouttodo something and actually stuck with it longer than a few days orweeks.” Even,“SincestartingTheMiracleMorning10monthsago,my incomehasmore thandoubledand Iam in thebest shapeofmylife.”Andoneofmyfavorites:“Ihavealreadylost25poundsusingTheMiracleMorning!” Increasedincome,improvedqualityoflife,morediscipline,lessstress,andevenweightloss—it’sallhere.

I’mblownawaybyit,frankly,andhumbledtobetheluckyguytohavestumbledontosomethingthatcansoquicklyandprofoundly

transformevery area of your life. It doesn’t matter if, until now,you’vesettledforlessthanyouenvisionedforanyaspectofyourlife.Evenifyou’vestruggledincertainareas,Ibelieveyou’rereadyforaprofoundshift—abreakthroughtothenextlevel—oryouwouldn’tbehere.

In thenext chapter, I’mgoing towalkyou throughhow IusedTheMiracleMorning to transformmy entire life, starting frommylowestpoint—afailingbusiness,buriedin$425,000ofpersonaldebt,deeply depressed, and physically in theworst shape ofmy life—tobuildingmultiplesuccessfulbusinesses,payingoff100%ofmydebt,more than doubling my income, and achieving my dreams ofbecominganinternationalkeynotespeaker,havingmystoryfeaturedin the bestsellingChicken Soup for the Soul book series, beinginterviewed on radio and TV shows across the country, andperformingatmymentalandphysicalpeakbycompletinga52-mileultra-marathon—all in less than 12 months. You’ll also discoversome“not-so-obvious secrets” thatwillmakeyour successvirtuallyguaranteed.

TheMiracleMorning is not only empowering, it’s simple andfun,somethingyou’llsoonbeabletodowithouteffort—fortherestofyourlife.And,whileyoucanstillsleepinanytimeyouwant,youmightbesurprisedtofindyounolongerwantto.Ican’ttellyouhowmanypeoplehavetoldmethattheynowwakeupearly—evenontheweekends—simplybecause theyfeelbetterandgetmoredonewhentheydo.Imaginethat.

Time and time again practitioners ofThe Miracle Morningcomparewakingupeverydaytothefeelingtheyhadasakid,wakingup on Christmasmorning. It feels that good! Imagine how great itwillbetostarteverydaylikethat.

Herearea fewof themostcommon,yetprofoundbenefitsyoucanexpecttogainfromTheMiracleMorning:

ÖWakeupeverydaywithmoreenergy,feelingexcitedandempoweredwiththetoolstofulfillyourpotential.ÖImmediatelyloweryourstresslevels.Ö Quickly overcome any challenges, adversity or limitingbeliefsthathavebeenholdingyouback.ÖImproveyouroverallhealth,loseweight(ifdesired),andgetinthebestphysicalshapeofyourlife.Ö Increase your productivity and enhance your ability tomaintainlaserfocusonyourtoppriorities.ÖExperiencemoregratitudeandlessworry.Ö Significantly increase your ability to earn and attractmoremonetarywealth(ifdesired).ÖUncoverandbeginlivingyourlifepurpose.ÖStopsettlingforlessthanyoutrulydesireanddeserve(inanyareaofyourlife)andstartlivinginalignmentwithyourvisionforthemostextraordinarylifeyoucanimagine.

I know these are bold claims tomake, and this list of benefitsmightevensoundlikeabitofoverpromising—alittletoogoodtobetrue, right? I assure you there is no hyperbole here.The MiracleMorningwillgiveyoupurposefulblocksof intentional, focusedanduninterrupted time each day to invest in achieving your mostimportant goals and dreams (especially those you’ve been puttingoff.)Youcanimproveanyareaofyourlife.You’llbeblownawaybyhowquicklyyouseeresultsandmakeprogresstowardsyourhighestwantsandaspirations.Don’tbesurprisedwhenyourfriends,family,andco-workersbegin tonoticeyourpositive transformationandaresuddenlymoredrawntoyou.

I’m also going to give you theLife S.A.V.E.R.S.—six powerful

practices which combine to make upTheMiracleMorning and areguaranteedtosaveyoufrommissingoutontheextraordinarylifeyoudeservetolive—theonewhich,statistically,95%ofoursocietywillsadlyneverexperience.Withyourhelp,Ibelievewecanchangethatstatistic.

Finally,you’llbereadytoembarkonTheMiracleMorning30-DayLife TransformationChallengewhichwill develop themindsetandcementthehabitsyou’llneedtoeasilyandcontinuouslyattract,create, and sustain the levels of success you desire and deserve, ineveryareaofyourlife.Neverforgetthatwhoyouarebecomingisthesinglemostimportantdeterminingfactorinyourqualityoflife,nowandforyourfuture.

Whetheryouconsideryourselftobea“morningperson”ornot,you’regoingtolearnhowtomakewakingupeverydayeasy,andyouwill begin forming habits of waking up with more energy andmotivation thanyou’veeverhadbefore.By takingadvantageof theundeniablerelationshipbetweensuccessandearlyrising,you’llfindthat how you spend the first hour of your day becomes the key tounlocking your full potential and creating the levels of success youdesire.You’llquicklyseethatwhenyouchangethewayyouwakeupinthemorning,youchangeyourentirelife.

—2—

TheMiracleMorningOrigin:BornOutofDesperation

Desperationistherawmaterialofdrasticchange.Onlythosewhocanleavebehindeverythingtheyhaveever

believedincanhopetoescape.—WILLIAMS.BURROUGHS

Tomakeprofoundchangesinyourlife,youneedeitherinspirationordesperation.

—ANTHONYROBBINS

I’ve been fortunate to hit what youmight call “rock bottom”twice inmy relatively short life. I sayfortunate because itwas thegrowth I experienced and the lessons I learned—during the mostchallenging times inmy life—that have enabledme to become thepersonI’veneededtobetocreatethelifethatI’vealwayswanted.Iamgratefultousenotonlymysuccesses,butalsomyfailures,tohelpothers in a way that can empower them to overcome their ownlimitationsandachievemorethantheyeverthoughtpossible.

My1stRockBottom:DeadattheSceneAsyouknow,myfirstrockbottomwasalmostmylastwhen,at

age20,Iwashitheadonbyadrunkdriveranddiedatthesceneoftheaccident. (I wrote in detail about how I bounced back from myseeminglyinsurmountableadversity,aswellasthe8lessonsIlearnedthat will immediately improve the quality of your life, in my first

book,TakingLifeHeadOn: HowToLove theLifeYouHaveWhileYouCreatetheLifeofYourDreams.)

My 2nd Rock Bottom: Deep In Debt and DeeplyDepressed

Mysecondplungeintothedepthsofdespairwasmoredifficultthandyinginacaraccidentwas.

Itwas2008.TheUnitedStateseconomywasinthemidstoftheworstrecessionsincetheinfamousGreatDepressionofthe1930s.Inthe years after survivingmy car accident, despite bouncing back tobuildahalloffamesalescareer,launchasix-figuresuccesscoachingbusiness, andwrite abestsellingbook, Iwas again challenged.Thistimeitwasacompletemental,emotional,andfinancialbreakdown.

Seeminglyovernight,thesuccessfulenterprisesIhadbuiltwerenolongerprofitable.Overhalfofmymonthlyincomedisappeared.Iwassuddenlyunabletopaymybills.Ihadjustboughtmyfirsthome.Iwas engaged to bemarried, andwewere planning our first child.Buriedindebt,behindonmymortgage,forthefirsttimeinmylife,Ibecameseverelydepressed.

I was at the lowest point in my life. Could things have beenworse?Probably.Butwasthis theworst theyhadeverbeenforme?Absolutely.Ihadhitmyrockbottom.

WhyDebtWasWorseThanDeathIfyouweretoaskmewhichwasmoredifficult,mycaraccident

ormy financial struggles, Iwouldn’t hesitate to tell you itwas thelatter,byfar.Mostpeoplewouldassumethatbeinghitheadonbyadrunkdriver,breaking11bones, sufferingpermanentbraindamage,dyingforsixminutes,andwakingfromacomatofacethenewsthatyoumayneverwalkagainwouldbehardtotop.It’safairassumption

that the physical, mental, and emotional pain from such a horrificwreckwouldbe the lowestpoint inanyperson’s life.However, thiswasn’tthecaseforme.

Yousee,aftermycaraccident,Ihadpeopletakingcareofme.Inthe hospital, my family never left my side. I was constantlysurroundedbyvisitors—friendsandfamilycomingbydailytocheckonmeandshowermewithloveandsupport.Ihadanincrediblestaffofdoctorsandnursesoverseeingeverystepofmycareandrecovery.My foodwas prepared and delivered tome. I didn’t even have theeveryday stresses of having to work and pay the bills. Life in thehospitalwaseasy.

Thatwasn’t thecasethesecondtimearound.Nobodyfeltsorryforme.Ididn’thaveanyvisitors.Therewasnoonetheretooverseemycareandrecovery.Nobodybroughtmeanyfood.Iwasonmyownthistime.Peoplehadtheirownproblemstodealwith.

A domino effect led to struggles in every area of my life.Physically, mentally, emotionally, and financially—you name it—Iwasamess.

IhadsomuchfearanduncertaintythattheonlycomfortIfoundeachdaywasmyownbed.Aspatheticasitmaysound,whatgotmethrough each day was the peace of mind from knowing I couldeventually crawl into bed and temporarily escape my problems.Thoughtsofsuicidecircledmyminddaily.NotthatIwouldeverhaveactuallyfollowedthroughwithit.Suicideisnotonlyoneofthemostselfish decisions someone can make (as it hurts so many otherpeople),butdeepdown,Iknewthatnomatterhowbadlifegets,thereisalwaysawaytoturnitaround.Butthethoughtswerestillthere.Ijust didn’t see a solution tomy financial crisis. I couldn’t think ofanythingelsethatwouldputanendtomyemotionalpain.

TheMorningThatTurnedMyLifeAround

Then,inasinglemorning,everythingchanged.Iwokeupfeelingdepressed,asIhadbeenforweeks,butthismorningIdid somethingdifferent.Itookafriend’sadviceandwentonarun,toclearmyhead.Now,make nomistake, I wasnota runner. In fact, running for thesakeof runningwasoneof theonly things Icanhonestlysay that Idespised. However,my good friend, Jon, toldme that whenever hewasfeelingstressedoroverwhelmed,goingforarunenabledhimtothinkmore clearly, lifted his spirits, and helped him come upwithsolutionstohisproblems.Iwasdesperate.Ihadnothingtolose.Iwasgoingtogoforarun.

So, that morning I laced up my NikeAir Jordan® basketballshoes(ItoldyouIwasn’tarunner),grabbedmyiPodsoIcouldlistentosomethingpositive,andheadedoutthefrontdoorofmysoon-to-bebank-ownedhome.Ihadnoideathat,onthatrun,Iwouldhaveoneofthe most powerful, profound, life-changing breakthroughs in myentirelife.

Listening to a personal development audio from Jim Rohn, hesaidsomethingthatalthoughIhadheardbefore,Ineverreallygotit.You knowhow sometimes you hear something over and over againwithoutactuallyimplementingit,butthenonedayitfinallyclicksforyou?Itjusttakesyoubeingintherightstateofmindtoreallygetit?Well, that morning I was in the right state of mind—a state ofdesperation—andIgotit.WhenIheardJimproclaimwithcertainty,“Your level of success, will rarely exceed your level of personaldevelopment,becausesuccessissomethingyouattractbythepersonyoubecome,”Istoppedinmytracks.Thisonephilosophywasgoingtochangemyentirelife.

TheSuccessParallelAllofasudden,ithitme!Itwaslikeatidalwaveofrealitythat

camecrashingdown,andIbecamepresent to thefact thatIhadnot

been developing myself into the person I needed to be to attract,create, and sustain the level of success that Iwanted.On a scaleofone to ten, I wanted Level 10 success, but my level of personaldevelopmentwasataboutatwo—maybeathreeorafouronagoodday.

Irealizedthisistheproblemforallofus.WeallwantLevel10success, in every area of our lives—health, happiness, finances,relationships, career, spirituality, you name it—but if our levels ofpersonaldevelopment(knowledge,experience,mindset,beliefs,etc.)inanygivenareaarenotataLevel10,thenlifeisalwaysgoingtobeastruggle.

Ourouterworldwill alwaysbea reflectionofour innerworld.Ourlevelofsuccessisalwaysgoingtoparallelourlevelofpersonaldevelopment. Until we dedicate time each day to developingourselves into the personwe need to be to create the lifewewant,successisalwaysgoingtobeastruggletoattain.

Iranstraighthome.Iwasreadytochangemylife.

OurFirstChallenge:FindingTimeIknewthatthesolutiontoallofmyproblemswasthatIhadto

commit tomakingpersonaldevelopmentapriority inmydaily life.ThiswasthemissinglinkthatwouldenablemetobecomethepersonI needed to be able to consistently attract, create, and sustain thelevelsofsuccessthatIwanted.Simpleenough.

However,mymainchallengewasthesameasanyone’s: findingtime. Iwas sobusy just trying to survivemy life andpaymybills,that the idea of finding “extra” time for my personal developmentseemedalmostimpossible.Maybeyoucanrelate?

Ilovewhatbestsellingauthor,MatthewKellysays:“Ontheonehand,we allwant to be happy.On the other hand,we all know the

things that make us happy. But we don’t do those things. Why?Simple.Wearetoobusy.Toobusydoingwhat?Toobusytryingtobehappy.”

So,Igrabbedmyplanner,satdownonmycouch,andcommittedtofindingtime—makingtime—formydailypersonaldevelopment.Iconsideredtheoptions:

MaybetheEvening?My first thought was that maybe I could make time in the

evenings,afterwork,ormaybelateatnight,aftermyfiancégoestobed.ButthenIrealizedthattheeveningwasreallytheonlytimeIhadtospendwithherduringtheday.NottomentionthatlateatnightisrarelywhenI’matmybest.I’musuallysotiredthatfocusingisevenmoreofachallengethanitusuallyis.Infact,I’mhardlycoherent,letalone in an “optimum” state of mind for personal development.Eveningwasnotgoingtobetheoptimumtime.

PossiblytheAfternoon?MaybeIcouldscheduleitinthemiddleoftheday?Possiblyon

my lunch break, or somewhere in between, I could just find some“extra”time.Well, thatextra timejustdoesn’tshowupandthedayusuallygetsawayfromus.

Aw,Comeon–NotintheMorning!Then, I considered doing it in themorning—but I resisted. To

saythatIwasnotamorningpersonwasagrossunderstatement.Thefactwas,Idreadedgettingupinthemorning,particularlywakingupearly, almost as much as I hated running. But the more I thoughtaboutit,themoreafewthingsstartedtomakesense.

First, by committing to my personal development in the

morning, itwould giveme a positivemotivational kick-start tomyday.Icouldlearnsomethingnewinthemorning.I’dlikelybemoreenergized,morefocused,andmoremotivatedfortherestofmyday.Iremembered a blog post that I read onStevePavlina.com, titledTheRudder of theDay. Steve, also the author ofPersonalDevelopmentfor Smart People, stated: “It’s been said that the first hour is therudderoftheday.IfI’mlazyorhaphazardinmyactionsduringthefirsthourafterIwakeup,Itendtohaveafairlylazyandunfocusedday.But if I strive tomake that firsthouroptimallyproductive, therestofthedaytendstofollowsuit.”

Nottomention,bydoingpersonaldevelopmentinthemorning,Iwouldn’thavealloftheexcusesthataccumulateduringtheday(I’mtired,Idon’thavetime,etc.)IfIdiditinthemorning,beforetherestof my life and my work got in the way, I could guarantee that ithappenedeverysingleday.

Finally,Ijustdidn’treallyseeanybettertimetodoit.Executingmypersonaldevelopmentfirstthinginthemorningwaslookingtobethemostadvantageousoption,butitwasalreadyhardenoughtodragmyselfoutofbedeverydayat6:00a.m.—because Ihad to—so theidea of getting up at 5:00 a.m. seemed absolutely insane to me.Feelingfrustratedandabitdefeated,Iwasabouttoclosemyplannerand forget the whole idea, when I heard the voice of my mentor,KevinBracy, inmy head.Kevin always toldme, “Hal, if youwantyour life to be different, you have to be willing to do somethingdifferentfirst!”

Damnit.IknewKevinwasright,butthatdidn’tmakewakingupearly any easier. Committed to making a change, I decided toovercomemyself-imposed,life-longlimitingbeliefthatIwasnotamorningpersonandwroteintomyschedulethatIwouldwakeupat5:00 a.m. the next morning to do my first personal developmentroutine.

OurSecondChallenge:DoingWhat’sMostImpactfulThen I encountered another challenge—whatwas I going todo

forthathourthatwasgoingtomakethebiggestimpactandimprovemy life the fastest? I could read, but I’d done that before, and Iwanted this to be special. I could exercise, but again, that wasn’tgettingmyjuicesflowing.So,IpulledoutapieceofblankpaperandI wrote down all of the most life-changing personal developmentpracticesthatIhadlearnedovertheyears,butneverimplemented—atleast never consistently. Activities likemeditation, affirmations,journaling,visualization,aswellasreadingandexercise.

I chose the six activities that I thought would have the mostimmediateanddramaticimpactonmylife,assigned10minuteseach,andplannedtotryallsixthenextmorning.Theinterestingthingwas,lookingatthislistgotmefeelingmotivated!AllofasuddentheideaofwakingupearlywentfromsomethingIdreadedtosomethingmoreandmore appealing.Thatnight, I couldhardly fall asleep, Iwas soexcitedforthemorningtocome!

Whenthealarmclockwentoffat5:00a.m.,myeyesshotwideopenandIsprungoutofbed, feelingenergizedandexcited! Itwaseffortless, it was invigorating, and it reminded me of being a kid,wakinguponChristmasmorning.Therehadbeennotimeinmylifewhenwakingupwaseasier,when I feltmoreenergizedandexcitedaboutmyday,thanIdidasakidonChristmas…untiltoday.

TheMorningThatTransformedMyEntireLifeTeethbrushed,facewashed,andaglassofwaterinhand,Isatup

straight on my living room couch at 5:05 a.m., feeling genuinelyexcitedaboutmylifeforthefirsttimeinalongtime.Itwasstilldarkoutside,andsomethingaboutthatfeltveryempowering.Ipulledoutmylistoflife-changingpersonaldevelopmentactivitiesIhadlearnedover the years but never implemented. One by one, I implemented

eachone.SilenceSitting in silence,praying,meditating, and focusingon

mybreath,for10minutes.Ifeltmystressmeltaway,feltasenseofcalmcomeovermybodyandeasemymind.Thiswasdifferentfromthetypicalchaosofmyhecticmornings.Forthefirsttimeinalongtime,Ifeltpeaceful.

ReadingHavingalwaysmadeexcuseswhyIcouldn’tfindtimetoread,IwasexcitedtomaketimethismorningandstartwhatIhadalways hoped could become a lifelong habit. I grabbed NapoleonHill’s classic,ThinkandGrowRich, off the shelf.Likemost ofmybooks,itwasonethatIhadstarted,butneverfinished.Ireadfortenminutes,andpickedupa few ideas that Iwasexcited to implementthat day. Iwas reminded that it only takesone idea to changeyourlife,andIfeltmotivated.

Affirmations Having never before harnessed the power ofaffirmations, it felt amazing to finally read theself-confidenceaffirmation fromThinkandGrowRichaloud.Theaffirmationwasapowerful reminder of the unlimited potential that waswithinme—andwithineachofus.Idecidedtowritemyownaffirmation.IjotteddownwhatIwanted,whoIwascommittedtobeing,andwhatIwascommittedtodoingtochangemylife.Ifeltempowered.

Visualization I grabbed the Vision Board off my wall. I hadcreated it afterwatching themovieTheSecret. I rarely took time tolookat,letaloneuseitasthevisualizationtoolitwasintendedtobe.For tenminutes,my focus shifted from image to image, pausing ateach one to closemy eyes and feel, with every fiber of my being,whatitwouldbeliketomanifesteachintomylife.Ifeltinspired.

JournalingNext,IopenedoneofthemanyblankjournalsIhadpurchasedovertheyears.Likealloftheothers,Ihadfailedtowriteinformorethanafewdays—aweekatthemost.Onthisday,Iwrote

what I was grateful for in my life.Almost immediately, I felt mydepression lifting, like a heavy fog which had been weighing medown. It wasn’t gone, but it felt lighter. The simple act of writingdownthethingsIwasgratefulforliftedmyspirits.Ifeltgrateful.

ExerciseFinally, Igotupoff thecouch,rememberingwhatI’dheard Tony Robbins say so many times:motion creates emotion. Idroppeddownanddidpushupsuntil Icouldn’tdoonemore.ThenIflippedoverontomybackanddidasmanysitupsasmyout-of-shapeabswouldallow.Withsixminutesleftontheclock,Iinsertedoneofmy fiancée’s Yoga videos into the DVD player, and enjoyedcompletingthefirstsixminutesofit.Ifeltenergized.

Itwasincredible!Ihadalreadyexperiencedwhatwasoneofthemost peaceful, motivating, empowering, inspiring, grateful, andenergizingdaysofmylife—anditwasonly6:00a.m.!

NothingShortofaMiracleForthenextfewweeks,Icontinuedtowakeupat5:00a.m.and

follow through with my 60-minute personal development routine.Then,soincrediblyhappywiththewayIwasfeelingandtheprogressIwasmakingasaresultofmymorningroutine,Iwantedmoreofit!So,onenightwhilegettingreadyforbed,Ididwhatwasunthinkableat the time; I set my alarm clock for 4:00 a.m. Falling asleep thatnight,IwonderedifIwasoutofmymind.

Surprisingly,itwasjustaseasytowakeupat4:00a.m.asitwas5:00 a.m., and waking up at either time was ten times easier thanwakinguponanydayinmypast,whenIresistedwakingup.

My stress levels dropped dramatically. I had more energy,clarity, and focus. I felt genuinely happy, motivated, and inspired.Thoughtsofdepressionwereadistantmemory.YoucouldsayIwasback to my old self again—although I was experiencing so much

growth, so rapidly, that I was quickly surpassing any version ofmyselfthatIhadeverbeeninthepast.Andwithmynewfoundlevelsofenergy,motivation,clarity,andfocusIwasabletoeasilysetgoals,createstrategiesandexecuteaplantosavemybusinessandincreasemy income. Less than twomonths after my firstMiracleMorning,my incomewasnotonlyback to the level it hadbeenatbefore theeconomycrashed,itwashigherthaneverbefore.

IknewthispowerfulmorningpersonaldevelopmentroutinewassomethingIwouldeventuallystartsharingwithmyprivatecoachingclients,soIneededanameforit.ConsideringthatthetransformationIwas experiencingwas so profound and happening so fast—havinggone from broke and depressed to financially secure and excitedabout life, in less than twomonths—that it felt like amiracle, theonlyappropriatenamewasTheMiracleMorning.

Hey,IfKatieCanDoIt…Afewweekslater,IwasonacoachingcallwithKatiewhenshe

asked,“Hal,howdoyoustartyourmornings?”AlthoughIbeamedasI toldher aboutTheMiracleMorningandthebenefitsofwakingupanhourearlier thannormal, she resisted.“Idon’tknowif Iwant towakeupanyearlier,Hal.Trustme,Iamnotamorningperson!”

However,Katieisalwaysagoodsport.Shecommittedtowakingupat6a.m.—onehourearlierthannormal—andgivingTheMiracleMorning a try. I offered her some encouragement and wished herluck.

Onhercoachingcalloneweeklater,Katiewasonfire!WhenIaskedifsheactuallywokeupat6a.m.everydaytodoTheMiracleMorning, Igotanunexpected reply.“Nope. Iwokeupat6a.m. thefirstday,butyouwereright—IhadsuchanawesomemorningthatIwantedtodoitevenearlier!SoIwokeupat5:00a.m.therestoftheweek!Hal,itwasamazing!”

Wow.Ihadtotellmyothercoachingclientsaboutthis.Within a few short weeks, dozens of my clients were sharing

withmethattheywereexperiencingthesametypesoflifechangingbenefitsduringtheirownMiracleMornings.Someofmyclientstoldtheir friends and co-workers about howThe Miracle Morning waschanging their life. It spread through theonlineworld likewildfire.People start posting aboutThe Miracle Morning on Facebook,tweeting about it on Twitter, and even proudly posting videos ofthemselvesonYouTube,upearlyanddoingTheMiracleMorning.

Crazy,right?

WhoIntheHellIsJoe?I started to realize there was something to this wholeMiracle

Morning thing. IwasonYouTube TM oneday looking foroneofmyvideos, and I put my name in the search. (Don’t judge—you knowyou’veGoogledyourselfbefore.)

Avideopoppedup thatwas titled “MiracleMorningat Joe’s.”It’s of some guy that I’ve never seen before in my life. My firstreactionwasnotverypositive:“WhointhehellisJoeandwhodoeshethinkheiscopyingmyMiracleMorning?”Igotalittledefensive—notoneofmyfinermoments.Ijustdidn’tknowwhattothink.Boy,wasIabouttobepleasantlysurprised.

IhitplayonthevideoandthisiswhatIsaw:“Hello,it’syourfriend, JoeDiosana.Let’s lookat the time…” (Joe showshis alarmclock,whichreads5:41a.m.)“Itis5:41inthemorning,onSunday,and youmust bewondering, ‘Dude, Joe,what in theworld are youdoingupatfive-forty-oneinthemorningonaSunday?’Well,checko u tmiraclemorning.com. That’smiraclemorning.com. Look at theinformation and download (the free audio). It feels like Christmasto me, honestly, and I’ve got a lot of energy. It’s like Christmas

every day now.Check it out, and I hope your lifewill be blessed.”(You can see Joe’s infamous 43-second video now atTheMiracleMorning.com—justclickon“SuccessStories.”)

As I sat staring at my computer screen, mouth open, I was inawe,almost intears.This is themomentIrealizedthatTheMiracleMorningistrulylife-changingandIhadtoshareitwiththeworld.Itbecamecleartomethat,whileIneverintendedforittobeanythingmore thanmy littlemorning routine, I had a responsibility to shareThe Miracle Morning with as many people as possible, so it cantransformtheirlivesthewayitdidforme.Although,atthispoint,Istillhavenoideajusthowbigit’sgoingtobe.

AMovement?OrisitanAwakening?It’sbeennearly fiveyearssinceI toldKatieaboutTheMiracle

MorningandsinceIwatchedJoe’svideoonYouTube.Icontinue toreceive hundreds of emails from people, all over the world,expressing their gratitude and enthusiasm for what The MiracleMorninghasdonefortheirlives.TheMiracleMorninghasbecomeaworldwidemovement—aglobalawakening—madeupof individualsranging from corporate executives to stay-at-home moms, alldedicated towakingup everyday andgiving themselves thegift ofpersonaldevelopment.Inowseethebiggerpicture,howTheMiracleMorningcanimpacttheworldbyenablingeachofusbecomewhoweneedtobetocreatethelivesthatwewant;topositivelyinfluencethelivesofothers,andchangetheworldaroundus.

I’m passionate about this mission: to empower people totransformtheirlives,theirfamilies,theircommunities,andtheworldby waking up every day and transforming themselves withTheMiracleMorning.Everyday,more andmorepeople are joining theawakening.Whether it’sbysimplysharing theMiracleMorning.comwebsitewiththeirfriendsandfamilysotheycangettwofreechapters

o fThe Miracle Morning book (plus the free video and audioprograms) or by inviting them to joinThe Miracle MorningCommunity atwww.MyTMMCommunity.com. I am still amazed athowmanylivesarebeingsodeeplyaffected.

Many are even following Joe’s lead and recording videos ofthemselves up early, livingThe Miracle Morning (which usuallyincludesaproudshotoftheiralarmclock—provingthattheyareupearly). I was inspired by Joe’s video to start recording my ownMiracleMorning video blogs,which, tomy pleasant surprise, havebecomeverypopularandarebeingviewedbythousandsofpeopleonTheMiracleMorningchannelatYouTube.com/TheMiracleMorning.

Iamhonoredandextremelygrateful tohave theopportunity toshareTheMiracleMorningwithsomanypeople,insomanydifferentcapacities.Infact,TheMiracleMorninghasevenbecomeoneofmysignature keynote messages and workshops, helping corporations,non-profits, salespeople, teachers, and high school and collegestudents to increase theirproductivity,motivation,andperformance.Theworkshopisafreshapproachthathelpsemployeesincreasetheirproductivity while improving their happiness and attitude in theworkplace.As youmight guess,TheMiracleMorning workshop isappropriately done in the morning, usuallybefore the actualconferencebegins.

This book is an invitation and an opportunity to become thepersonyouneedtobetocreateeverythingyouwantforyourlife.Itwillgiveyoupurposeful time towork towardsyourmost importantgoals.Bystartingnow,andmakingconsistent,dailyprogresstowardsthelifeyoutrulywantanddeserve,yoursuccess—andthelifeofyourdreams—isinevitable.

—3—

The95%RealityCheck

Oneofthesaddestthingsinlifeistogettotheendandlookbackinregret,knowingthatyoucould

havebeen,done,andhadsomuchmore.—ROBINSHARMA

Thestoryofthehumanraceisthestoryofmenandwomensellingthemselvesshort.

—ABRAHAMMASLOW

Every day you and I wake up, we face the same universalchallenge:toovercomemediocrityandlivetoourfullpotential.It’sthe greatest challenge in humanhistory—to rise aboveour excuses,dowhat’s right, give our best and create theLevel 10 lifewe trulywant—theonewithnolimits,theonesofewpeopleevergettolive.

Mostpeopleneverevencomeclose.Approximately95%ofoursociety settles for far less than theywant in life, wishing they hadmore, livingwithregretandneverunderstandingthat theycouldbe,do,andhaveallthattheywant.

AccordingtotheSocialSecurityAdministration,ifyoutakeany100peopleat thestartof theirworkingcareersand follow themforthenext40yearsuntil theyreachretirementage,here’swhatyou’llfind: only 1 will be wealthy; 4 will be financially secure; 5 willcontinueworking,notbecausetheywanttobutbecausetheyhaveto;36 will be dead; and 54 will be broke and dependent on friends,

family,relatives,andthegovernmenttotakecareofthem.Monetarilyspeaking,that’sonly5%ofuswhowillbesuccessful

increatingalifeoffreedom,and95%whowillcontinuetostruggletheirentirelives.

So thecrucialquestion—theone thatwemustexploreandfindthe answer to—is this:whatcanwedonowtoensurethatwedon’tendupstruggling,likethe95%majoritywill?

RisingAboveMediocrityandJoiningtheTop5%Thefactthatyou’rereadingthisbooktellsmethatyou’reready

forthenextlevelinyourlife—thatyou’renotokaywithsettlingforless than you can have, be, and do anymore, just because nearlyeveryoneelsedoes.

Herearethreesimple,yetdecisivestepstoriseabovemediocrityandjointhetop5%:

Step#1:Acknowledgethe95%RealityCheckFirst,wemustunderstandandacknowledgetherealitythat95%

ofoursocietywillnevercreateandlivethelifetheyreallywant.Wemustembracethefactthatifwedon’tcommittothinkingandlivingdifferently thanmost people now, we are setting ourselves up toendure a life of mediocrity, struggle, failure and regret—just likemost people. Realize that thiswill include our own friends, family,and peersifwedon’tdosomethingaboutitnowandsetanexampleofwhat’spossiblewhenwecommittofulfillingourpotential.

Being averagemeans tosettle for less than you trulywant andare capable of, and tostruggle for your entire life.Everyday,mostpeople settle, and most people struggle on almost every level.Physically, mentally, emotionally, relationally, financially—youname it—most peoplewake up each day and struggle to create the

levels of success, happiness, love fulfillment, health and financialprosperitythattheytrulydesire.

ConsidertheFollowing:Ö Physically—Obesity is an epidemic. Potentiallyfataldiseases likecancerandheartdiseaseareon therise. The average person is exhausted, their physicalenergy levels at an all time low.Most can’t seem togenerateenoughenergytomakeitthroughasingledaywithout consuming a few cups of coffee or a5-HourEnergy® drink.The successof thatproduct is furtherevidenceof thedegree towhichpeoplearestrugglingphysically.Ö Mentally and Emotionally—More prescriptiondrugs are being consumed every day in an attempt tocombat disorders like depression, anxiety, andcountless other mental or emotional illnesses. Rarelydoyou turnon theTVwithout seeinganad for someprescription drug.There’s usually some good lookingmiddle-aged couple, flying a kite on the beach withtheirdog.Thenamanwithadeepvoicestartsspeakinggently, rattling off symptoms, followed by a list ofpotential side effects:“Do you ever feel tired, sad,lonely, depressed, overweight, or anything else thatyou’d be willing to pay money to not feel anymore?Great,you’reinluck—XYZdrugcanhelp!Warning:may cause side effects such as bloating, constipation,diathermia, dizziness, dry mouth, dandruff, insomnia,narcolepsy,andmanyotherthingsfarworsethanwhatit’sactuallysupposedtohelpyouwith.So,don’twait—callthenumberonyourscreentoday!”

Ö Relationally—It’s well known that there is anepidemic of divorce in America, with one in twomarriages failing. In other words, over half of thosedeeply in lovecouples,whostandbefore their friendsand family and commit their lives to each other—throughthegoodtimesandthebad,mightIremindyou—struggle to make it work. After more than 30years of marriage, two of my favorite people—mymomanddad—recentlydivorced. I’mverypresent tothepainofthisalltoocommonrelationalstruggle.Ö Financially—Americans have more personal debtthan at any other time in history.Most people aren’tearning nearly as much money as they’d like to beearning. They’re spending too much, not savingenough,andstrugglingfinancially.

It’s no secret that most people are living life far below theirpotential.Oncewecanacknowledgethat,it’scrucialthatweexplorewhatcausesmostpeopletostruggleandsettleformediocrityintheirlives.

Step#2:IdentifytheCausesofMediocrityOncewe’veacknowledgedthat95%ofoursocietyissettlingfor

farlessthantheyarecapableof,strugglinginalmosteveryarea,andnot experiencing the levels of success, happiness, and freedom thatthey really want, the next crucial step is to understandwhy. Toprevent it from happening to you, you must know what causes theaveragepersontoenduplivingalifeofmediocrity.

If you were to ask the average person in this country—40-50yearsold,settlingforlessthantheywant,andstrugglingtobehappy,pay their bills, etc.—if youwere to ask them ifthiswas their plan,theirvisionfortheirlife,whatdoyouthinktheywouldsay?Doyouthinktheyenvisionedtheirlifebeingastruggle?Ofcoursenot!Andthat,myfriend,isthescarypart.

If 95% of our society is not living the life that theywant, wemustfigureoutwhattheydidwrongorwhattheydidn’tdoright,sothatwedon’tenduplivingalifeofmediocrity.

We don’t want our lives to be a struggle. I want a life offreedom,where I get towake up and dowhat Iwant,when Iwant,withwhomever Iwant. Iwant togetoutofbedeverydayand trulylovemylife.Iwanttolovemywork,andIwanttolovethepeopleIget tosharemylifeandworkwith.That’smydefinitionofsuccess.Thatkindoflifedoesn’tjusthappen.Itmustbedesigned.Ifyouwanttoliveanextraordinarylifeasdefinedanddesignedbyyou,thenyoumust identify the fundamentalcauses of mediocrity so you canpreventthemfromrobbingyouofthelifeyouwant.

ThefollowingarewhatIbelievetobethemostrelevantcausesofmediocrityandunfulfilledpotential—theonesthathavemadeandwillcontinuetomakethebiggestimpactonyourlife—andwhatyoucandotodefeatthem:

CausesofMediocrity(andImmediateSolutions):ÖRearviewMirrorSyndrome

OneofthemostcripplingcausesofmediocrityinlifeisaconditionIcallRearviewMirrorSyndrome (RMS).Oursubconscious minds are equipped with a self-limitingrearviewmirror, throughwhichwecontinuouslyreliveandrecreateourpast.Wemistakenlybelievethatwhowe wereis who weare, thus limiting our true potential in thepresent,basedonthelimitationsofourpast.

As a result, we filter every choice we make—fromwhat timewewillwakeup in themorning towhichgoalswewillsettowhatweallowourselvestoconsiderpossiblefor our lives—through the limitations of our pastexperiences.Wewanttocreateabetterlife,butsometimeswe don’t know how to see it any otherway than how it’salwaysbeen.

Research shows that on any given day, the averageperson thinks somewhere between 50,000 and 60,000thoughts. The problem is that ninety-five percent of ourthoughtsarethesameastheoneswethoughtthedaybefore,and the day before that, and the day before that. It’s nowondermost people go through life, day after day,monthaftermonth,yearafteryear,andneverchangethequalityoftheirlives.

Like old, worn baggage, we carry stress, fear, andworry from yesterdaywith us into today.When presentedwithopportunities,wequicklycheckourrearviewmirrortoassessourpastcapabilities.“No, I’veneverdoneanythinglike that before. I’ve never achieved at that level. In fact,I’vefailed,timeandtimeagain.”

When presented with adversity, we go back to ourtrusty rearview mirror for guidance on how to respond.“Yep, justmy luck. This crap always happens tome. I’mjust going to give up; that’s what I’ve always done whenthingsgettoodifficult.”

If you are to move beyond your past and transcendyourlimitations,youmuststoplivingoutofyourrearviewmirror and start imagining a life of limitless possibilities.Accept the paradigm:my past does not equal my future.Talk toyourself inaway that inspires confidence thatnotonly is anything possible, but thatyou are capable andcommitted to making it so. It’s not even necessary tobelieveitatfirst.Infact,youprobablywon’tbelieveit.Youmight find it uncomfortable and that you resist doing it.That’s okay. Repeat it to yourself anyway, and yoursubconscious mind will begin to absorb the positive self-affirmations. (More on how to do this inChapter 6: TheLifeS.A.V.E.R.S.)

Don’tplaceunnecessarylimitationsonwhatyouwantforyourlife.Thinkbiggerthanyou’veallowedyourselftothinkupuntil thispoint.Getclearonwhatyoutrulywant,conditionyourselftothebeliefthatit’spossiblebyfocusingonandaffirmingiteveryday,andthenconsistentlymovein

the direction of your vision until it becomes your reality.There is nothing to fear, because you cannot fail—onlylearn, grow, and become better than you’ve ever beenbefore.

Alwaysrememberthatwhereyouareisaresultofwhoyouwere, butwhere you go depends entirely onwho youchoosetobe,fromthismomenton.

ÖLackofPurposeIfyouasktheaveragepersonwhattheirlifepurposeis,

youwillgetafunnylookoraresponselike“Gee,Idunno.”What if I asked you? What would you say? The averageperson can’t articulate their life purpose—the compelling“why” that drives them to wake up every day and dowhateverittakestofulfilltheirmissioninlife.

Rather,theaveragepersontakeslifeonedayatatime,andhas nohigher purposebeyondmerely surviving.Mostpeoplejustfocusongettingthroughtheday,takingthepathof least resistance, and pursuing short term, short-livedpleasures along the way, while avoiding any pain ordiscomfortthatmightcausethemtogrow.

During the course of my seven-year career in directsales, despite having broken numerous company salesrecords,Ispentthefirstsixofthosesevenyearsfightingtheuphillbattleofmediocrity,andlosingmoreoftenthannot.Myresultswereinconsistent,andIconsistentlyacceptedfarless thanmy best, until I finally figured out the secret toovercomingmediocrity:livealifeofpurpose.

Afterbeinginductedintothecompany’shalloffame,itwastimetomoveonandpursuemydreamsofbecomingan author, speaker, and coach. However, I had neverachievedmyfullpotentialwiththecompany.Iwasabouttoleavethecompanywiththemediocritymonkeyonmyback.ItwassuretofollowmeintomynextventureunlessIdidsomethingaboutit.

Upuntil then, Ididn’thaveacompelling lifepurposethatgotmeup in themorningevenwhenIdidn’tfeel likegetting up. I had no purpose that drove me to get on thephone and call prospects, even when I didn’tneed moremoney. I decided in thatmoment thatmy life purpose forthenext12monthswouldbe:tobecomethepersonIneedtobetocreatethesuccess,freedom,andqualityoflifethatI truly want. I combined this with my other life purpose(yes,youcanhavemore thanone),whichwas toselflesslyaddvaluetothelivesofothersbyassemblingateamof16other sales reps. I ledweeklyconferencecoachingcalls tosupporttheminreachingtheirgoals,freeofcharge,forthenext46consecutiveweeks.

Living every day in alignment with my two lifepurposes—constantly, consciously aligning my thoughts,wordsandactionswitheachpurpose—notonlydid Ihavemybest salesyearever (a94%increaseovermypreviousbest), but I also led more reps to surpassing the highestperformancelevel thanatanyothertimeinthecompany’s50-yearhistory.

To defeat this cause of mediocrity, you need a lifepurpose, which can be any purpose you want. It can be

anything that resonates with and inspires you to wake upeverydayandliveinalignmentwithyourpurpose.Now,Itotally understand that asking you to come up with yourlife’s purpose right now may sound a bit overwhelming.Justrememberthatyougettomakeitup,andthisfirstonecan be something simple, even small. (e.g. “I’m going tosmilemoresothatIcanbringalittlemorehappinesstomylifeandto thosearoundme.” Or,“I’mgoingtoaskeverypersonImeetwhatIcandotohelpthem,sothatIcanaddvalue to more people’s lives.”) It will be your first steptowardsabiggerlifepurpose.

Keepinmindthatyoucanchangeyourlifepurposeatany time.As you grow and evolve, so will your purpose.What’s important is that you choose a purpose—anypurpose—andstart livingbyit,now.Youcanevenborrowone of the purposes I just shared with you. (Many ofmycoachingclientshave.)

Keepinmindthatyou’renotsupposedto“figureout”whatyourpurposeis,yougettomakeitup,createit,decidewhatyouwantit tobe.InhisbestsellingbookTheRhythmof Life, Matthew Kelly enlightens us to a universal lifepurposethatIbelieveweshouldallliveby:tobecomethebestversionofourselves.Inotherwords,focusongrowingand being the best you can be, pursuing your dreams andinspiringotherstodothesame.That’syourpurpose.

Schedule some time this week to think about andarticulateyourlifepurpose.Writeitdownwhereyou’llseeiteveryday.Infact,you’llhavetimetodothisduringyourMiracleMorning.

Always remember that when you are committed to alife purpose that is bigger than your problems, yourproblems become relatively insignificant and you willovercomethemwithease.

ÖIsolatingIncidentsOne of themost prevalent, yet not-so-obvious causes

of mediocrity isisolating incidents. We do this when wemistakenly assume that each choice we make, and eachindividual actionwe take, is only affecting that particularmoment,orcircumstance.Forexample,youmaythinkit’snobigdealtomissaworkout,procrastinateonaproject,oreatfastfoodbecauseyou’llgeta“do-over”tomorrow.Youmake the mistake of thinking that skipping that workoutonly affects that incident, andyou’llmake a better choicenexttime.Nothingcouldbefartherfromthetruth.

Wemustrealizethat thereal impactandconsequenceofeachofourchoicesandactions—andevenour thoughts—ismonumental,becauseeverysinglethought,choice,andaction is determiningwho we are becoming, which willultimately determine the quality of our lives.As T. HarvEkersaidinhisbest-sellingbookSecretsoftheMillionaireMind,“Howyoudoanythingishowyoudoeverything.”

Everytimeyouchoosetodotheeasything,insteadoftherightthing,youareshapingyouridentity,becomingthetype of person who does what’s easy, rather than what’sright.

Ontheotherhand,whenyoudochoosetodotherightthing and follow through with your commitments—

especiallywhen you don’tfeel like it—youaredevelopingthe extraordinary discipline (which most people neverdevelop)necessaryforcreatingextraordinaryresultsinyourlife. As my good friend, Peter Voogd, often teaches hisclients:“Disciplinecreateslifestyle.”

Forexample,whenthealarmclockgoesoff,andwehitthesnoozebutton(theeasy thing),mostpeoplemistakenlyassume that thisaction isonlyaffecting thatmoment.Thereality is that this type of action is programming oursubconsciousmindwith the instructions that it isokay forus tonotfollowthroughwiththethingsweintendedtodo.(Moreon that in thenext chapter:WhyDidYouWakeUpThisMorning?)

Wemust stop isolating incidents and start seeing thebigger picture. Realize that everything that we do affectswhowe’rebecoming,whichisdeterminingthelifethatwewillultimatelycreateandlive.Whenyouseethebigpictureyoustarttotakethealarmclockmoreseriously.Whenthebuzzer goes off in the morning and you’re tempted tosnooze, you start thinking,Wait—this isnotwhoIwant tobecome—someonewhodoesn’tevenhaveenoughdisciplineto get out of bed in the morning. I’m getting up now,because I am committed to __________ (waking up early,hittingmygoals,creatingthelifeofmydreams,etc.)

Always remember that who you’re becoming is far

more important thanwhatyou’redoing, andyet it iswhatyou’redoingthatisdeterminingwhoyou’rebecoming.

ÖLackofAccountabilityThe link between success and accountability is

irrefutable. Virtuallyall highly successful people—fromCEOstoprofessionalathletestothePresidentoftheUnitedStates—embrace a high degree of accountability. It givesthem the leverage they need to take action and createresults,evenwhen theydon’t feel like it.Without it,we’dhave a lot more pro-athletes skipping practice, and CEOsspending theirdaysplayingWordsWithFriends TMon theiriPhones.I’msuresomearealreadydoingthat(I’mguiltyofitoccasionally),butwe’dhavealotmore.

Accountability is the act of being responsible tosomeoneelseforsomeactionorresult.Verylittlehappensin this world, or in your life, without some form ofaccountability. Virtually every positive result you and Iproduced from birth to age eighteen was thanks to theaccountability provided for us by the adults in our lives(parents, teachers, bosses, etc.) Vegetables got eaten,homework was completed, teeth were brushed, we bathedand got to bed at a reasonable hour. If it weren’t for theaccountabilityprovidedforusbyourparentsandteachers,we would have been uneducated, malnourished, sleep-deprived,dirtylittlekids!Nicewaytoreframeit,right?

Accountability has brought order to our lives andallowed us to progress, improve and achieve results wewouldn’t have otherwise. Here’s the problem:accountabilitywasneversomethingyouandIaskedfor,butrather something that we endured as children, teens, andyoungadults.Asitwasforceduponusbyadults,mostofusunconsciously grew to resist and resent accountabilityaltogether. Then, when we turned 18, we embraced everyounceoffreedomwecouldgetourhandson,continuingto

avoid accountability like itwas the plague, perpetuating adownward spiral into mediocrity, developing detrimentalmindsets and habits such as laziness, deflectingresponsibility, and taking short cuts—hardly a recipe forsuccess.

Now thatwe are all grownup and striving to achieveworthy levels of success and fulfillment, we must takeresponsibility for initiating our own systems foraccountability (or move back in with our parents). Youraccountability system could be a professional coach,mentor,evenagoodfriendorfamilymember.Therealityisthat, statistically, 95% of the people that read any bookdon’timplementwhattheylearn,becausenooneisholdingthemaccountabletodoso.Thereisawaytochangethat.

[Highly Recommended] Get an AccountabilityPartner

Have you ever had a day where you intended toexerciseorgotothegym,butdidn’tgobecauseyoudidn’tfeel likeit?Sure,weallhave.Whataboutwhenyouknowsomeoneiscountingonyoutomeetthematthegym,oronthe running trail—aren’t you much more likely to followthrough when you have someone else holding youaccountable?

I strongly recommend teaming up with anAccountabilityPartnerwhile you read this book.This canbe a friend, co-worker or familymember that you simplyshareThe Miracle Morning with by sending them toMiracleMorning.com so they can get a Miracle Morning“CrashCourse”(2freechaptersofthisbook,aswellasThe

Miracle Morningvideo and audioprograms—all forfree.)That way, you have someone who is also committed totakinghisorher life to thenext level, and the twoofyoucansupport,encourage,andholdeachotheraccountable.

YoucanevenpostaninvitationonyourFacebookwall,or to the highly supportive members ofThe MiracleMorningCommunity a twww.MyTMMCommunity.com.Youmight post something like:“I’mlookingforsomeonewho wants to improve their life to be my AccountabilityPartner for The Miracle Morning 30-day LifeTransformation Challenge. Check outwww.MiracleMorning.com and let me know if you’reinterested.”Keepinmindthatanyonewhorespondstothisis the type of person you want to have in your circle ofinfluence!

I’durgeyoutomakeacommitmentnowtocall, text,or email a friend today, inviting them to joinyouonyourMiracleMorning journey, read the bookwith you, and beyour Accountability Partner forTheMiracleMorning 30-DayLifeTransformationChallengeinChapter10.Or,visitThe Miracle Morning Community atwww.MyTMMCommunity.com to connect with fellowMiracleMakersandfindyouridealAccountabilityPartner.

ÖMediocreCircleofInfluenceResearchhasshownthatwevirtuallybecomelike the

average of the five people we spend the most time with.Who you spend your time with may be the single mostdetermining factor in the person you become and in yourquality of life. If you are surrounded with lazy, weak-

minded, excuse-making people, you’ll inevitably becomelike them. Spend time with positive, successful achieversand inevitably their attitudes and successful habits willreflectonyou.You’llbecomemoreandmorelikethem.

This is true in every area—success, health, happinessweight, income. If all of your friends are generally happyand optimistic people, then you are going to naturallybecome more happy and optimistic just by being aroundthem. If all of your friends are successful and earn over$100,000ayear—even ifyouenter theircircleearningfarless—youwillautomaticallybepulledupbytheir levelofthinkingandinfluencedbythehabitsthey’veestablishedtobesuccessful.

On the contrary, if most of the people you associatewith are constantly complaining and focused on thenegative sideof life, theodds areyouwill be too. If yourfriendsarenotstrivingtoimprovetheirlives,orif they’restrugglingfinancially,thenthey’renotgoingtochallengeorinspireyoutodoanybetter.

Unfortunately, there will be a lot of people who aretryingtogetaheadinlifebutkeepgettingpulleddownbythe people around them. This can be especially difficultwhenthosepeopleareyourfamily.Youmustbestrongandmake sure you spend less time with people who don’tencourageandchallengeyoutobecomethebestyoucanbe.

Seekout peoplewhobelieve in you, admire you, andcan help you getwhere youwant to go in life.Youmustactively seek out such people to improve your circle of

influence—they rarely just show up by chance. Here aresomewaysthatyoucandothat:

§ You can join an online community such asMeetup.com,whereyoucanconnectwithlike-mindedpeopleinyourareawhohavesimilarinterests.YoucanjoinanexistingMeetupgroup,orstartyourown.§ If you are a business owner or a professional whomarkets any products or services, you can join abusinessnetworkingandreferralmarketinggroup, thelargest of which is BNI (www.bni.com.) I was amemberofBNIformanyyears.IthelpedmegrowmybusinessandIalwaysrecommendittoothers.§ If you are a student—high school, junior, high, orelementary school student—I highly recommend thatyou look into joiningBoys&GirlsClubs ofAmericaby finding one of their 4,000 local Clubs atwww.bgca.org. It is one of the best organizations foryoung people to set yourself on the road to success.Their mission is:To enable all young people,especially thosewhoneedusmost, to reach their fullpotential as productive, caring, responsible citizens ,andformerClubmembersincludeDenzelWashington,AdamSandler, JenniferLopez, andShaquilleO’Neal.Thosearen’tbadfootstepstofollowifyouwanttobesuccessful.§ As I’ve mentioned, we have an exceptionallypositive, supportive, and highly proactive communityyou can join atwww.MyTMMCommunity.com.Thereyoucanconnectandnetworkwithalltypesofpeople—from executives and entrepreneurs to students and

stay-at-homemoms.

It is often said that “misery loves company”, but sodoe smediocrity. Don’t let the fears, insecurities, andlimitingbeliefsofotherslimitwhat’spossibleforyou.Oneof themost importantcommitmentsyouwillevermake isto proactively and continuously improve your circle ofinfluence.Always seekpeoplewhowill addvalue to yourlife and bring out the best in you.And of course, be thatpersonforothers.

This is another reason that it’s sovaluable foryou tocommittoinvitingafriend,co-workerorfamilymembertobeyourAccountabilityPartneranddotheMiracleMorningwith you.You’ll be adding value to that person’s life byhelping themincrease their levelofpersonaldevelopment,whichinturnwillmakethemabetterinfluenceonyou.

ÖLackofPersonalDevelopmentJimRohnhasbeenoneofmygreatestmentorsandhas

taughtmemanylife-changingphilosophies.Inmyopinion,nonewasgreaterthantheideathatourlevelsofsuccesswillrarely exceed our level of personal development, becausesuccessissomethingweattractbywhowebecome.Inotherwords,your levelof success—ineveryareaofyour life—will rarely exceed, and usuallyparallel your level ofpersonal development (i.e. your knowledge, skills, beliefs,habits,etc.)

Wetouchedonthisearlier,butlet’scheckinagain.IfyouandIaremeasuringourlevelsofsuccessinanyareaofourlives(health,finances,relationships,etc.)onascaleof

one to ten—we both want “Level 10” success, agreed?Okay,good.

Now, theproblem is thatmostofus aren’t investingtimeeachdayintodevelopingourselvesintothe“Level10”people that we need to be that are capable of attracting,creating,living,andsustainingthelevelsofsuccessthatwesaywewant.Asaresult,westruggletoattainthelevelsofhealth, happiness, energy, love, personal and professionalsuccessthatwetrulydesire.

D u r i n gThe Miracle Morning 30-Day LifeTransformationChallenge (in Chapter 10) you’ll be givenaccesstoTheMiracleMorning30-DayLifeTransformationChallenge“Fast-StartKit”whereyou’llbeguided throughthe enlightening and surprisinglyfun process of assessingyour levels of success in each area. Then, after you’vegained a heightened level of clarity and self-awareness,you’ll be able to clarify your “Level 10” vision for eachareaofyourlife,andthenestablishyour“NextLevel”goalsfor each area, so that you can immediately begin makingsignificantprogresstowardsyourLevel10vision.

The most extraordinary life you can imagine isavailable to you no matter what’s happened in your past;justwaitingforyoutodevelopyourselfintothepersonyouneed tobe tobeable toeasilyattract,create,and live thatlife.

TheMiracleMorningwill enable you to become thatLevel10 personyouneed to be to easily and consistently,attract,create,andsustainLevel10successthatyouwantin

every—yes,every—areaofyourlife.Alwaysremember thatwhenwefail tomaketimefor

personaldevelopment,weareforcedtomaketimeforpainand struggle.TheMiracleMorningwillgiveyou that timeforextraordinarypersonaldevelopment.

ÖLackofUrgencyArguably the single most significant cause of

mediocrityandunfulfilledpotential,whichprevents95%ofoursocietyfromcreatingandlivingthelifetheytrulywant,is that most people have no sense of urgency to improvethemselvessotheycanimprovetheirlives.Humannatureisto livewith a “someday”mindset and thinklife will workitselfout.How’sthatworkingoutforeverybody?

This somedaymindset is perpetual, and it leads to alifeofprocrastination,unfulfilledpotentialandregret.Youwakeuponedayandwonderwhattheheckhappened;howdidyourlifeenduplikethis?Howdidyouenduplikethis?

Oneofthesaddestthingsinlifeistolivewithregret,knowingthatyoucouldhave,be,anddosomuchmore.

Remember this truth:now matters more than anyother time in your life, because it’s what you are doingtoday that is determiningwho you’re becoming, andwhoyou’re becoming will always determine the quality anddirectionofyourlife.

If you don’t make the commitment today to startbecoming the person you need to be to create theextraordinary life you really want, what makes you think

tomorrow—ornextweek,ornextmonth,ornextyear—aregoingtobeanydifferent?Theywon’t.Andthat’swhyyoumustdrawyourlineinthesand.

Step#3:DrawYourLineIntheSandYou’ve acknowledged and embraced the reality that 95% of

society is struggling—and that if we don’t commit to thinking andliving differently than most people, wewill end up struggling, likemost people. You’ve identified the causes of mediocrity youabsolutelyneedtoremainawareofandavoid.The3rdstepistodrawyour line in the sand.Make a decision as towhatyou are going tostartdoingdifferentlyfromthisdayforward.

Not tomorrow, not next week, or next month. You’ve got tomake a decisiontoday that you’re ready to make the necessarychangestoguaranteethatyouwillbeabletocreatethelifeyoureallywant. To take your personal and professional success to the levelthey’veneverbeenbefore,youhavetobewillingtocommitatalevelyou’ve never been committed before. Are you ready to make thatcommitment?

Your entire life changes the day that you decide you will nolongeracceptmediocrityforyourself.Whenyourealizethattodayisthe most important day of your life. When you decide that nowmattersmorethananyothertimebecauseitiswhoyouarebecomingeachdaybasedonthedecisionsthatyouaremakingandtheactionsthatyouaretakingthatisdeterminingwhoyouaregoingtobefortherestofyourlife.

Thepossibilityofmediocrityexistsforeveryone,becausebeingmediocre simply means choosing—whether consciously orunconsciously—to be the same as you’ve always been. Mediocrityhasnothingtodowithhowyoucomparetootherpeople;it’ssimplyaresultofnotmakingthecommitmenttocontinuouslylearn,grow,and

improve yourself. Whereas being extraordinary—which leads toextraordinary levels of success—is a result of choosing to learn,grow,andbejusta littlebitbettereachdaythanyou’vebeeninthepast.

We’veallexperiencedthepainofregret—asaresultofthinkingand talkingourselves intobeing,doing,andhaving less thanwearecapableof.Mediocredaysturnintoweeks.Weeksturnintomonths.Monthsinevitablyturnintoyears,andifwedon’tchangewhowearenow,ourself-createdfatewillbealifeofmediocrityandunfulfilledpotential, accepting less from ourselves, and for our lives, thanwetrulywant…anddeserve.

Therealityisthatifwedon’tchangenow,ourlifewon’tchange.If we don’t get better, our life won’t get better. And if we don’tconsistently invest time intoour self-improvement,our lifewillnotimprove.Yet,mostofuswakeupeverydayandstaythesame.

Ithinkyouwantmoreforyourlife.IknowIdo.Ifyou’rebeingcompletely honest with yourself, you truly want to live anextraordinary life. That doesn’t necessarily mean being rich orfamous.Everyone’s dream is different.What it doesmean is livingyourdefinitionofanextraordinary life.A lifewhereyouget tocalltheshots,andlivelifeonyourterms,withthefreedomtodo,be,andhaveeverything you’ve ever wanted for your life. No excuses. Noregrets.Justanincredible,meaningful,andexcitinglife!

As stated so truthfully by bestselling author, Robin Sharma:“Oneofthesaddestthingsinlifeistogettotheendandlookbackinregret, knowing that you could have been, done, and had so muchmore.”Whilethisistheself-imposedfateofthemasses,itabsolutelydoesnothavetobeyours.Todayyoucandrawyourlineinthesand.Youcandecidethatmediocrityisnolongeracceptableforyou.Youcanclaimyourgreatness.Youcanchoosetobecomethepersonyouneed tobe tocreate theextraordinary life thatyou trulywant.Your

lifecanbefilledwithanabundanceofenergy,love,health,happiness,success, financial prosperity, and everything else that you’ve everimaginedhaving,doing,orbeing.TheMiracleMorningcangiveyouthatlife.

Butfirst,animportantquestion.

—4—

WhyDidYOUWakeUpThisMorning?

You’vegottogetupeverymorningwithdeterminationifyou’regoingtogotobedwithsatisfaction.

—GEORGELORIMER

Yourfirstritualthatyoudoduringthedayisthehighestleveragedritual,byfar,becauseithastheeffectofsettingyourmind,andsettingthecontext,fortherestofyourday.

—EBENPAGAN

Whydidyouwakeupthismorning?That’saquestionyou’veprobablyneverbeenasked,but thinkabout it forasecond—whydoyouwakeupmostmornings?Whyleavethecomfortofyourwarm,cozybed?Doyoudoiteverydaybecauseyoureallywantto?Orisitbecause,foronereasonoranother,youhaveto?

Ifyou’relikemostpeople,youwakeuptotheincessantbeepingofanalarmclockeachmorningandreluctantlydragyourselfoutofbedbecauseyouhavetobesomewhere,dosomething,answerto—ortakecareof—someoneelse.Giventhechoice(doyouhaveachoice?)mostpeoplewouldcontinuesleeping.

Sonaturally,we rebel.Wehit the snoozebutton and resist theinevitableactofwakingup,unawarethatourresistanceissendingamessage to the universe that we’d rather lie there in our beds—unconscious—thanconsciouslyandactivelyliveandcreatetheliveswesaythatwewant.Mostofushaveresignedourselvestoacertainlevel of mediocrity and unfulfilled potential.We don’t like it.Wedon’t feel good about it.We know that there is absolutely anotherlevel of success, achievement and fulfillment that’s possible for us,

but we feel stuck, and we don’t know what to do to get ourselvesunstuck.

YouSnooze,YouLose:TheTruthAboutWakingUpThe old saying, “You Snooze, You Lose” may have a deeper

meaningthananyofusrealized.Whenyoudelaywakingupuntilyouhaveto—meaningyouwaituntilthelastpossiblemomenttogetoutofbedandstartyourday—considerthatwhatyou’reactuallydoingisresistingyourlife.Everytimeyouhitthesnoozebutton,you’reinastate of resistance to your day, to your life, and to waking up andcreatingthelifeyousayyouwant.Thinkabout thekindofnegativeenergy thatsurroundsyouwhenyoubeginyourdaywithresistance,when you respond to the sound of the alarm clock with internaldialoguealongthelinesof,“Ohno,it’stimealready.Ihavetowakeup.Idon’twanttowakeup.”It’sasifyou’resaying,“Idon’twanttolivemylife,atleastnottothefullest.”

Manypeoplewhosufferfromdepressionreportthatthemorningtimeisthemostdifficult.Theywakeupwithdread.Sometimesitisbecauseofajobtheyfeelobligatedtogoto,orduetoarelationshipthatisfailing.Somepeoplefeelthiswaysimplyduetothenatureofdepressionanditsabilitytoweighonaperson’smind,emotions,andheartwithoutneedingaspecificreason.Thetoneofourmorninghasa powerful impact on the tone of the rest of our day. It becomes acycle: wakingupwith despair, spending the day continuing to feelthatway,goingtosleepfeelinganxiousordepressed,thenrepeatthecycleofmelancholythenextday.

Not only are people missing out on the abundance of clarity,energy,motivation, andpersonal power that comes fromwakingupeachdayonpurpose,buttheirresistancetothisinevitabledailyactisadefiantstatement to theuniversethat theywouldrather lie inbed,unconscious,thantocreateandlivethelifetheydesire.

Ontheotherhand,whenyouwakeupeachdaywithpassionandpurpose, you join the small percentage of high achievers who arelivingtheirdreams.Mostimportantly,youwillbehappy.Bysimplychanging your approach to waking up in the morning, you willliterallychangeeverything.Butdon’ttakemywordforit—trustthesefamous early risers: Oprah Winfrey, Tony Robbins, Bill Gates,Howard Schultz, Deepak Chopra, Wayne Dyer, Thomas Jefferson,BenjaminFranklin,AlbertEinstein,Aristotle,andfartoomanymoretolisthere.

Nooneevertaughtusthatbylearninghowtoconsciouslysetourintention to wake up each morning with a genuine desire—evenenthusiasm—todoso,wecanchangeourentirelives.

Ifyou’rejustsnoozingeverydayuntilthelastpossiblemomentyouhavetoheadofftowork,showupforschool,ortakecareofyourfamily, and then coming home and zoning out in front of thetelevisionuntilyougotobed(thisusedtobemydailyroutine),I’vegot to ask you:When are you going to develop yourself into theperson you need to be to create the levels of health, wealth,happiness, success, and freedom that you truly want and deserve?Whenareyougoingtoactuallyliveyourlifeinsteadofnumblygoingthrough themotions looking foreverypossibledistraction toescapereality?What if your reality—your life—could finally be somethingthatyoucan’twaittobeconsciousfor?

There is no better day than today for us to give upwhowe’ve

beenforwhowecanbecome,andupgradethelifewe’vebeenlivingfortheonewereallywant.Thereisnobetterbookthantheoneyouareholdinginyourhandstoshowyouhowtobecomethepersonyouneed to be who is capable of quickly attracting, creating andsustainingthelifeyouhavealwayswanted.

HowMuchSleepDoWeReallyNeed?The first thing experts will tell you about howmany hours of

sleep we need is that there is no “magic number.” The amount ofsleep that is ideal varies for every individual, and is influenced byfactors such as age, genetics, overall health, how much exercise apersongets,andmanyothers.Whileyoumaybeatyourabsolutebestsleeping seven hours a night, someone else may clearly need ninehourstohaveahappy,productivelife.

According to theNationalSleepFoundation, someresearchhasfound thatlong sleep durations (nine hours or more) are alsoassociated with increased morbidity (illness, accidents) and evenmortality (death.) This research also found that variables such asdepressionweresignificantlyassociatedwithlongsleep.

Since there is such a wide variety of opinions from countlessstudiesandexperts,andsincetheamountofsleepneededvariesfromperson to person, I’m not going to take a scientific approach here.Instead,I’mgoingtosharemyownreal-worldresults,frompersonalexperience and experimentation, some of which may be somewhatcontroversial.

HowToWakeUPWithMoreEnergy(OnLessSleep)Throughmyownexperimentation—aswellasthatofmanyother

Miracle Morning enthusiasts who have tested this theory—I’veconcluded that, for the most part, we need as much sleep as webelievethatweneed.Inotherwords, I’vefoundthathowwefeel inthe morning when we wake up—and this is a very importantdistinction—isnotbasedonhowmanyhoursofsleepwegot,asmuchasit’sbasedonhowwetoldourselvesweweregoingtofeelwhenwewokeup.

Forexample,ifyoubelievethatyouneed8hoursofsleeptofeel

rested,butyou’regettingintobedat12:00midnightandhavetowakeupat6:00a.m.,you’relikelytotellyourself,“Geez,I’monlygoingtoget sixhoursof sleep tonight,but Ineedeight. I’mgoing to feelexhaustedinthemorning.”Then,whathappensassoonasyouralarmclock goes off and you open your eyes and you realize it’s time towake up? What’s the first thought that you think? It’s the samethoughtyouhadbeforebed! “Geez, Ionlygotsixhoursofsleep. Ifeel exhausted.” It’s a self-fulfilling, self-sabotaging prophecy. Ifyou tellyourselfyou’regoing to feel tired in themorning, thenyouareabsolutelygoingtofeeltired.Ifyoubelievethatyouneed8hoursto feel rested, thenyou’renotgoing to feel restedonanything less.Butwhatifyouchangedyourbeliefs?

Themind-bodyconnectionisapowerfulthing,andIbelievewemust take responsibility for every aspect of our lives, including thepower to wake up every day feeling energized, regardless of howmanyhoursofsleepweget.

I’veexperimentedwithvariousdurationsofsleep—fromaslittleas four hours to as many as nine. The other variable in myexperimentationwasactively tellingmyselfhowIwasgoingtofeelin themorning, based on the amount of hours I slept. First, I triedeachdurationofsleep,tellingmyselfbeforebedthatIwasnotgettingenoughsleep,andthatIwasgoingtofeelexhaustedinthemorning.

Onfourhoursofsleep,Iwokeupfeelingexhausted.Onfivehoursofsleep,Iwokeupfeelingexhausted.Onsixhoursofsleep,youguessedit—exhausted.Sevenhours….Eighthours…Ninehours…ThehoursofsleepI

got didn’t change how I felt when the alarm clock went off in themorning.As long as I toldmyself before bed that I wasn’t gettingenoughsleep,andthatIwasgoingtofeeltiredinthemorning,that’sexactlyhowIfelt.

Then,Iagainexperimentedwitheachduration—fromninehoursto four hours—this time reciting a bedtime affirmation and tellingmyselfthatIwasgoingtowakeupfeelingenergizedinthemorning:“Thankyouforgivingmethesefivehoursofsleeptonight.FivehoursisexactlywhatIneedtofeelrestedandenergizedinthemorning.Mybodyiscapableofmiraculousthings,theleastofwhichisgeneratinganabundanceofenergyfromfiverestfulhoursofsleep.IbelievethatI createmy experience of reality, and I choose to createwaking uptomorrowfeelingenergizedandexcited to takeonmyday,and I’mgratefulforthat.”

WhatIfoundwasthatwhetherIgotnine,eight,seven,six,five,or even just four hours of sleep, as long as I consciously decided,beforebed, that Iwasgetting theperfect amountof sleep—that thehours were going to energize my body to feel wonderful in themorning—I consistentlywoke feelingbetter than I ever hadbefore.However,don’t takemyword for it. I encourageyou to experimentwiththisyourself.

So,howmanyhoursofsleepdoyoureallyneed?Youtellme.

The Secret To Making Every Morning Feel LikeChristmas

Think back to a time in your life when you were genuinelyexcited towake up in themorning.Maybe itwas to catch an earlyflightforavacationthatyouhadbeenanticipatingformonths.Maybeitwasyourfirstdayatanewjob,oryourfirstdayofschool.Maybeitwasyourweddingday,oryourlastbirthday.Personally,Ican’tthinkof any time inmy lifewhen Iwasmore excited towake up in themorning—regardless of howmuch sleep I got—than when I was akid,everyyearonChristmasmorning.Maybeyoucanrelate?

Whatever theoccasionshavebeen thathavehadyouexcited towake up in the morning, how did you feel when those mornings

arrived? Did you have to drag yourself out of bed? Doubtful. Onmornings like these, we can’t wait to wake up! We do so feelingenergizedandgenuinelyexcited.Wequicklyheavethecoversoffandspringtoourfeet, readyto takeontheday! Imagine if this iswhateverydayofyourlifewaslike.Shouldn’titbe?Itcan.

TheMiracleMorningislargelyaboutrecreatingthatexperienceofwakingupfeelingenergizedandexcited,anddoingitevery-single-dayofyourlife—fortherestofyourlife!It’saboutgettingoutofbedwith purpose—not because youhave to, but because you genuinelywantto—anddedicatingtimeeachdaytodevelopingyourselfintothepersonyouneedtobetocreatethemostextraordinary,fulfilling,andabundantlifeyoucanimagine.TheMiracleMorningisalreadydoingjust that for thousands of people around theworld. People just likeyou.

—5—

The5-StepSnooze-ProofWakeUpStrategy(FortheSnooze-aholics)

Ifyoureallythinkaboutit,hittingthesnoozebuttoninthemorningdoesn’tevenmakesense.It’slikesaying,‘Ihategettingupinthemorning—soIdoitover…and

over…andoveragain.’—DEMETRIUSMARTIN

I’dlikemorningsbetteriftheystartedlater.—UNKNOWN

First, letmejustsaythatif itwasn’tforthisstrategythatI’mabout to share with you, I would still be sleeping—or snoozing—through my alarm clock every morning, and what’s even moredetrimental, Iwouldstill adhere tomyold limitingbelief, claimingthatIwasnota“morningperson.”

It’s been said that nobody actuallylikes waking up early, buteveryone loves the feeling of having woken up early. Kind of likeexercising—manyofusstruggletogetourselvesto thegym,butallof us love the feelingof havinggone to thegym.Wakingup early,especially when done with purpose, always starts you off feelingempoweredforyourday.

IncreasingYourWake-Up-Motivation-Level(WUML)Formostofus,whenthealarmclocksoundseachmorning,we

arewokenfromadeadsleep.Leavingthecomfortofourbedsistheleast appealing thing to do. If you were to rate your level of

motivation as it pertained to waking up—a.k.a. yourWake UpMotivation Level (WUML)—at the moment the alarm clock startsincessantlybeeping,onascaleof1-10(“10”beingreadytowakeupandembracetheday,and“1”meaningyouwantnothingmorethantogobacktosleep),mostofuswouldprobablyrateourWUMLclosetoaoneoratwo.It’sperfectlynatural,whenyou’restillhalfasleep,towanttohitthesnoozebuttonandkeeponsleeping.

Thechallenge is, howdoyougiveyourself themotivationyouneed to wake up early and create an extraordinary day, when yourWakeUpMotivationLevelisonlyataoneortwowhenyouralarmclocksounds?

The answer is simple:one step at a time. Here are my fivesimple, snooze-proof steps to making waking up in the morning—evenearlyinthemorning—easierthaneverbefore.

Step#1:SetYourIntentionsBeforeBedThe first key to waking up is to remember this:Your first

thoughtinthemorningisusuallythelastthoughtyouhadbeforeyouwenttobed.Forexample,we’veallhadnightswherewecouldhardlyfall asleep because we are so excited about waking up the nextmorning. Whether it was Christmas Eve, or you were going onvacation, or starting anew job—as soon as the alarmclock sounds,youopenyoureyeswithenthusiasmtogetoutofbedandembracetheday.

Ontheotherhand,ifyourlastthoughtbeforebedwassomethinglike,“Ohman,Ican’tbelieveIhavetogetupinsixhours—I’mgoingto be exhausted in the morning!” then your first thought when thealarmclockgoesoffislikelytobesomethingalongthelinesof,“Ohmy gosh, it’s already been six hours?? Nooo! I just want to keepsleeping!”

So, thekeyis toconsciouslydecideeverynight toactivelyandmindfullycreateapositiveexpectationforthenextmorning.Forhelponthisandtogettheprecisewordstosaybeforebedtocreateyourpowerful intentions, downloadThe Miracle Morning “BedtimeAffirmation”freeatwww.TMMBook.com.

Step#2:MoveYourAlarmClockAcrossTheRoomIfyouhaven’talready,moveyouralarmclockacrosstheroom.

Thisforcesyoutogetoutofbedandengageyourbodyinmovement.Motioncreatesenergy,sowhenyougetupandoutofbeditnaturallyhelpsyouwakeup.

Ifyoukeepyouralarmclocknexttoyourbed,thenyouarestillinapartialsleep-statewhenthealarmgoesoff,anditmakesitmuchmoredifficulttowakeyourselfup.I’msureyoucanprobablyrelateto rolling over—still half-asleep—and turning the alarm clock offwithoutevenrealizingthatitwentoff.IknowthatonmanyoccasionsI’veevenconvincedmyself thatmyalarmclockwasmerelypartofthedreamIwashaving.

Simply forcingyourself toget out ofbed to turnoff the alarmclock will instantly take your Wake Up Motivation Level from aWUML-1,toaWUML-2orWUML-3.However,you’llstilllikelybefeelingmoresleepythannot.So...

Step#3:BrushYourTeethAssoonasyou’vegottenoutofbedand turnedoffyouralarm

clock,godirectlytothebathroomsinktobrushyourteeth,andwhileyou’re at it, splash some warm (or cold) water on your face. ThissimpleactivitywillincreaseyourWakeUpMotivationLevelfromaWUML-2or3toaWUML-3or4.Nowthatyourmouthisfresh,it’stimeto…

Step#4:DrinkaFullGlassofWaterIt’scrucial thatyouhydrateyourself first thingeverymorning.

After6-8hourswithoutwater,you’llnaturallybemildlydehydrated,anddehydrationcausesfatigue.Oftenwhenpeoplefeeltired—atanytimeoftheday—whattheyreallyneedismorewater,notmoresleep.

Startbygettingaglassofwater(oryoucandowhatIdo,andfillitupthenightbeforesoit’salreadythereforyouinthemorning),anddrinkitasfastasiscomfortableforyou.Theobjectiveistorehydrateyourbodyandmindasfastaspossible,toreplacethewateryouweredeprivedofduringthehoursyouslept.

Whenyoudrinkaglassofwaterandhydrateyourself,yourWakeUpMotivationLevelgoesfromaWUML-3toaWUML-4orWUML-5.

Step#5:GetDressedorJumpIntheShowerThe fourth stephas twooptions:Option#1 is togetdressed in

your exercise clothes, so you’re ready to leave your bedroom andimmediatelyengageinyourMiracleMorning.

Option #2 is to jump in the shower. Personally, I like to justchange intomy exercise clothes, since I’ll probably need a showerafterwards anyway, but a lot of people prefer the morning showerbecauseithelpswakeyouupandgivesyoua“fresh”starttotheday.It’sreallywhicheveryouprefer.

Regardless of which option you choose, by the time you’veexecuted these five Simple Steps, you should be at aWUML-5 orWUML-6,andthenitrequiresverylittledisciplinetostayawakeforyourMiracleMorning.Ifyouweretotryandmakethatcommitmentatthetimeyouralarmclockwentoff—whileyouwereataWUML1—itwouldbeamuchmoredifficultdecisiontomake.

Here’s a quick review of the5-Step Snooze-Proof Wake UpStrategy to significantly increase yourWake Up Motivation Level(WUML):

1.SetYourIntentionstheNightBefore. This is themostimportant step. Remember: your first thought in themorning isusually the last thoughtyouhadbeforebed, so

take responsibility for creating genuine excitement for thenextmorning,everynightbeforebed.2.KeepYourAlarmClockAcrosstheRoom.Remember:Movementcreatesenergy!3.BrushYourTeeth. Useanantisepticmouthwashtoaddextraumph!4.DrinkaFullGlassofWater.Hydrateyourself,ASAP!5.GetDressed.Orjumpintheshower.

MiracleMorningBonusWakeUpTipsKeepinmindthatalthoughthisstrategyhasproventobework

for thousandsof people, these5-steps are not theonlyway tomakewakingupinthemorningeasier.HereareafewothertipsI’veheardfromfellowMiracleMorningpractitioners:

ÖTMMBedtimeAffirmations:Ifyouhaven’tdone thisyet, be sure to take a moment now to go towww.TMMbook.com and download the re-energizing,intention-settingMiracle Morning Bedtime Affirmations,forfree.Ö Set a timer for your bedroom lights: One of ourMiracle Morning community members sets his bedroomlightsonatimer(youcanbuyan“appliancetimer”onlineoratyourlocalhardwarestore.)Ashisalarmgoesoff,thelights come on in the room.What a great idea. It’s a loteasiertofallbackasleepwhenit’sdark,sohavingthelightscomeontellsyourmindandbodythatit’stimetowakeup.Regardlessofwhetherornotyouuseatimer,besuretoturnyourlightonfirstthingwhenyouralarmgoesoff.Ö Seta timerforyourbedroomheater: Another fanof

The Miracle Morning said that in the winter, she kept abedroom heater on an appliance timer set to go off 15minutesbefore shewokeup.Shekept it coldatnight,butwarm for waking up so that she wouldn’t be tempted tocrawlbackunderhercoverstoavoidthecold.Shesaidthismadeahugedifference!

Ö MyWakeUPCallTM (Motivational Alarm ClockMessages):While doing research for this book, I cameacross an extraordinary woman with a really cool idea—Robin Palmer, President and Co-founder ofMySuccessables, Inc. and the creator ofMyWakeUPCallTMMotivationalAlarm ClockTM Messages. These are unique,pre-recorded motivational messages designed to wakepeople up positively each day. Every morning, you startyour daywith patented, five-minute,motivatingmessagesfrom famous authors, like Jack Canfield and MarciSchimoff.You can download a few free samplemessagesforatwww.mywakeupcalls.net.

Feel free to add to or customize yourSnooze-Proof Wake UpStrategy,andifyouhaveanytipsyou’reopentosharing,I’dlovetohearthem.Pleasefeelfreetocontactmedirectlythroughmyblogatwww.MiracleMorningBlog.com, or atwww.MyTMMCommunity.com.

It’s all about having an effective, pre-determined, step-by-stepstrategy to increaseyourWakeUpMotivationLevel in themorning.Don’twait to try this!Starttonight by reading theMiracleMorningBedtime Affirmation, moving your alarm clock across the room,setting a glass of water on your nightstand, and committing to theothertwostepsforthemorning.

—6—

TheLifeS.A.V.E.R.S.>SixPracticesGuaranteedToSaveYou

FromaLifeofUnfulfilledPotentialSuccessissomethingyouattractbythepersonyoubecome.

—JIMROHN

Anextraordinarylifeisallaboutdaily,continuousimprovementsintheareasthatmattermost.

—ROBINSHARMA

Stressed.Overwhelmed.Frustrated.Unfulfilled.Blah.These are a few unpleasant words that provide a rather

unfortunate,butfairlyaccuratedescriptionofhowtheaveragepersonfeelsabouthisorherlife,fartoooften.

YouandIareundoubtedlylivinginoneofthemostprosperous,advanced times in human history, with more opportunities andresources available to us than ever before. Yet most of us aren’ttappingintotheunlimitedpotentialthatiswithineverysingleoneofus.I’mnotokaywiththat.Areyou?

ThePotentialGapHaveyoueverfelt like thelifeyouwant to liveandtheperson

youknowyoucanbeare justbeyondyourgrasp? Doyoueverfeellikeyou’rechasingyourpotential—youknowit’sthere,youcanseeit—butyoucanneverquitecatchit? Whenyouseepeoplewhoareexcellinginanareathatyou’renot,doesitseemlikethey’vegotitall

figured out—like they must know something that you don’t know,becauseifyouknewit,thenyou’dbeexcellinginthatareatoo?

Mostofusliveourlivesonthewrongsideofahugegapinourpotential, a gap which separates who we are from who we canbecome.Weareoftenfrustratedwithourselves,ourlackofconsistentmotivation,effortandresultsinoneormoreareasoflife.Wespendtoo much timethinkingabout the actions we should be taking tocreatetheresultsthatwewant,butthenwedon’ttakethoseactions.Weallknowwhatweneedtodo;wejustdon’tconsistentlydowhatweknow.Canyourelate?

Thispotentialgapvariesinsizefrompersontoperson.Youmayfeellikeyou’reverynearyourcurrentpotentialandthatafewtweakscouldmakeall thedifference.Oryoumight feel theopposite—likeyour potential is so far away fromwho you’ve been that you don’tevenknowwheretostart.Whateverthecaseisforyou,knowthatitisabsolutelypossibleandattainableforyoutoliveyourlifeontherightsideofyourpotentialgapandbecomethepersonyouarecapableofbecoming.

Whetheryouarecurrentlysittingonthewrongsideofthegrandcanyonof yourpotential,wonderinghowyou’regoing toget to theother side, or you’ve beenworking yourway across the canyon butarestuckataplateauandhaven’tbeenabletoclosethatgapandgettothenextlevel—thischapterwillintroduceyoutosixtoolsthatwillenableyou togo fromwhereyouare—accepting less fromyourselfthan what you know is possible— to developing yourself into thepersonyouknowyoucanbecome.

YourLifeIsNotWhatYouThinkItIsMostofusaresobusytryingtomanage,maintain,orevenjust

surviveour life“situation” thatwedon’tmake the time to focusonwhat’s most important—ourlife. What’s the difference? Our life

situation is the set ofexternal circumstances, events, people, andplaces that surroundus. It’s notwhowe are.Wearemore thanourlifesituation.

Your life iswhoyouareat thedeepest level.Your life ismadeup of theinternal components,attitudes,andmindsets thatcangiveyou thepower toalter,enhance,orchangeyour lifesituationatanygivenmoment.

YourlifeismadeupofthePhysical,Intellectual,Emotional,andSpiritualpartsthatmakeupeveryhumanbeing—orP.I.E.S.forshort.ThePhysicalincludesthingslikeyourbody,health,andenergy.TheIntellectual incorporates yourmind, intelligence, and thoughts. TheEmotional takes into account your emotions, feelings, and attitudes.TheSpiritual includes intangibles such as your spirit, soul, and theunseenhigherpowerthatoverseesall.

Yo u r l i f eis where your ability to create new feelings,perspectives,beliefs,andattitudesinyour“inner”worldlies,sothatyou can createor alter the circumstances, relationships, results, andanythingelseinthe“external”realmofyourlifesituation.Asmanysages have taught us:our outer world is a reflection of our innerworld.In other words, by focusing time and effort each day ondevelopingyourP.I.E.S.,andconstantlybecomingabetterversionofyourself,your life situationwill inevitably—almostautomatically—improve.

Icanassureyouthatthroughmyowntransformativejourney—fromthedepthsofmediocrity,justifyingmyexcusesandlivingmostareas of my life somewhere in between mediocre and average, toachieving goals that at one time seemed impossible for me—yourcommitment to daily personal development will be as instrumentalforyourtransformationasitwasformine.

TimeToSaveTheLifeYouDeserveToLive

For toomanypeople, theextraordinary, fulfillingabundant lifethattheyreallywant—ourLevel10life—eludesthembecausethey’reso overwhelmed and overrun with their day-to-day life situation.Theirlifesituationiseatingupalloftheirtimesothattheirlife,andwhatmattersmost,isn’tgettingattendedto.

In order to save yourLevel 10life from being neglected andlimitedbythedemandsofyourlifesituation—whichultimatelyleadsto a life of regret, unfulfilled potential, and even mediocrity—youmust prioritize and dedicate time each day to your personaldevelopment. EnterTheMiracleMorningLifeS.A.V.E.R.S.—asetofsix simple,life-enhancing,life-changing daily practices, each ofwhichdevelopsoneormoreof thephysical, intellectual, emotional,andspiritual aspects of your life, so that you can becomewho youneedtobetocreatethelifeyouwant.

Remember,whenyouchangeyourinnerworld—yourlife—thenyourouterworld—yourlifesituation—willimproveinparallel.

TheFirst“S”ofS.A.V.E.R.S.Nope,it’snot“sleep.”Sorry.WhileIknowmanypeoplewould

loveitiftheycouldsleeptheirwaytosuccess,unlessyouhavebeencryogenicallyfrozenandareawaitingalargeinheritanceatthetimeofbeingthawedout—lifejustdoesn’tworkthatway.

Here are six powerful, proven personal development practicesknown as theLife S.A.V.E.R.S. that you’ll use to gain access to thepowerful forces—alreadywithin you—thatwill enable you to alter,change,or transformanyareaofyour life.Let’s lookateachof thesixpersonaldevelopmenttoolsthatmakeuptheLifeS.A.V.E.R.S.andhoweachwillhelpyoubecome thepersonyouneed tobe toeasilyattract, create, and live the most extraordinary life you have everimagined.

LifeS.A.V.E.R.S.SisforSilence

Intheattitudeofsilencethesoulfindsthepathinaclearerlight,andwhatiselusiveanddeceptive

resolvesitselfintocrystalclearness.—MAHATMAGANDHI

Youcanlearnmoreinanhourofsilencethanyoucaninayearfrombooks.

—MATTHEWKELLY

SilenceisthefirstpracticeoftheLifeS.A.V.E.R.S. andmaybeoneofthemostsignificantareasforimprovementforournoisy,fast-paced and over-stimulated lifestyles. I’m referring to the life-transforming power ofpurposeful Silence. “Purposeful” simplymeans that you are engaging in a period of Silence with a highlybeneficialpurpose inmind—not just for theheckof it.AsMatthewKellysoeloquentlystatesinhisbestsellingbookTheRhythmofLife,“Youcanlearnmoreinanhourofsilencethanyoucaninayearfrombooks.”That’sapowerfulstatementfromaverywiseman.

If youwant to immediately reduce your stress levels, to begineachdaywith thekindofcalm,clarity,andpeaceofmind thatwillallowyoutostayfocusedonwhat’smostimportantinyourlife,andeven dance on the edge of enlightenment—do the opposite ofwhatmost people do—start every morning with a period of purposefulSilence.

The life-enhancing benefits of Silence have been welldocumented throughout the ages. From the power of prayer, to themagicofmeditation,someofthegreatestmindsinhistoryhaveused

purposeful Silence to transcend their limitations and createextraordinaryresults.

HowDoYourMorningsUsuallyBegin?Do you invest time in centering yourself and creating an

optimumstateofmindtoleadyouthroughtherestoftheday?Ordoyouusuallywaittowakeupuntilyou’vegotsomethingtodo?Dothewo r d scalm, peaceful, orrejuvenatingdescribe your averagemorning?Iftheydo,congratulations!You’realreadyastepaheadoftherestofus.

For most of us, words likerushed, hectic, stressful or evenchaotic might best describe our typical morning. For others,slow,lazy, andlethargicmightbeamoreaccuratedescriptionofhow themorningbegins.Whichofthesescenariosbestdescribesyouraveragemorning?

Mornings,formostofus,aretypicallyprettyhecticandrushed.We’reusuallyrunningaroundtryingtogetreadyfortheday,andourmindsareoftenplaguedwith internalchatteraboutwhatwehave todo,wherewehavetogo,whowehavetosee,whatweforgottodo,thefact thatwe’re running late, a recent argumentwith our significantotherorfamilymember.

Forothers,wehavetroublejustgettinggoingonmostmornings.Wefeelsluggish,lazy,andunproductive.So,forthegreatmajorityofus, the mornings are either stressful and rushed, or slow andunproductive. Neither of these represents the optimumway to startyourday.

Silence is one of the best ways to immediately reduce stress,whileincreasingyourself-awarenessandgainingtheclaritythatwillallowyoutomaintainyourfocusonyourgoals,priorities,andwhat’smostimportantforyourlife,eachandeveryday.

Here are some of my favorite activities to choose from andpracticeduringmyperiodofSilence,innoparticularorder,followedbyasimplemeditationtogetyoustarted:

ÖMeditationÖPrayerÖReflectionÖDeepBreathingÖGratitude

Some mornings I do just one of these activities, and othermorningsIcombinethem.Allofthesepracticeswillrelaxyourmindand body, calm your spirit, and allow you to be totally present andopentoreceivingthebenefitsthatwillcomefromtheremainingLifeS.A.V.E.R.S.whichmakeuptherestofyourMiracleMorning.

It is very important that you don’t stay in bed for this, andpreferablythatyouleaveyourbedroomaltogether.Theproblemwithstaying inbed—or even inyourbedroom,whereyour comfybed iswithin your line of sight—is that it’s too easy to go fromsitting inSilence,toslouching,tofallingbackasleep.Ialwayssitonmylivingroomcouch,whereIalreadyhaveeverythingsetupthatIneedformyMiracleMorning.Myaffirmations,journal,yogaDVD,thebookI’mcurrentlyreading—everythinghasitsplaceandisreadyformeeachdaysothat, in themorning, it’seasyto jumpright inandengageinmyMiracleMorning,withouthavingtosearchforanything.

MeditationSincethereareplentyofgreatbooks,articles,andwebsitesthat

concentrate on meditation, I won’t go into too much detail indescribing the proven benefits and the various approaches tomeditating.Instead,I’ll justmentionafewofwhatIbelievearethe

most significant benefits, and give you simple step-by-stepmeditationthatyoucanbeginimmediately.

The essence of meditation is simply silencing or focusing themind foraperiodof time.Youmayormaynotbeawareofall theextraordinaryhealthbenefitsofmeditating.Studyafter studyshowsthatmeditation can bemore effective thanmedication. Studies linkregular meditation to changes in metabolism, blood pressure, brainactivation,andothermindandbodilyfunctions.Itcanalleviatestressandpain,promote sleep, enhance focusandconcentration, andevenincrease lifespan.Meditation also requiresvery little time.Youcantakeadvantageof thebenefitsofmeditation in justa fewminutesaday.

Well-knowncelebrities,CEOsandhighlysuccessfulpeoplelikeJerrySeinfeld,Sting,RussellSimmons,Oprahandmanymorehavepublicallystated that regular,oftendaily,meditationhasbecomeaninvaluablepartoftheirlife.TupperwareTMCEORickGoingstoldTheFinancialTimesthathetriedtomeditateforatleast20minuteseveryday,stating,“Forme,it’sapracticethatnotonlyburnsoffstress,butgivesmefresheyestoclarifywhat’sreallygoingonandwhatreallymatters.” Oprah told Dr. Oz that TranscendentalMeditationTM hashelped her “connect with that which is God,” according to theHuffingtonPost.

There are many genres and types of meditation, but generallyspeaking you can divide them into two categories: “guided” and“individual”meditations.Guidedmeditationsarethoseinwhichyoulistentoanotherperson’svoiceandreceiveinstructionstohelpguideyour thoughts, focus, and awareness. Individual meditations aresimply those you do on your own, without assistance from anyoneelse.

MiracleMorningMeditation

Hereisasimple,step-by-stepindividualmeditationthatyoucanuse during yourMiracle Morning, even if you’ve never meditatedbefore.§ Before beginning yourmeditation, it’s important to prepare your

mindsetandsetyourexpectations.Thisisatimeforyoutoquietyour mind and let go of the compulsive need to constantly bethinking about something—either reliving the past, stressing orworrying about the future—but never living fully in the present.This is the time to let go of your stresses, take a break fromworrying about your problems, and be fully present inthismoment.Itisatimetoaccesstheessenceofwhoyoutrulyare—togodeeper thanwhatyouhave,whatyoudo,or the labelsyou’veaccepted as “who you are”—whichmost people have never evenattempted to do.Accessing this essence ofwho you truly are isoften referred to as “just being.” Not thinking, not doing, justbeing.Ifthissoundsforeigntoyou,ortoo“new-agey”that’sokay.I used to feel the same way. It’s probably just because you’venevertrieditbefore.Butthankfully,you’reaboutto.

§Findaquiet,comfortableplacetosit.Youcansitupstraightonthecouch, on a chair, on the floor, or sit on a pillow, for addedcomfort.

§Situpright,cross-legged.Youcancloseyoureyes,oryoucanlookdownattheground,approximatelytwofeetinfrontofyou.

§ Begin by focusing on your breath, taking slow, deep breaths. Inthrough the nose, out through themouth, and be sure to breatheinto your belly, rather than your chest. The most effectivebreathingshouldcauseyourbellytoexpand,andnotyourchest.

§ Now, start pacing your breath; in slowly on a count of 3 seconds(one, one-thousand, two, one-thousand, three, one-thousand)…hold it in for 3 seconds (one, one-thousand, two, one-thousand,

three,one-thousand)…andthenbreatheoutslowlyonacountof3seconds (one, one-thousand, two, one-thousand, three, one-thousand).Feelyour thoughtsandemotions settlingdownasyoufocusonyourbreath.Beaware that asyouattempt toquietyourmind, thoughts will still come in to pay a visit. Simplyacknowledgethem, thenlet themgo,alwaysreturningyourfocustoyourbreath.

§Remember,thisisatimeforyoutoletgoofyourcompulsiveneedtoconstantlybethinkingaboutsomething.Thisisatimetoletgoof your stress and take a break from worrying about yourproblems.Thisisthetimetobefullypresentinthismoment.Thisis often referred to as justbeing. Not thinking, not doing, justbeing. Continue to follow your breaths, and imagine inhalingpositive,loving,peacefulenergy,andexhalingallofyourworriesandstress.Enjoythequiet.Enjoythemoment.Justbreathe…Justbe.

§ Ifyou find thatyouhaveaconstant influxof thoughts, itmaybehelpfulforyoutofocusonasinglewordoraphrase,andrepeatitover and over again to yourself, as you inhale and exhale. Forexample,youmighttrysomethinglike:(Ontheinhale)“Ibreathein peace…” (As you exhale) “I breathe out love... I breathe inpeace…” (inhale)… “Ibreatheout love...” (exhale)… Youcanswap the wordspeace andlove with whatever you feel like youneedbringmoreof intoyour life (confidence, faith, belief, etc.),andwhateveryoufeellikeyouwanttogivemoreoftotheworld.

§Meditationisagiftyoucangivetoyourselfeveryday.Ittrulyisanincrediblegift.My time spentmeditatinghasbecomeoneofmyfavoritepartsofmyday.Itisatimetobeatpeace,toexperiencegratitude,andatimeoffreedomfromourday-to-daystressorsandworries.Think of dailymeditation as a temporary vacation fromyourproblems.Whileyourproblemswillstillbe therewhenyou

finishyour dailymeditation, you’ll find that you aremuchmorecenteredandbetterequippedtosolvethem.

FinalThoughtsOnSilenceThere’s no single rightway to spend time in Silence.You can

pray,meditate, focusonwhatyou’regrateful for,orevenengage indeepthought.Forme,sittinginSilence—especiallymeditating—wasat first rather difficult, probably because I have what doctors havediagnosedasADHD.Idon’tknowthatIagreewiththeirdiagnosisoreven with the idea that ADHD is a “disorder” (that’s anotherconversation for another time), but I can attest that it’s definitely achallengeformetositstillandquietmymind.Thoughtstendtoraceinandout,bouncingaroundlikeapinball,almostnonstop.

So even though I wouldsit in Silence, my mind didn’t stopracing.ThefactthatsittingstillandclearingmymindwassodifficultformewaspreciselythereasonwhyIhadtocommittomasteringit.IttookmethreeorfourweeksofpracticingSilenceeverydaybeforeI felt competent. I got to a place where I would allow thoughts tocomein,I’dpeacefullyacknowledgethem,andthenquietlyletthemdrift away without getting frustrated. So don’t be discouraged ifspendingtimeinSilence,ormeditating,isatfirstachallengeforyou.

As for how long to do your period of purposeful Silence, Irecommend startingwith fiveminutes, although in the next chapterI’ll teachyouhowyoucanexperiencethelife-enhancingbenefitsofSilenceinaslittleas60secondsaday!WhenIbeganthispractice,I’d sit in Silence, calm and relaxed, say a prayer,meditate, ponderwhatIwasgratefulfor,andjustbreathedeeply,forfiveminutes.It’ssuchapeaceful,perfectwaytostarteachday.

LifeS.A.V.E.R.S.

AisforAffirmations

It’stherepetitionofaffirmationsthatleadstobelief.Oncethatbeliefbecomesadeepconviction,thingsbegintohappen.

—MUHAMMADALI

Youwillbeafailure,untilyouimpressthesubconsciouswiththeconvictionyouareasuccess.Thisisdonebymakinganaffirmation,whichclicks.

—FLORENCESCOVELSHINN

“Iamthegreatest!”MuhammadAliaffirmedthesewordsoverand over again—and then hebecame them.Affirmations are one ofthemosteffectivetoolsforquicklybecomingthepersonyouneedtobe to achieve everything youwant in your life.Affirmations allowyoutodesignandthendevelopthemindset(thoughts,beliefs,focus)thatyouneedtotakeanyareaofyourlifetothenextlevel.

It isnocoincidence that someof themostsuccessfulpeople inour society—celebrities likeWill Smith, Jim Carrey, Suze Orman,MuhammadAli,Oprah, andmanymore—haveall beenvocal abouttheir belief that positive thinking and the use of affirmations hashelpedthemontheirjourneytosuccessandwealth.

Whetherornotyourealizeit,incessantlytalkingtoone’sselfisnot just for crazy people. Every single one of us has an internaldialogue that runs throughourheads,almostnon-stop.Mostof it isunconscious, that is, we don’t consciously choose thedialogue.Instead,weallowourpastexperiences—bothgoodandbad—toreplayoverandoveragain.Notonlyisthiscompletelynormal,

itisoneofthemostimportantprocessesforeachofustolearnaboutand master. Yet, very few people take responsibility for activelychoosing to thinkpositive,proactive thoughts thatwill addvalue totheirlives.

I recently read a statistic that 80% of women have self-deprecatingthoughtsaboutthemselves(bodyimage,jobperformance,otherpeople’sopinionofthem,etc.)throughouttheday.I’msurethatmendoalso,althoughitmaybetoalesserextent.

Yourself-talkhasdramaticinfluenceonyourlevelofsuccessinevery aspect of your life—confidence, health, happiness, wealth,relationships,etc.Youraffirmationsareeitherworkingfororagainstyou,dependingonhowyouareusingthem.Ifyoudon’tconsciouslydesignandchooseyouraffirmationsyouaresusceptibletorepeatingandrelivingthefears,insecurities,andlimitationsofyourpast.

However, when you actively design and write out youraffirmationstobeinalignmentwithwhatyouwanttoaccomplishandwhoyouneedtobetoaccomplishit—andcommittorepeatingthemdaily (ideallyout loud)—they immediately make an impression onyour subconsciousmind.Youraffirmationsgo towork to transformthewayyouthinkandfeelsoyoucanovercomeyourlimitingbeliefsandbehaviorsandreplacethemwiththoseyouneedtosucceed.

HowAffirmationsChangedMyLifeMy first real-life exposure to the power of affirmations came

when I was living with one of my most successful friends, MattRecore. Nearly every day, I would hear Matt shouting from theshower in his bedroom. Thinking he was yelling for me, I wouldapproachhisbedroomdoor,onlytofindthathewasshoutingthingslike,“Iamincontrolofmydestiny!Ideservetobeasuccess!IamcommittedtodoingeverythingImustdotodaytoreachmygoalsandcreatethelifeofmydreams!”Whataweirdo,Ithought.

TheonlypreviousexposureIhadtoaffirmationswasthroughapopular 1990s spoof on the hit TV showSaturday Night Live, inwhich Al Franken’s character Stuart Smalley used to stare into amirror and repeat to himself,“I’mgood enough, I’m smart enough,and doggone it, people like me!”As a result, I always thought ofaffirmations as a joke. Matt knew better. As a student of TonyRobbins,Matthadbeenusingaffirmationsandincantationsforyearstocreateextraordinarylevelsofsuccess.Owningfivehomes,andoneofthetopnetworkengineersinthecountry(allbyage25),IshouldhavefiguredMattknewwhathewasdoing.Afterall, Iwas theonerenting a room inhis house. Unfortunately, it tookme a fewmoreyearstorealizethataffirmationswereoneofthemostpowerfultoolsfortransformingyourlife.

My first first-hand experience using affirmations camewhen IreadabouttheminNapoleonHill’slegendarybook,ThinkandGrowRich (which I highly recommend, by the way). Although I wasskepticalthattherepetitionofaffirmationswasreallygoingtomakeanymeasurableimpactonmylife,IthoughtIwouldgiveitashot.IfitworkedforMatt,itmightworkforme.IchosetotargetthelimitingbeliefIhaddevelopedaftersufferingsignificantbraindamageinmycaraccident:Ihaveahorriblememory.

Ifyoureadmyfirstbook,TakingLifeHeadOn! ,youknowthatmy short term memory was almost non-existent following my caraccident. While this led to some pretty comical incidents, mymemory was so poor that friends and family would spend hoursvisitingwithme at the hospital, take a quick lunch break, and thenreturntohavemegreetthemasifIhadn’tseentheminyears.

Facing such a real physical limitation due to a traumatic braininjury caused me to constantly reinforce the belief thatI have ahorriblememory.Anytimesomeoneaskedmetorememberorremindthem of something, I would always respond, “I would, but I really

can’t—Ihavebraindamageandahorribleshort-termmemory.”Ithadbeen7yearssincemycaraccident,andwhile thisbelief

was based on my realitythen, it was time to let it go. Maybe mymemory was sohorrible, at least inpart, because Ihadnevermadetheefforttobelieveitcouldimprove.AsHenryFordsaid,“Whetheryouthinkyoucan,oryouthinkyoucan’t,you’rerighteitherway.”

Ifaffirmationscouldchangewhatwas,tome,themostjustifiedlimitingbeliefthatIhad,thentheycouldprobablychangeanything.So, I createdmy first affirmationwhich read:Iam lettinggoof thelimiting belief that I have a horrible memory. My brain is amiraculous organism capable of healing itself, andmymemory canimprove,butonlyinproportiontohowmuchIbelieveitcanimprove.So,fromthismomenton,IammaintainingtheunwaveringbeliefthatI have an excellentmemory, and it’s continuing to get better everyday.

I read this short affirmation every day, during myMiracle

Morning.Stillprogrammedwithmypastbeliefs,Iwasn’tsureitwasworking.Then,twomonthsaftermyfirstdayrecitingmyaffirmation,somethingoccurredthathadn’toccurredinoversevenyears.Afriendasked me torememberto call her the next day, and I responded,“Sure,noproblem.” As soonas thewords leftmymouth,myeyeswidened and I got excited! My limiting belief about my horriblememorywaslosingitspower.Ihadreplaceditandreprogrammedmysubconscious mind with my new, empowering belief, using myaffirmations.

Fromthatpointon,havingalsoaddedthebeliefthataffirmationsreally work, not only did my memory continue to improve, but Icreated affirmations for every area of my life that I wanted to

advance. Ibeganusingaffirmations to improvemyhealth, finances,relationships, overall happiness, confidence, as well as any and allbeliefs,mindsets andhabitsthatneededanupgrade.Nothingwasofflimits.Therearenolimits!

How’sYourProgramming?We’ve all been programmed—at the sub-conscious level—to

think,believe,andactthewaywedo.Ourprogrammingisaresultofmany influences, includingwhatwe have been told by others,whatwe have told ourselves, and all of our life experiences—both goodandbad.Someofushaveprogrammingthatmakesiteasyforustobehappy and successful, while others—possibly the majority—haveprogrammingthatmakeslifedifficult.

So, thebad news is that if we don’t actively change ourprogramming,ourpotentialwillbecrushedandour lives limitedbythe fears, insecurities, and limitations of our past. We must stopprogrammingourselvesfora lifeofmediocritybyfocusingonwhatwe’re doing wrong, being too hard on ourselves when we makemistakes, and causing ourselves to feel guilty, inadequate, andundeservingofthesuccesswereallywant.

Thegood news is that our programming can be changed orimprovedatanytime.Wecanreprogramourselvestoovercomeallofour fears, insecurities, bad habits, and any self-limiting, potential-destroyingbeliefsandbehaviorswecurrentlyhave,sowecanbecomeassuccessfulaswewanttobe,inanyareaofourliveswechoose.

You can use affirmations to start programming yourself to beconfidentandsuccessful ineverythingyoudo,simplybyrepeatedlytellingyourselfwhoyouwanttobe,whatyouwanttoaccomplishandhowyouaregoingtoaccomplishit.Withenoughrepetition,yoursub-consciousmindwillbegintobelievewhatyoutellit,actuponit,andeventuallymanifestitinyourreality.

Puttingyouraffirmationsinwritingmakesitpossibleforyoutochooseyournewprogrammingsoitmovesyoutowardsthatdesiredconditionorstateofmindbyenablingyoutoconsistentlyreviewit.Constant repetition of an affirmationwill lead to acceptance by themind, and result in changes inyour thoughts,beliefs andbehaviors.Sinceyougettochooseandcreateyouraffirmations,youcandesignthem to help you establish the thoughts, beliefs, and behaviors thatyouwantandneedtosucceed.

5SimpleStepsToCreateYourOwnAffirmationsHereare5simplestepstocreateyourfirstaffirmation,followed

by a link where you can download freeMiracle Morningaffirmations:

Step1:WhatYouReallyWantThe purpose of a written affirmation is to program yourmind

withthebeliefs,attitudes,andbehaviors/habitsthatarevital toyourbeingabletoattract,create,andtosustainyourideallevelsofsuccess—Level10 success—ineveryareaofyour life.So,youraffirmationmust firstclearlyarticulateexactlywhatyouwantyour ideal life tobelike,ineacharea.

You canorganize your affirmations according to the areas thatyou most want to focus on improving, such as Health/Fitness,Mindset, Emotions, Finances, Relationships, Spirituality, etc. Beginwith clarifying, inwriting,what you reallywant—your ideal visionforyourselfandyourlife—ineacharea.

Step2:WhyYouWantItAsmygood friendAdamStock,PresidentofRisingStock, Inc.

once told me, “The wise begin withwhys.” Everyone wants to behappy, healthy, and successful, but wanting is rarely an effective

strategy for getting. Those who overcome the temptations ofmediocrity and achieve everything they want in life have anextraordinarilycompellingwhythatdrivesthem.Theyhavedefinedaclear life purpose that ismore powerful than the collective sum oftheirpettyproblemsand thecountlessobstacles theywill inevitablyface,andtheywakeupeachdayandworktowardstheirpurpose.

Includewhy,atthedeepestlevel,allofthethingsyouwantareimportanttoyou.Beingcrystalclearonyourdeepestwhyswillgiveyouanunstoppablepurpose.

Step3:WhomYouAreCommittedTo BeingToCreateIt

As my first Coach, Jeff Sooey used to say, this is where therubbermeetstheroad.Inotherwords,yourlifegetsbetteronlyafteryougetbetter.Yourouterworldimprovesonlyafteryou’veinvestedcountlesshours improvingyourself.Being(whoyouneed tobe)anddoing(what you need to do) are prerequisites forhaving what youwant to have. Get clear on who you need to be, arecommitted tobeing,inordertotakeyourlife,business,health,marriage,etc.tothenextlevelandbeyond.

Step4:WhatYou’reCommittedToDoingToAttainItWhich actions will you need to take on a consistent basis to

makeyourvisionforyour ideal lifea reality?Want to loseweight?Youraffirmationmightsaysomethinglike: Iam100%committedtogoing to the gym5 days aweek and running on the treadmill for aminimum of 20 minutes. If you’re a salesperson, your affirmationmight read:I’mcommittedtomaking20prospectingcallseveryday,from8am-9am.Themorespecificyouractionsare,thebetter.Besureto include frequency (howoften), quantity (howmany), andprecisetimeframes(whattimesyou’llbeginandendyouractivities.)

It’s also important to start small. If you’regoing to thegym0daysaweekfor0minutes,goingto5daysaweekfor20minutesisabig leap. It’s important to take manageable steps. Feel smallsuccessesalong thewaysoyoufeelgoodanddon’tgetdiscouragedbysettingexpectationstoohightobeabletomaintain.Youcanbuildup toyour ideal goal.Start bywritingdownadailyorweeklygoaland decide when you will increase it. After a few weeks ofsuccessfullymeetingyourgoalofgoingtothegym2-days-a-weekfor20minutes,thenmoveitupto3-days-a-weekfor20minutes,andsoon.

Step5:AddInspirationalQuotesandPhilosophiesIamalwaysonthelookoutforquotesandphilosophiesthatIcan

addtomyaffirmations.Forexample,oneofmyaffirmationscomesfromthe bookWhatGotYouHereWon’tGetYouThere byMarshalGoldsmith.Itreads,“The#1skillof influencersis thesincereefforttomakeapersonfeel thatheorsheis themost importantpersonintheworld.It’soneoftheskillsthatBillClinton,OprahWinfrey,andBruceGoodmanusedtobecomethebestintheirfields.IwilldothisforeverypersonIconnectwith!”

Another reads:“Follow Tim Ferris’ advice: To maximizeproductivity, schedule 3-5 hour blocks or half-days of singularlyfocusedattentiononONEsingleactivityorproject,ratherthantryingtoswitchtasksevery60minutes.”

Anytime you see or hear a quote that inspires you, or come

acrossanempoweringphilosophyorstrategyand think toyourself:Man, that is ahuge area of improvement for me , add it to youraffirmations. By focusing on these every day, you will begin tointegratetheempoweringphilosophiesandstrategiesintoyourwayofthinking and living,whichwill improve your results and quality of

life.

FinalThoughtsOnAffirmations§ In order for your affirmations to be effective, it is important that

you tap into your emotions while reading them. Mindlesslyrepeating a phrase over and over again, withoutfeeling its truth,willhaveaminimal impactonyou.Youmust takeresponsibilityfor generating authentic emotions and powerfully infusing thoseemotions intoeveryaffirmationyou repeat toyourself.Have funwith it. If you’re excited about an affirmation, it doesn’t hurt todanceandshoutitfromtherooftops!

§ It can also be beneficial to incorporate a purposefulphysiology,suchasrecitingyouraffirmationswhilestandingtall,takingdeepbreaths,makingafist,orexercising.Combiningphysicalactivitywithaffirmationsisagreatwaytoharnessthepowerofthemind-bodyconnection.

§ Keep inmind thatyouraffirmationswillnever reallybea“final”draft, because you should always be updating them. As youcontinue to learn, grow, and evolve, so shouldyour affirmations.Whenyoucomeupwithanewgoal,dream,habit,orphilosophyyouwant to integrate into your life, add it to your affirmations.Whenyouaccomplishagoalorcompletely integrateanewhabitintoyourlife,youmightfindit’snolongernecessarytofocusoniteveryday,andthuschoosetoremoveitfromyouraffirmations.

§ Finally, you must be consistent with reading yourdailyaffirmations. That’s right, you must read them daily. Saying anoccasional affirmation is as effective as getting an occasionalworkout.You won’t see any measurable results until you makethemapartofyourdailyroutine.That’slargelywhatTheMiracleMorning30-DayLifeTransformationChallenge (inChapter9) isallabout—makingeachoftheLifeS.A.V.E.R.S. ahabitsoyoucan

dothemeffortlessly.§Onemorethingtoconsider:readingthisbook—oranybook—isan

affirmation to yourself. Anything you read influences yourthoughts.When you consistently read positive self-improvementbooks and articles, you are programming your mind with thethoughtsandbeliefsthatwillsupportyouincreatingsuccess.

Visitwww.TMMbook.comto:§Gethelpcreatingandperfectingyouraffirmations…§Seeasampleofmyownpersonalaffirmations…§ViewanddownloadhighlyeffectiveMiracleMorningaffirmations

on everything fromlosing weight, improving your relationships,increasingyourenergy,developingextraordinaryself-confidence,makingmoremoney,overcomingdepression,andmuchmore…

LifeS.A.V.E.R.S.

VisforVisualization

Ordinarypeoplebelieveonlyinthepossible.Extraordinarypeoplevisualizenotwhatispossibleorprobable,butratherwhatisimpossible.Andby

visualizingtheimpossible,theybegintoseeitaspossible.

—CHERIECARTER-SCOTT

Seethingsasyouwouldhavethembeinsteadofastheyare.—ROBERTCOLLIER

Visualization, also known ascreative visualization ormentalrehearsal,referstothepracticeofseekingtogeneratepositiveresultsin your outer world by using your imagination to create mentalpictures of specific behaviors and outcomes occurring in your life.Frequently used by athletes to enhance their performance,visualization is the process of imagining exactly what you want toachieveorattain,andthenmentallyrehearsingwhatyou’llneedtodotoachieveorattainit.

Many highly successful individuals, including celebrities, haveadvocated the use of visualization, claiming that it’s played asignificantroleintheirsuccess.SuchstarsincludeBillGates,ArnoldSchwarzenegger, Anthony Robbins, Tiger Woods, Will Smith, JimCarey,andyetagain, theoneandonly,Oprah. (Hmm…could therebe a link betweenOprah being one of the successfulwomen in theworld, and the fact that shepracticesmost, if notall six of theLifeS.A.V.E.R.S.?)

TigerWoods,arguablythegreatestgolferofalltime,isfamousforusingvisualizationtomentallyrehearseperfectlyexecutionofhisgolf swing on every hole. Another world champion golfer, JackNicklaus,hassaid:“Ineverhitashot,noteveninpractice,withouthavingaverysharpin-focuspictureofitinmyhead.”

Will Smith stated that he used visualization to overcomechallenges,andvisualizedhissuccessyearsbeforeactuallybecomingsuccessful.Another famousexample isactorJimCarrey,whowrotehimselfacheckin1987intheamountof10milliondollars.Hedateditfor“Thanksgiving1995”andaddedinthememoline,“Foractingservices rendered.” He then visualized it for years, and in 1994 hewaspaid10milliondollarsforhisstarringroleinDumbandDumber.

WhatDoYouVisualize?Most people are limited by visions of their past, replaying

previousfailuresandheartbreaks.CreativeVisualizationenablesyouto design the vision that will occupy your mind, ensuring that thegreatest pull on you is yourfuture—a compelling, exciting, andlimitlessfuture.

Here’sabriefsummaryofhowIuseVisualization,followedbythreesimplesteps foryou tocreateyourownVisualizationprocess.After I’ve read my affirmations, I sit upright on my living roomcouch,closemyeyes,andtakeafewslow,deepbreaths.Forthenextfive minutes, I simply visualize myself living my ideal day,performingallofmytaskswithease,confidence,andenjoyment.

For example, during themonths that I spent writing this book(okay, who am I kidding—it tookyears), I would first visualizemyself writing with ease, enjoying the creative process, free fromstress, fear, and writer’s block. I also visualized the end result—people reading the finished book, loving it and telling their friendsaboutit.Visualizingtheprocessbeingenjoyable,freefromstressand

fear,motivatedmetotakeactionandovercomeprocrastination.

3SimpleStepsForMiracleMorningVisualizationDirectly after reading your affirmations—where you took the

timetoarticulateandfocusonyourgoalsandwhoyouneedtobetotake your life to the next level—is the prime time to visualizeyourselflivinginalignmentwithyouraffirmations.

Step1:GetReadySomepeople like toplay instrumentalmusic in thebackground

—suchasclassicalorbaroque(checkoutanythingfromthecomposerBach)—during their visualization. If you’d like to experiment withplayingmusic,putitonwiththevolumerelativelylow.

Now, sit up tall, in a comfortable position. This can be on achair,couch,floor,etc.

Breathedeeply.Closeyoureyes,clearyourmind,andgetreadytovisualize.

Step2:VisualizeWhatYouReallyWantManypeopledon’tfeelcomfortablevisualizingsuccessandare

even scared to succeed. Some people may experience resistance inthis area. Somemay even feel guilty that theywill leave the other95%behindwhentheybecomesuccessful.

This famous quote from Marianne Williamson’s bestsellingbook,AReturnToLove, mayresonatewithanyonewhofeelsmentalor emotional obstacleswhen attempting to visualize: “Our deepestfear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we arepowerfulbeyondmeasure.It isour light,notourdarkness thatmostfrightens us.We askourselves,Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous,talented, fabulous?Actually,whoareyounot tobe?Youareachild

ofGod.Yourplayingsmalldoesnotservetheworld.Thereisnothingenlightenedaboutshrinkingso thatotherpeoplewon’t feel insecurearoundyou.Weareallmeanttoshine,aschildrendo.Wewereborntomakemanifest thegloryofGod that iswithinus. It’snot just insomeofus; it’s ineveryone.Andaswe letourown light shine,weunconsciouslygiveotherpeoplepermissiontodothesame.Asweareliberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberatesothers.”

Thegreatestgiftwecangivetothepeopleweloveistolivetoour full potential.What does that look like for you?What do youreallywant? Forget about logic, limits, and being practical. If youcould haveanything you wanted, do anything you wanted, and beanything youwanted—what would you have?What would you do?Whatwouldyoube?

Visualizeyourmajorgoals, deepestdesires, andmost exciting,would-totally-change-my-life-if-I-achieved-them dreams. See, feel,hear,touch,taste,andsmelleverydetailofyourvision.Involveallofyoursensestomaximizetheeffectivenessofyourvisualization.Themore vivid youmake your vision, themore compelled you’ll be totakethenecessaryactionstomakeitareality.

Now,fastforwardintothefuturetoseeyourselfachievingyourideal outcomes and results. You can either look towards the nearfuture—theendoftheday—orfurtherintothefuture,likeIdidwhilewritingthisbook,whenIvisualizedpeoplereadingit, lovingit,andrecommending it to their friends. The point is you want to seeyourselfaccomplishingwhatyousetouttoaccomplish,andyouwantt oexperience how good it will feel to have followed through andachievedyourgoals.

Step3: VisualizeWhoYouNeedToBeandWhatYouNeedToDo

Once you’ve created a clear mental picture of what you want,begin tovisualizeyourself living in total alignmentwith thepersonyou need to be to achieve your vision. See yourself engaged in thepositive actions you’ll need to do each day (exercising, studying,working,writing,making calls, sending emails, etc.) andmake sureyouseeyourselfenjoyingtheprocess.Seeyourselfsmilingasyou’rerunningon that treadmill, filledwitha senseofpride foryour self-discipline to follow through. Picture the look of determination onyour face as you confidently, persistently make those phone calls,workonthatreport,orfinallytakeactionandmakeprogressonthatproject you’ve been putting off for far too long.Visualize your co-workers, customers, family, friends, and spouse responding to yourpositivedemeanorandoptimisticoutlook.

FinalThoughtsOnVisualizationIn addition to reading your affirmations every morning, doing

this simple visualization process every day will turbo-charge theprogrammingofyoursubconsciousmindforsuccess.Youwillbegintoliveinalignmentwithyouridealvisionandmakeitareality.

Visualizingyourgoalsanddreams isbelievedbysomeexpertsto attract yourvisions intoyour life.Whetherornotyoubelieve inthelawofattraction,therearepracticalapplicationsforvisualization.Whenyouvisualizewhatyouwant,youstirupemotionsthatliftyourspirits and pull you towards your vision. Themore vividly you seewhat you want, and the more intensely you allow yourself toexperiencenowthefeelingsyouwillfeelonceyou’veachievedyourgoal,themoreyoumakethepossibilityofachievingitfeelreal.

Whenyouvisualizedaily,youalignyour thoughtsandfeelingswithyourvision.Thismakesiteasiertomaintainthemotivationyouneedtocontinuetakingthenecessaryactions.Visualizationcanbeapowerful aid to overcoming self-limiting habits such asprocrastination, and to taking the actions necessary to achieve yourgoals.

I recommend starting with just five minutes of visualization.However, in the next chapterThe 6-minute Miracle Morning I’mgoing to teach you how you can gain the powerful benefits ofvisualizinginjustoneminuteperday.

[TMMBonus]CreateYourVisionBoardVision Boards weremade popular by the bestselling book and

filmTheSecret.AVisionBoard is simply a poster board onwhichyoupostimagesofwhatyouwanttohave,whoyouwanttobecome,whatyouwanttodo,whereyouwanttolive,etc.

Creating a Vision Board is a fun activity you can do on your

own,withafriend,yoursignificantother,orevenyourkids.Itgivesyou something tangible to focus on during your Visualization. Ifyou’dlikedetailedinstructionsonthisprocess,ChristineKanehasanexcellent blog onHow To Make A Vision Board as well as a freeeBook titledThe Complete Guide To Vision Boards . Both areavailableonherwebsiteatwww.ChristineKane.com.

Keep in mind that, although creating a Vision Board is fun,nothingchangesinyourlifewithoutaction.IhavetoagreewithNeilFarber, M.D., Ph.D., who stated in his article onpsychologytoday.com,“Visionboardsarefordreaming,actionboardsareforachieving.”Whilelookingatyourvisionboardeverydaymayincrease your motivation and help you stay focused on your goals,know that only taking the necessary actions will get you real-timeresults.

LifeS.A.V.E.R.S./p>

EisforExercise

Ifyoudon’tmaketimeforexercise,you’llprobablyhavetomaketimeforillness.

—ROBINSHARMA

Theonlyexercisemostpeoplegetisjumpingtoconclusions,runningdowntheirfriends,sidestepping

responsibility,andpushingtheirluck.—UNKNOWN

Morningexerciseshouldbeastapleinyourdailyrituals.Whenyou exercise for even a fewminutes everymorning it significantlyboosts your energy, enhances your health, improves self-confidenceand emotional well-being, and enables you to think better andconcentrate longer. Too busy for exercise? In the next chapter, I’llshow you how to fit in a workout every day—in as little as60seconds.

Irecentlysawaneye-openingvideowithpersonaldevelopmentexpert and self-made multi-millionaire entrepreneur, Eben Pagan,whowas being interviewed by bestselling authorAnthonyRobbins.Tonyasked,“Eben,whatisyour#1keytosuccess?”Ofcourse,IwasveryencouragedwhenEben’sresponsewas,“Starteverymorningoffwith apersonal success ritual. That is the most important key tosuccess.” Thenhewenton to talkabout the importanceofmorningexercise.

Ebensaid,“Everymorning,you’vegottogetyourheartrateup

and get your blood flowing and fill your lungs with oxygen.” Hecontinued,“Don’tjustexerciseattheendofthedayoratthemiddleoftheday.Andevenifyoudoliketoexerciseatthosetimes,alwaysincorporateatleast10to20minutesofjumpingjacksorsomesortofaerobicexerciseinthemorning.”

Thebenefitsofmorningexerciseare toomany to ignore.Fromwaking you up and enhancing your mental clarity, to helping yousustain higher levels of energy throughout the day, exercising soonafterrisingcanimproveyourlifeinmanyways.

Whether you go to the gym, go for awalk or run, throw on aP90XTM orInsanityTM DVD, what you do during your period ofexerciseisuptoyou,althoughI’llsharesomerecommendations.

Personally, if I were only allowed to practice one form ofexercisefortherestofmylife,Iwould,withoutadoubtchooseyoga.IbeganpracticingyogashortlyafterIcreatedTheMiracleMorning,and have been doing it—and loving it—ever since. It’s such acomplete form of exercise, as it combinesstretching withstrengthtraining withcardio withfocusedbreathing,andcanevenbeaformofmeditation.

MeettheOneandOnly…DashamaI can’t talk about yoga (or exercise for that matter) without

talking about my friend Dashama. A few years ago, one of herstudentsintroducedmetoherworkasoneoftheworld’sleadingyogainstructors. Dashama is the most authentic, spiritual, practical, andall-around most effective yoga teacher I have ever come across. Iaskedhertoshareheruniqueperspectiveonthebenefitsofyoga(andIhighlyrecommendgettingher freeYoga trainingvideos,availablethroughwww.TMMbook.com.)

From Dashama:Yoga isamulti-facetedscience thathasapplicationsfor the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual aspects of life.That being

said,whenHal askedme to contribute a short introductory to yoga, for thisbook,IfeltitwasinperfectalignmentwithTheMiracleMorning.Iknowfrompersonalexperience thatyogacanhelpyoucreatemiracles inyour life. I’veexperiencedit inmineandalsowitnessedit incountlessotherswhomIhavetaughtaroundtheworld.

The important thing to remember is that yoga can take place inmanyforms.Whetheritissittinginsilentmeditation,breathingtoexpandyourlungcapacityorbackbendingtoopenyourheart-therearepracticesthatcanhelpevery aspect of your life.The key is to learn which techniques to practicewhenyouneedaremedyanduse it toyouradvantage tobringyourself intobalance.

Awell-roundedyogapracticecanenhanceyourlifeinsomanyways.Itcan heal what is out of harmony and can move stuck or blocked energythrough your body, creating space for new fluidmovement, blood flow andenergytocirculate.Iencourageyoutolistentoyourbodyandtrysomenewsequencesasyoufeelready.Tolearnmoreandseeinstructionalyogavideos,feelfreetovisitmywebsiteatpranashama.com.

BlessingsandLove,Dashama

FinalThoughtsOnExerciseYouknowthatifyouwanttomaintaingoodhealthandincrease

your energy, you must exercise consistently. That’s not news toanybody. But it’s too easy to make excuses as to why we don’texercise.Twoofthebiggestare“Ijustdon’thavetime”and“I’mjusttootired.”Thereisnolimittotheexcusesthatyoucanthinkof.Themorecreativeyouarethemoreexcusesyoucancomeupwith,right?

That’s the beauty of incorporating exercise into yourMiracleMorning;ithappensbeforeyourdaywearsyouout,beforeyouhaveachancetogettootired,beforeyouhaveanentiredaytocomeupwithnew excuses for avoiding exercise.TheMiracleMorning is really asurefire way to avoid all of those excuses, and to make exercise adailyhabit.(Moreontheeasywaytoimplementpositivehabitsintoyour life, like exercise, inChapter 9: From Unbearable ToUnstoppable – The Real Secret To Forming Habits That WillTransformYourLife(In30Days) whichwillenhanceyourqualityoflifeforyearstocome.)

Legal disclaimer:Hopefully thisgoeswithoutsaying,butyoushouldconsultyourdoctororphysicianbeforebeginninganyexerciseregimen, especially if you are experiencing any physical pain,discomfort,disabilities,etc.Youmayneedtomodifyorevenrefrainfromyourexerciseroutinetomeetyourindividualneeds.

LifeS.A.V.E.R.S.

RisforReading

Apersonwhowon’treadhasnoadvantageoveronewhocan’tread.

—MARKTWAIN

Readingistothemindwhatexerciseistothebodyandprayeristothesoul.Webecomethebooksweread.

—MATTHEWKELLY

Reading, the fifth practice in theLife S.A.V.E.R.S. , is the fasttrack to transforming any area of your life. It is one of the mostimmediatemethodsforacquiringtheknowledge,ideas,andstrategiesyouneedtoachieveLevel10successinanyareaofyourlife.

The key is to learn from the experts—thosewho have alreadydonewhatyouwanttodo.Don’treinventthewheel.Thefastestwayto achieve everything you want is tomodel successful people whohave already achieved it.With an almost infinite amount of booksavailableoneverytopic,therearenolimitstotheknowledgeyoucangainthroughdailyreading.

Irecentlyheardsomeonesayinamocking,I’mtoocoolforthistone,“Uh,yeah,Idon’tread‘self-help’books,”asifsuchbookswerebeneath him. Poor guy. I’m not sure if it’s his ego or just lack ofawareness, but he’s missing out on the unlimited supply ofknowledge, boundless growth and life changing ideas he could gainfromsomeof themostbrilliant,successful individuals in theworld.Whointheirrightmindwouldchoosenottodothat?

Whatever youwant for your life, there are countless books onhow to get it. Want to become wealthy, rich, a multi-millionaire?There are plenty of books written by those who have achieved thepinnaclesof financial successwhichwill teachyouhow.Hereareafewofmyfavorites:

§ThinkandGrowRichbyNapoleonHill§SecretsoftheMillionaireMindbyT.HarvEker§TotalMoneyMakeoverbyDaveRamsey

Want to create an incredible, loving, supportive and romanticrelationship? There are probablymore books on how to do exactlythatthanyoucouldreadinadecade.Hereareafewofmyfavorites:

§TheFiveLoveLanguagesbyGaryD.Chapman§TheSoulMateExperiencebyJoDunn§ The Seven Principles ForMaking aMarriageWork byJohnM.GottmanandNanSilver

Whether you’d like to transform your relationships, increaseyour self-confidence, improve your communication or persuasionskills,learnhowtobecomewealthy,orimproveanyareaofyourlife,head to your local bookstore—or do what I do and head toAmazon.com—andyou’llfindaplethoraofbooksonanyareaofyourlifeyouwanttoimprove.Forthosewhowanttominimizeourcarbonfootprintorsavemoney,Ialsorecommendutilizingyourlocallibraryor checking out one of my favorite websites,www.paperbackswap.com.

Foracompletelistofmyfavoritepersonaldevelopmentbooks—includingthosethathavemadethebiggestimpactonmysuccessandhappiness—check out theRecommended Reading list located atwww.TMMbook.com.

HowMuchShouldYouRead?I recommendmaking a commitment to read aminimumof 10

pagesperday(althoughfiveisokaytostartwith,ifyoureadslowlyordon’tyetenjoyreading).Let’sdosomemathonthisforasecond:reading10pages readperday isnotgoing tobreakyou,but itwillmake you. We’re only talking 10-15 minutes of reading, or 15-30minutesifyoureadmoreslowly.

Lookatitthisway.Ifyouquantifythat,readingjust10pagesadaywillaverage3,650pagesayear,whichequatestoapproximatelyeighteen 200-page personal development/self-improvement books!Letme ask you, if you read 18 personal development books in thenext 12 months, do you think you will be more knowledgeable,capableandconfident—anew&improvedyou?Absolutely!

FinalThoughtsOnReading§Beginwiththeendinmind.Beforeyoubeginreadingeachday,ask

yourselfwhyyouarereadingthatbook—whatdoyouwanttogainfromit—andkeepthatoutcomeinmind.Takeamomenttodothisnowby asking yourselfwhat youwant to gain from reading thisbook.Are you committed to finishing it?More importantly, areyou committed to implementingwhat you’re learning and takingaction, by following through with TheMiracleMorning 30-DayLifeTransformationChallengeattheend?

§ManyMiracleMorningpractitionersusetheirReadingtimetocatchupontheirreligioustexts,suchastheBible,Torah,oranyother.

§HopefullyyoutooktheadviceIgaveandyou’vebeenunderlining,circling, highlighting, folding the corners of pages, and takingnotesinthemarginsofthisbook.TogetthemostoutofanybookIread andmake it easy forme to revisit the content again in thefuture, I underline or circle anything that Imaywant to re-visit,

andmakenotesinthemarginstoremindmewhyIunderlinedthatparticular section. (Unless, of course, it’s a library book). Thisprocess of marking books as I read allows me to come back atanytime and recapture all of the key lessons, ideas, and benefitswithoutneedingtoreadthebookagain,covertocover.

§ Ihighlyrecommendre-readinggoodpersonaldevelopmentbooks.Rarely canwe read a book once and internalize all of the valuefromthatbook.Achievingmasteryinanyarearequiresrepetition—beingexposedtocertainideas,strategies,ortechniquesoverandover again, until they become engrained in your subconsciousmind.Forexample, ifyouwanted tomasterkarate,youwouldn’tlearn the techniques once and then think, “I got this.”No, you’dlearn the techniques, practice them, then go back to your senseiandlearnthemagain,andrepeattheprocesshundredsoftimesinorder to master a single technique. Mastering techniques toimproveyourlifeworksthesameway.Thereismorevalueinre-readingabookyoualreadyknowhas strategies thatcan improveyour life than there is in reading a new book before you’vemasteredthestrategiesinthefirst.WheneverI’mreadingabookthat I see can really make an impact on an area of my life, Icommittore-readingthatbook(oratleastre-readingthepartsI’veunderlined,circledandhighlighted)assoonasI’mfinishedgoingthrough it the first time. I actually keep a special space on mybookshelfforthebooksthatIwanttore-read.I’vereadbookslikeThinkandGrowRichasmanyasthreetimes,andoftenreferbackto them throughout the year. Re-reading requires discipline,becauseitistypicallymore“fun”toreadabookyou’veneverreadbefore.Repetitioncanbeboringor tedious (which iswhyso fewpeopleever“master”anything),but that’sevenmore reasonwhyweshoulddoit—todevelopahigherlevelofself-discipline.Whynottryitoutwiththisbook?Committore-readingitassoonasyou’re finished, to deepen your learning and give yourself more

timetomasterTheMiracleMorning.

LifeS.A.V.E.R.S.SisforScribing

Whateveritisthatyouwrite,puttingwordsonthepageisaformoftherapythatdoesn’tcostadime.

—DIANARAAB

Ideascancomefromanywhereandatanytime.Theproblemwithmakingmentalnotesisthattheink

fadesveryrapidly.—ROLFSMITH

Scribing is the final practice in theLife S.A.V.E.R.S. and isreally just another word forwriting, but please allowme to keep itreal—Ineededan‘S’ for theendofLifeS.A.V.E.R.S. becausea ‘W’wouldn’tfitanywhere.ThanksThesaurusTM,Ioweyouone.

JournalingMyfavoriteformofScribingisjournaling,whichIdofor5-10

minutesduringmyMiracleMorning.Bygettingyourthoughtsoutofyour head and putting them in writing, you gain valuable insightsyou’d otherwise never see. The Scribing element of yourMiracleMorningenablesyoutodocumentyourinsights,ideas,breakthroughs,realizations, successes, and lessons learned, aswell as any areas ofopportunity,personalgrowth,orimprovement.

WhileIhadknownabouttheprofoundbenefitsofjournalingforyears—and I had even tried it a few times—I never stuck with itconsistently,becauseitwasneverpartofmydailyroutine.Usually,I

kepta journalbymybed,andwhenI’dgethomelateatnight,ninetimesoutoftenIwouldfindmyselfmakingtheexcusethatIwastootired towrite in it.My journals stayedmostlyblank.Even though Ialready had many mostly blank journals sitting on my bookshelf,every so often I would buy myself a brand new journal—a moreexpensiveone—convincingmyselfthatifIspentalotofmoneyonit,I would surely write in it. Seems like a decent theory, right?Unfortunately,my little strategy neverworked, and for years I justaccumulated more and more increasingly expensive, yet equallyemptyjournals.

That was beforeThe Miracle Morning. From day one,TheMiracle Morninggave me the time and structure to write in myjournaleveryday,anditquicklybecameoneofmyfavoritehabits.Ican tell you now that journaling has become one of the mostgratifyingandfulfillingpracticesofmylife.NotonlydoIderivethedailybenefitsofconsciouslydirectingmythoughtsandputtingthemin writing, but even more powerful are those I have gained fromreviewingmy journals, fromcover tocover,afterwards—especially,at the end of the year. It is hard to put into words howoverwhelmingly constructive the experience of going back andreviewingyourjournalscanbe,butI’lldomybest.

MyFirstJournalRe-viewOn December 31st, after my first year doingThe Miracle

Morning andwriting inmy journal, Ibegan reading the firstpage Ihadwritten thatyear.Daybyday, I started to reviewandrelivemyentireyear.Iwasabletorevisitmymindsetfromeachday,andgainanewperspectiveas tohowmuch Ihadgrown throughout theyear. Ireexamined my actions, activities, and progress, giving me a newappreciation for how much I had accomplished during the past 12months. Most importantly, I recaptured the lessons I had learned,

manyofwhichIhadforgottenoverthecourseoftheyear.Gratitude 2.0– I also experienced a much deeper quality of

gratitude—in a way that I had never experienced before—on twodifferentlevels,simultaneously.ItwaswhatInowrefertoasmyfirstBack to theFuturemoment.Try to followmehere (andfeel free topicturemeasMartyMcFly steppingoutofa1985DeLorean).As Iread throughmy journal,mycurrent self (whichwasalso thefutureselfofwhoIwasat thetimeIwrotethosejournalentries)wasnowlooking back at all of the people, experiences, lessons, andaccomplishmentsthatItooknoteofbeinggratefulforthroughouttheyear.AsIwasinthatmomentrelivingthegratitudethatIfeltinthepast,Iwassimultaneouslyfeelinggratefulinthepresentmomentforhow far I had come since that time inmy life. Itwas a remarkableexperience,andabitsurreal.

Accelerated Growth– Then, I began to tap into the highestpointofvalueIwouldgainfromreviewingmyjournals.Ipulledoutasheet of blank paper, drew a line down the middle, and wrote twoheadings at the top:Lessons Learned andNewCommitments.As Iread through my hundreds of my journal entries, I found myselfrecapturingdozensofvaluablelessons.

This process of recapturingLessons Learned and makingNewCommitments to implement those lessons aidedmypersonal growthanddevelopmentmorethanalmostanythingelse.

While there are many worthwhile benefits of keeping a dailyjournal,afewofwhichI’vejustdescribed,hereareafewmoreofmyfavorites:

§ GainClarity –The process ofwriting something downforces us to think through it enough to understand it.Journaling will give you more clarity, allow you tobrainstorm,andhelpyouworkthroughproblems.

§ Capture Ideas – Journaling helps you not only expandyourideas,butalsopreventsyoufromlosingtheimportantideasthatyoumaywanttoactoninthefuture.§ Review Lessons – It enables you to review all of thelessonsyou’velearned.§AcknowledgeYourProgress –It’swonderfultogobackand re-read your journal entries from a year ago and seehow much progress you’ve made. It’s one of the mostempowering, confidence-inspiring and enjoyableexperiences.Itcan’treallybeduplicatedanyotherway.

Gap-Focus:IsItHurtingorHelpingYou?In theopeningpagesof this chapter,we talkedaboutusing the

Life S.A.V.E.R.S. to close your “Potential Gap.” Human beings areconditioned to havewhat I callGap-focus.We tend to focuson thegapsbetweenwhereweareinlifeandwherewewanttobe,betweenwhat we’ve accomplished and what we could have or want toaccomplish,andthegapbetweenwhoweareandouridealisticvisionofthepersonwebelieveweshouldbe.

The problem with this is that constant Gap-focus can bedetrimentaltoourconfidenceandself-image,causingustofeellikewedon’thaveenough,haven’taccomplishedenough,andthatwe’resimplynotgoodenough,oratleast,notasgoodasweshouldbe.

High achievers are typically the worst at this, constantlyoverlooking or minimizing their accomplishments, beatingthemselvesupovereverymistakeandimperfection,andneverfeelinglikeanythingtheydoisquitegoodenough.

The ironyis thatgap-focus isabigpartof thereasonthathighachieversarehighachievers.Theirinsatiabledesiretoclosethegapiswhatfuelstheirpursuitofexcellenceandconstantlydrivesthemto

achieve.Gap-focuscanbehealthyandproductiveifitcomesfromapositive,proactive,“I’mcommittedtoandexcitedaboutfulfillingmypotential”perspective,withoutanyfeelingsoflack.Unfortunately,itrarelydoes.Theaverageperson,eventheaveragehighachiever,tendstofocusnegativelyontheirgaps.

Thehighest achievers—thosewhoarebalanced and focusedonachievingLevel 10 success in nearly every area of their lives—areexceedingly grateful for what they have, regularly acknowledgethemselves forwhat they’ve accomplished, and are always at peacewithwheretheyareintheirlives.It’stheduelingideathatIamdoingthebestthatIcaninthismoment,andatthesametime,Icanandwilldobetter.Thisbalancedself-assessmentpreventsthatfeelingoflack—of not being, having, doing enough—while still allowing them toconstantlystrivetoclosetheirpotentialgapineacharea.

Typically,whenaday,week,month,oryearends,andwe’reinGap-focus mode, it’s almost impossible to maintain an accurateassessmentofourselvesandourprogress.Forexample,ifyouhad10things on your to-do list for the day—even if you completed six ofthem—yourGap-focus causes you to feel you didn’t get everythingdonethatyouwantedtodo.

Themajorityofpeopledodozens,evenhundreds,ofthingsrightduring the day, and a few thingswrong.Guesswhich things peoplerememberandreplayintheirmindsoverandoveragain?Doesn’titmakemoresensetofocusonthe100thingsyoudidright?Itsureismoreenjoyable.

Whatdoesthishavetodowithwritinginajournal?Writinginajournaleachday,withastructured,strategicprocess(moreonthatinaminute)allowsyoutodirectyourfocustowhatyoudidaccomplish,whatyou’regratefulfor,andwhatyou’recommitted todoingbettertomorrow.Thus,youmoredeeplyenjoyyour journeyeachday, feelgood about any forward progress you made, and use a heightened

levelofclaritytoaccelerateyourresults.

EffectiveJournalingHereare3simplestepstogetstartedwithjournaling,orimprove

yourcurrentjournalingprocess.1.ChooseaFormat—DigitalorTraditional.You’llwantto decide up front if you want to go with a traditional,physical lined journal or go digital, such as an onlinejournal,journalingsoftware,orjournalingapp,suchasTheMiracle Morning app for the iPhone, iPad, and Android(whichhas thebuilt-inMiracleMorningJournal.) Havingused both traditional and digital, there are advantages anddisadvantages to both formats (which I’ll address in aminute), but it really comes down to your personalpreference—doyouprefer towrite by hand, orwould yourathertypeyourdailyjournalentries.Thatshouldmakeitarelativelysimpledecisionastowhichformattouse.2. Get a Journal.When it comes to atraditional journal,whilejustaboutanythingcanwork(youcanevenusea99centspiralnotebook),sinceyou’reprobablygoingtohaveitfortherestofyourlifethereissomethingtobesaidaboutgettinganice,durablejournalthatyouenjoylookingat.Getajournalthatisnotonlylined,butalsodated,withroomtowriteforall365daysoftheyear.I’vefoundthathavingapre-designated(dated)spacetowritekeepsmeaccountableto follow through each day, since I can’t help but noticewhen I miss a day or two, because they’re blank. Thisusuallymotivatesmetogobackandmentallyreviewthosemisseddaysandcatchupmyjournalentries.It’salsonicetohavedatedjournalsforeveryyear,soyoucaneasilygobackandreviewanytimeinyourlife,andexperiencethose

benefits I previously described inMy First Journal Re-view. One of my favorite lined, dated journals isTheWinners Journal(www.TheWinnersJournal.com), which Iusedfrom2007-2009,andwasverypleasedwiththeresults.In fact, it’s what inspired me to design and createTheMiracle Morning Journal (which is available onAmazon.com).YoucanevendownloadafreesampleofTheMiracleMorning Journal at the website listed after thesethreesteps.

Whenitcomestoadigitaljournal(whichIusedbeforeI created theTMM Journal), there are also manychoicesavailable.IenjoyedusingtheDayOne iPhoneapplastyear,andtheonlinejournalatwww.penzu.comis very popular.Again, it really comes down to yourpreference and which features you want. Just type“online journal” intoGoogleor“journal” into theappstore, and you’ll get a variety of choices. As Imentioned, I alsohadadated, linedMiracleMorningJournal iPhone/iPad/Android app customized andcreated.

3. Decide What To Write.There are infinite aspects ofyourlifethatyoucanjournalabout,andcountlesstypesofjournals.Gratitude journals,dream journals, food journals,workout journals, etc. You can write about your goals,dreams, plans, family, commitments, lessons learned, andanythingelsethatyoufeelyouneedtofocusoninyourlife.My journalingmethod ranges from being a very specific,structured process—listing what I’m grateful for,acknowledgingmyaccomplishments,clarifyingwhatareasIwanttoimproveon,andplanningwhichspecificactionsI’mcommittedtotakingtoimprove—tobeingprettytraditional,justadatedentrywithasynopsisofmyday.Ifindbothto

beveryvaluable,andit’snicetomixitup.To get a free sample ofThe Miracle Morning Journal, go to

www.TMMbook.com.

[TMMBonus]DoYouWantToWriteaBook?According to a survey done byUSA today, 82%ofAmericans

want to write a book, but the #1 obstacle preventing them? Youguessedit—theycan’tfindthetime.Ifyouhaveeverwantedtowriteabook,youcanusetheMiracleMorningtodojustthat.Infact,rightnowIamwritingthisat6:03a.m.,duringmyMiracleMorning.

I believe that everyone has a book inside of them containingtheir own unique value to offer to the world. In fact, I’ve recentlystarted coachingmy private clients on how to start (or finish) theirfirst(ornext)book,andhowtobecomeabestsellingauthor.Ifyou’dlike help starting, completing, ormarketing your book, feel free tosendmeanemailwithtohelpmewithmybook@miraclemorning.com,andincludeabriefdescriptionofwhatyou’dlikemyhelpwith.

I’m always excited to hear your story and what you arepassionatetowrite—Imean,scribe—about.

CustomizingTheLifeS.A.V.E.R.S.I nChapter 8: Customizing TheMiracleMorning To Fit Your

Lifestyle,you’lllearnhowyoucanpersonalizeandcustomizenearlyeveryaspectofyourMiracleMorningtofityourlifestyle.Fornow,Iwant to share a few ideas specifically towards customizing theLifeS.A.V.E.R.S. based on your schedule and preferences. Your currentmorning routine might only allow you to fit in a 20 or 30-minuteMiracleMorning,oryoumightchoosetodoalongerversionontheweekends.

Here is an example of a fairly common, 60-minuteMiracle

Morningschedule,usingtheLifeS.A.V.E.R.S.

The sequence inwhichyoudo theLifeS.A.V.E.R.S. canalsobecustomized to your preferences. Some people prefer to do theirExercise first, as a way to increase their blood flow and wakethemselvesup.However,youmightprefertodoExerciseasyourlastactivity in the Life S.A.V.E.R.S. so you’re not sweaty during yourMiracle Morning. Personally, I prefer to start with a period ofpeaceful,purposefulSilence—sothatIcanwakeupslowly,clearmymind,andfocusmyenergyandintentions.IsaveExerciseformylastactivity, that way I can jump directly into the shower and proceedwiththerestofmyday.However,thisisyourMiracleMorning—notmine—so feel free to experiment with different sequences and seewhichyoulikebest.

FinalThoughtsOnTheLifeS.A.V.E.R.S.Everythingisdifficultbeforeit’seasy.Everynewexperienceis

uncomfortablebeforeit’scomfortable.ThemoreyoupracticetheLifeS.A.V.E.R.S. the more natural and normal each of them will feel.Remember thatmyfirst timemeditatingwasalmostmy last,asmymind raced like a Ferrari and my thoughts bounced arounduncontrollablylikethesilversphereinapinballmachine.Now,Ilove

meditation, and while I’m nomaster, I’d say I’m decent at it.Similarly,myfirst timedoingyoga, I felt likeafishoutofwater. Iwasn’tflexible,couldn’tdotheposescorrectly,andfeltawkwardanduncomfortable.Now,yogaismyfavoriteformofexercise,andIamsogratefulthatIstuckwithit.

IinviteyoutobeginpracticingtheLifeS.A.V.E.R.S.now,soyoucan become familiar and comfortablewith each of them, and get ajump-start before you beginThe Miracle Morning 30-Day LifeTransformationChallenge inChapter 10. If your biggest concern isstillfinding time, don’t worry, I’ve got you covered. In the nextchapter,you’regoingtolearnhowtodotheentireMiracleMorning—receivingthefullbenefitsfromallsixoftheLifeS.A.V.E.R.S.—inonly6minutesaday.

—7—

The6-MinuteMiracle(ForTheBusyPeople)Ontheonehand,weallwanttobehappy.Ontheotherhand,

weallknowthethingsthatmakeushappy.Butwedon’tdothosethings.Why?Simple.Wearetoobusy.Toobusydoingwhat?Toobusytryingtobehappy.

—MATTHEWKELLY

Idon’thavetimetowakeupearly.—UNKNOWN

Oh,you’rebusy?Weird.Ithoughtitwasjustme.

Probably themost common question—or concern—I get aboutTheMiracleMorning is regardinghow long it needs to be.When Ifirsthadthebreakthroughrealizationabouthowourlevelsofsuccess(andfulfillingourpotential)ineveryareaoflifearebeinglimitedbyour insufficient (ornon-existent) levelofpersonaldevelopment,mybiggestchallengewasfindingtimetoactonthisrealization.

As I’ve developed and sharedThe Miracle Morning over theyears, I’ve been very aware of the need tomake it scalable so thateventhebusiestamonguscanmaketimeforourMiracleMorning.IdevelopedThe6-minuteMiracleMorningforthosedayswhenyou’reextrabusyandpressedfortime,aswellasforthoseofyouwhoaresooverwhelmed with your life situation right now that just thinkingaboutaddingonemorethingstressesyouout.

Ithinkwecanallagreethatinvestingaminimumofsixminutesintobecomingthepersonweneedtobetocreatethelevelsofsuccessandhappinesswetrulywantinourlivesisnotonlyreasonable,it’sanabsolutemust,evenwhenwe’repressedfortime.Ithinkyouwillbe

pleasantlysurprised in thenext fewminutesasyoureadandrealizehowpowerful(andlife-changing)thesesixminutescanbe!

Imagine if the first six minutes of every morning began likethis…

MinuteOne…Envision yourselfwaking up peacefully in themorning,with a

big yawn, a stretch, and a smile on your face. Instead of rushingcarelessly into your hectic day—stressed and overwhelmed—youspend the firstminutesittingquietly, inpurposefulSilence.Yousit,verycalm,verypeaceful,andbreathedeeply,slowly.Maybeyousayaprayerofgratitudetoappreciatethemoment,orprayforguidanceon your journey. Maybe you decide to try your first minute ofmeditation.Asyousitinsilence,you’retotallypresentinthenow,inthemoment.Youcalmyourmind,relaxyourbody,andallowallofyour stress to melt away. You develop a deeper sense of peace,purpose,anddirection…

MinuteTwo…YoupulloutyourdailyAffirmations—theonesthatremindyou

ofyourunlimitedpotentialandyourmost importantpriorities—andyoureadthemout loudfromtoptobottom.Asyoufocusonwhat’smost important to you, your level of internal motivation increases.Readingovertheremindersofhowcapableyoureallyaregivesyouafeelingofconfidence.Lookingoverwhatyou’recommittedto,whatyourpurposeis,andwhatyourgoalsarere-energizesyoutotaketheactions necessary tolive the life you truly want, deserve, and nowknowispossibleforyou…

MinuteThree…Youcloseyoureyes,oryoulookatyourvisionboard,andyou

visualize.YourVisualizationcouldincludewhatitwilllookandfeellike when you reach your goals. You visualize the day goingperfectly,seeyourselfenjoyingyourwork,smilingandlaughingwithyour family or your significant other, and easily accomplishing allthatyouintendtoaccomplishforthatday.Youseewhatitwilllooklike,youfeelwhatitwillfeellike,andyouexperiencethejoyofwhatyouwillcreate…

MinuteFour…You take one minute to write down some of the things that

you’re grateful for, what you’re proud of, and the results you’recommitted to creating for that day. In doing so, you create foryourselfanempowered,inspired,andconfidentstateofmind…

MinuteFive…Then, you grab your self-help book and invest onemiraculous

minute readingapageor two.You learnanewidea,somethingyoucanincorporateintoyourdaywhichwillimproveyourresultsatworkorinyourrelationships.Youdiscoversomethingnewthatyoucanusetothinkandfeelbetter—tolivebetter…

MinuteSix…Finally, you stand up and spend the last minute moving your

bodyfor60seconds.Maybeyouruninplace,maybeyoudoaminuteofjumping-jacks.Maybeyoudopush-upsorsit-ups.Thepointisthatyou’re getting your heart rate up, generating energy and increasingyourabilitytobealertandfocused.

Howwouldyoufeelifthat’showyouutilizedthefirst6-minutesof each day? How would the quality of your day—your life—improve?

I don’t suggest you limit yourMiracle Morning to only sixminuteseveryday,butasIsaid,on thosedayswhenyou’repressedfortime,The6-minuteMiracleMorningprovidesapowerfulstrategyforacceleratingyourpersonaldevelopment.

—8—

CustomizingYourMiracleMorningToFitYourLifestyleandAchieveYourHighestGoals

&Dreams“TheMiracleMorningisamazing.Ithasprovidednewlevelsofclarity,focus,andenergytomylife.What’sgreatisthatitcanbeadifferentroutineforeachperson,dependingonyourgoalsandschedule.Forme,asabusinessownerandmotherofaoneyearold,ithasbeenatimetoreflect,pray,focusonmygoalsanddreams,exercise,andde-stress.Italsogivesmevaluabletimetobethankfulforthepeople,events,andblessingsinmylife.Weallhavethesame168hoursinaweek;sostartusingTheMiracleMorningandyou’llfindmiraclesinyourlifethatyouneverknewexisted!”—KatieHeaney,owner,HedgehogGroup(SaintLouis,MO)

Up until this point, we’ve primarily been focused on theLifeS.A.V.E.R.S.model to accelerate your personal development duringyour Miracle Morning. However,The Miracle Morning is 100%customizable. Everything from your wake-up time to the totaldurationofyourMiracleMorningtowhichactivitiesyoudo,aswellas theduration andorderof each activity—there is no limit tohowyourMiracleMorning can be personalized to fit your lifestyle andhelpyouachieveyourmostsignificantgoals,fasterthaneverbefore.

HereI’llcoveralloftheabove,aswellaswhen(andwhat)toeatin themorning, how to alignTheMiracleMorningwithyourmajorgoalsanddreams,what todoon theweekends,a tiponovercomingprocrastination,andmuchmore.

WakeUpandStartTimeThismaysoundcompletelycounterintuitive,butstickwithme.

Youdon’tactuallyhavetodoTheMiracleMorninginthemorning.Huh?Of course there are undeniable advantages to early rising and

gettingaproactivestarttoyourday.However,forsome,theiruniquescheduleand lifestyle simplymaynotallow it.Obviously, someonewhoworksthegraveyardshift,orevenlate-nights,isgoingtohaveadifferentwakeuptimethansomeonewhoisinbedby9:00p.m.everyevening.Considering that different people have different schedules,theessenceofTheMiracleMorningremainsthatyousimplywakeupearlierthanyounormallywould(typicallyby30-60minutes),sothatyou can dedicate time every day to improving yourself, so you cantransformyourlife.

When,Why,andWhatToEat(IntheMorning)Upuntilthispoint,youmayhavebeenwonderingwhentheheck

do I get to eat during my Miracle Morning?! I’ll cover that here.BesideswhenyoueatduringyourMiracleMorning,whatyouchoosetoeat isevenmorecritical,andwhyyouchoosetoeatwhatyoueatmaybemostimportantofall.

WhenToEat–Keep inmind thatdigestingfood isoneof themostenergy-drainingprocessesthebodygoesthrougheachday.Thebiggerthemeal,themorefoodyougiveyourbodytodigest,themoredrained youwill feel.With that inmind, I recommend eatingafteryourMiracleMorning.Thisensures that, foroptimumalertnessandfocusduringtheLifeS.A.V.E.R.S. ,yourbloodwillbeflowingtoyourbrainratherthantoyourstomachtodigestyourfood.

If you feel like you must eat something first thing in themorning, make sure that it’s a small, light, easily digestible meal,suchasfreshfruitorasmoothie(moreonthatinaminute).

WhyToEat–Let’s takeamoment todiscusswhyyoueat the

foods that you do. When you’re shopping at the grocery store, orselectingfoodfromamenuatarestaurant,whatcriteriadoyouusetodeterminewhichfoodsyouaregoingtoputintoyourbody?Areyourchoicesbasedpurelyontaste?Texture?Convenience?Aretheybasedonhealth?Energy?Dietaryrestrictions?

Mostpeopleeatthefoodstheydobasedmainlyonthetaste,andatadeeperlevel,basedonouremotionalattachmenttothefoodswelikethetasteof.Ifyouweretoasksomeone,“Whydidyoueat thaticecream?Whydidyoudrinkthatsoda?” Or,“Whydidyoubringthat fried chicken home from the grocery store?” You would mostlikely hear responses like,“Mmm,because I love ice cream! I likedrinking soda. I was in the mood for fried chicken.” All answersbased on the emotional enjoyment derived primarily from the waythesefoodstaste.Inthiscase,thispersonisnotlikelytoexplaintheirfood choices with how much value these foods will add to theirhealth,orhowmuchsustainedenergythey’llget.

Mypointisthis:Ifwewanttohavemoreenergy(whichwealldo)andifwewantourlivestobehealthyanddisease-free(whichwealldo)thenit’scrucialthatwereexaminewhyweeatthefoodsthatwedo,and—thisis important—startvaluing thehealthbenefitsandenergyconsequencesofthefoodsweeatasmuchasormorethanthetaste.InnowayamIsayingthatweshouldeatfoodsthatdon’ttastegoodinexchangeforthehealthandenergybenefits.I’msayingthatwecanhaveboth.I’msayingthatifwewanttoliveeverydaywithanabundanceofenergysowecanperformatourbest and livea long,healthylife,wemustchoosetoeatmorefoodsthataregoodforourhealthandgiveussustainedenergy,aswellastastinggreat.

What To Eat–Beforewe talk aboutwhat to eat, let’s take asecondtotalkaboutwhat todrink.Remember thatStep#4of the5-StepSnooze-ProofWakeUpStrategy istodrinkafullglassofwater—first thing in the morning—so you can rehydrate and reenergize

afterafullnightofsleep.Next,ItypicallystartmyMiracleMorningby brewing a cup of high quality tea (my favorite is anything fromwww.TeaGarden.com). I actually set my alarm 15 minutes earliereachday, to givemyself time tomakemy teawithout intrudingonm yMiracle Morning time. If you’re a coffee drinker, feel free tobrewyourfavoritecupofcoffee.

As forwhat to eat, it has beenproven that a diet rich inlivingfoods, such as fresh fruits and vegetableswill greatly increase yourenergy levels, improveyourmental focusandemotionalwellbeing,keep you healthy, and protect you from disease. So, I createdTheMiracleMorning Super-food Smoothie that incorporates everythingyourbodyneedsinonetall,frostyglass!I’mtalkingaboutcompleteprotein (all of the essential amino acids), age defying antioxidants,Omega 3 Essential FattyAcids (to boost immunity, cardiovascularhealth, and brain power), plus a rich spectrum of vitamins andminerals…and that’s just for starters. I haven’t evenmentionedallthesuper-foods,suchas thestimulating,mood-liftingphytonutrientsinCacao(thetropicalbeanfromwhichchocolateismade),thelong-lasting energy of Maca (the Andean adaptogen revered for itshormone-balancing effects), and the immune-boosting nutrients andappetite-suppressingpropertiesofChiaseeds.

The Miracle MorningSuper-food Smoothie not only providesyouwith sustainedenergy, it also tastesgreat.Youmight even findthatitenhancesyourabilitytocreatemiraclesinyoureverydaylife.Youcangettherecipefreeatwww.TMMbook.com.

Remember the old sayingyou arewhat you eat? Take care ofyourbodysoyourbodywill takecareofyou.Youwill feelvibrantenergyandenhancedclarityimmediately!

AligningThe Miracle Morning With Your Goals &Dreams

MostMiracleMorningpractitionersandhighachieversuseTheMiracleMorningtoenhancetheirfocusontheirimmediategoalsandtheirmostsignificantdreams.Thisisespeciallytrueforthosethey’vebeenputtingoff,orhaven’tbeenmakingtimefor—suchasstartingabusiness or writing a book. TheLife S.A.V.E.R.S. are ideal forimprovingyourabilitytostayfocusedonyourgoalsandacceleratingtherateatwhichyoumakeprogresstowardsyourdreams.

Forexample,whenyoucreateyouraffirmations,makesurethatthey are in alignment with your goals and dreams, and that theyclarifywhatyouwillneedtothink,believe,anddotoachievethem,so they reinforce your unwavering commitment to follow through.Readingthemdailywillkeepyoufocusedonyourhighestprioritiesandthestepsyouneedtotaketoachievethem.

When you are doing your morningVisualization, visualizeyourself effortlessly enjoying the process of achieving your goals(likeIdidwhilewritingthisbook)andkeepaclearpictureofwhatitwilllooklikeonceachieved.Remembertoinvolveallofyoursenses—see,feel,taste,touchandevensmelleverydetailofyourvisionandyour ideal outcomes. The more vivid your vision is, the moreeffective itwill be in increasingyour desire andmotivation to takethenecessarystepstowardsyourgoalseachday.

OvercomingProcrastination:DotheWorst,FirstOne of the most effective strategies for overcoming habitual

procrastinationandmaximizingyourproductivityistostartworkingonyourmostimportant—orleastenjoyable—tasks,firstthinginthemorning.

InhisbestsellingbookEatThatFrog,thelegendaryproductivityexpert Brian Tracy shows how getting things done in the morningleadstomentalrewardsthatcantakeustogreatheightsinourlives.Itistheideathatdoingthehardtaskfirst(“frogeating”)andgetting

it out of theway createsmomentum andmakes the rest of the daymoreproductive.

The purpose ofTheMiracleMorning ismore aboutwaking upwith purpose—combining the benefits of early rising and personaldevelopment—andisn’tsomuchconcernedwithwhichactivitiesyoudo, as long as the activities you choose are proactive and help youimproveyourinnerworld(yourself)andyourouterworld(yourlife).

In thisshortchapter I’llgiveyousome ideasandstrategies forhow you can design yourMiracleMorning and adjust it to fit yourlifestylesoitaddsvaluetoyourlifeandhelpsyouachieveyourmostimportant goals. I’ll also include examples of different real-lifeMiracleMornings, designed by individuals—from entrepreneurs tostay-at-homemoms,tohighschoolandcollegestudents—tofittheiruniqueschedules,prioritiesandlifestyles.

TheMiracleMorningOnWeekends“WakingupearlyonSaturdaygivesmeanedgeinfinishingmy

workwith a very relaxed state ofmind. There is a feeling of timepressure on weekdays that aren’t there on weekends. If I wake upearly in themorning, before anybody else, I can plan the day or atleastmyactivitieswithrelaxedmind.”—OprahWinfrey

I couldn’t agree with Oprah more. When I first createdTheMiracleMorningIonlydiditMondaythroughFriday,andItooktheweekendsoff.Itdidn’ttakelongformetorealizethateverydayIdidThe Miracle MorningI felt better, more fulfilled and moreproductive, but every day that I slept in, I woke feeling lethargic,unfocused,andunproductive.

Experiment for yourself.Youmay start, as I did, bydoingTheMiracle Morningduring theweek and try taking theweekends off.Seehowyou feelon thoseSaturdayandSundaymornings, sleeping

in.Ifyoufeel,likemanypeopledo,thateverydayisbetterwhenyoubeginitwithTheMiracleMorning,youmightjustfindthatweekendsareactuallyyourfavoritetimetodoit.

Keeping Your Miracle Morning Fresh, Fun, andExciting!

Overtheyears,myMiracleMorningcontinuestoevolve.WhileIstillpracticetheLifeS.A.V.E.R.S.dailyanddon’tforeseeanyreasonI would ever stop needing the benefits of those six practices, I dothinkit’simportanttomixthingsupandkeepvarietyinyourMiracleMorning.Likearelationship,youalwayswanttokeepalittlefunandexcitementinthemix,sothingsdon’tgetboringorstale.

For example, you might change up your morning exerciseroutine every 90 days, or even monthly. You could try differentmeditations, either through a simple Google search or bydownloading variousMeditation apps on your phone. You couldcreateavisionboardandupdate it regularly.AsImentionedduringthe section on Affirmations: you should always be updating youraffirmationstostimulateyoursensesandtobeinalignmentwithyouralways-evolvingvisionforwhoyoucanandwanttobe.

I also adjust myMiracle Morning on the fly, based on mychanging schedule, circumstances, and projects I’m working on.When I’mpreparing foranupcomingspeechor seminar that I’llbepresenting, I allocate more time during myMiracle Morning topractice and rehearsemy performance.When I’m traveling, to givespeeches for colleges or corporations, and I’m staying in hotels, Iadjust myMiracle Morning accordingly. For example, if I’mscheduledtogivealatenightkeynoteorworkshopataconference,Iwillmovemywakeupandstarttimealittlelater.

Another example of making adjustments based on my currentprojects has been during this past few months, as myMiracle

Morninghasironicallybeenheavilyfocusedoncompletingthisbook.I’vestillmaintainedtheLifeS.A.V.E.R.S.—I’vejustdoneashortenedversion,soIcanfocusmoreofmytimeonwriting.

As you can see, you can always design and customizeTheMiracleMorningtofityourlifestyle.

FinalThoughtsOnCustomizingYourMiracleMorningHumansneedvariety.It’simportantthatyoukeepyourMiracle

Morningfeelingfreshandnew.Asoneofmyfirstmentorsoncetoldme whenever I complained about my work as a sales rep gettingboring,“Whosefault is it that it’sboring?Andwhoseresponsibilityis it to make it fun again?” This is a great lesson that I’ve neverforgotten. Whether it’s our routines or our relationships, it’s ourresponsibility to actively and continuously make them the way wewantthemtobe.

Remember, the moment you accept total responsibility foreverythinginyourlifeisthemomentyouclaimthepowertochangeanythinginyourlife.

—9—

FromUnbearableToUnstoppable:TheRealSecretToFormingHabitsThatWillTransformYourLife(In30Days)

Successfulpeoplearen’tbornthatway.Theybecomesuccessfulbyestablishingthehabitofdoingthingsunsuccessfulpeopledon’tliketodo.

Thesuccessfulpeopledon’talwayslikedoingthesethingsthemselves;theyjustgetonanddothem.

—DONMARQUIS

Motivationiswhatgetsyoustarted.Habitiswhatkeepsyougoing.

—JIMROHN

It’sbeensaidthatourqualityoflifeiscreatedbythequalityofour habits. If a person is living a successful life, then that personsimply has the habits in place that are creating and sustaining theirlevelsofsuccess.Ontheotherhand, ifsomeoneisnotexperiencingthe levels of success they want—no matter what the area—theysimply haven’t committed to putting the necessary habits in placewhichwillcreatetheresultstheywant.

Considering thatourhabitscreateour life, there isarguablynosingleskill that ismore important for you to learn andmaster thancontrollingyourhabits.Youmustidentify, implement,andmaintainthe habits necessary for creating the results you want in your life,whilelearninghowtoletgoofanynegativehabitswhichareholdingyoubackfromachievingyourtruepotential.

Habitsarebehaviorsthatarerepeatedregularlyandtendtooccur

subconsciously.Whetheryourealizeitornot,yourlifehasbeen,andwillcontinuetobe,createdbyyourhabits.Ifyoudon’tcontrolyourhabits,yourhabitswillcontrolyou.

Unfortunately,ifyou’reliketherestofus,youwerenevertaughthow to successfully implement and sustain (aka “master”) positivehabits.There’snoclassofferedinschoolcalledHabitMastery.Thereshouldbe.Suchacoursewouldprobablybemore important toyoursuccess and overall quality of life than all of the other coursescombined.

Because theynever learned tomaster their habits,most peoplefail atvirtuallyeveryattempt tocontrol them, timeand timeagain.TakeNewYear’sResolutions,forexample.

HabitualFailure:NewYear’sResolutions(NYRs)Every year, millions of well-intentioned people make New

Year’s resolutions, but less than fivepercentofus stick to them.ANYRisreallyjustapositivehabit(likeexercisingorearlyrising)youwanttoincorporateintoyourlife,oranegativehabit(likesmokingoreatingfastfood)youwanttogetridof.Youdon’tneedastatistictotellyouthat,whenitcomestoNYRs,mostpeoplehavealreadygivenupandthrowninthetowelbeforeJanuaryhasevencometoaclose.

Maybeyou’veseenthisphenomenoninrealtime.Ifyou’veevergonetothegymthefirstweekofJanuary,youknowhowdifficultitcan be to find a parking spot. It’s packed with vehicles owned bypeoplewith good intentions, and armedwith aNYR to loseweightandgetinshape.However,ifyougobacktothegymclosertotheendofthemonth,you’llnoticethathalfoftheparkinglotisempty.Notarmed with a proven strategy to stick with their new habits, themajoritycontinuetofail.

Why is it so difficult to implement and sustain the habits we

needtobehappy,healthy,andsuccessful?

AddictedToTheOld:ChangeIsPainfulYes, we are, at some level, addicted to our habits. Whether

psychologically or physically, once a habit has been reinforcedthroughenoughrepetition,itcanbeverydifficulttochange.Thatis,ifyoudon’thaveaneffective,provenstrategy.

Oneoftheprimaryreasonsmostpeoplefailtocreateandsustainnewhabitsisbecausetheydon’tknowwhattoexpect,andtheydon’thaveawinningstrategy.

HowLongDoesItReallyTakeToFormANewHabit?Dependingonthearticleyoureadorwhichexpertyoulistento,

you’llhearcompellingevidencethatittakesanywherefromasinglehypnosissession,21days,orevenuptothreemonthstoincorporateanewhabitintoyourlife—orgetridofanoldone.

Thepopular21-daymythmaycomefromthe1960bookPsycho-Cybernetics:ANewWayToGetMoreLivingOutofLif e.Writtenbycosmetic surgeonDr.MaxwellMaltz, he found that amputees took,on average, 21 days to adjust to the loss of a limb.He argued thatpeopletake21daystoadjusttoanymajorlifechanges.Somewouldarguethathowlongittakesforahabittobecometrulyautomaticalsodependsonthedifficultyofthehabit.

My personal experience and the real-world results I’ve seenworking with hundreds of coaching clients has led me to theconclusionthatyoucanchangeanyhabitin30days,ifyouhavetheright strategy.Theproblemis,mostpeopledon’thaveanystrategy,let alone the right one. So, year after year, they lose confidence inthemselvesandtheirabilitytoimprove,asfailedattemptafterfailedattemptpilesupandknocksthemdown.Somethinghastochange.

Howcanyoubecomeamasterofyourhabits?Howcanyoutakecompletecontrolofyour life—andyour future—by learninghow toidentify, implement, and sustain any positive habit you want, andpermanently remove any negative habit?You’re about to learn therightstrategy,onemostpeopleknownothingabout.

One of the biggest obstacles preventing most people fromimplementing and sustaining positive habits is that they don’t havethe right strategy. They don’t know what to expect and aren’tprepared to overcome themental and emotional challenges that arepartoftheprocessofimplementinganynewhabit.

We’ll start by dividing the 30-day time frame necessary toimplementapositivenewhabit(orgetridofanold,negativehabit)intothree10-dayphases.Eachofthesephasespresentsadifferentsetof emotional challenges andmental roadblocks to stickingwith thenewhabit.Sincetheaveragepersonisnotawareofthesechallengesandroadblocks,whentheyfacethem,theygiveupbecausetheydon’tknowwhattodotoovercomethem.

[Days1-10]PhaseOne:UnbearableThe first 10 days of implementing any new habit, or ridding

yourself of any old habit, canfeel almost unbearable.Although thefirstfewdayscanbeeasy,andevenexciting—becauseit’ssomethingnew—as soonas thenewnesswearsoff, reality sets in.Youhate it.It’spainful.It’snotfunanymore.Everyfiberofyourbeingtendstoresist and reject the change.Your mind rejects it and you think: Ihate this. Your body resists it and tells you: I don’t like how thisfeels.

If your newhabit iswakingup early (whichmight be a usefulonetogetstartedon,now),duringthefirst10daysyourexperiencemightbesomethinglikethis:[Thealarmclocksounds]OhGod,it’smorningalready!Idon’twanttogetup.I’msooootired.Ineedmoresleep.Okay,just10moreminutes.[Hitsnoozebutton]

Theproblemformostpeople is that theydon’t realize that thisseeminglyunbearablefirst10daysisonly“temporary.”Instead,theythink it’s theway the new habit feels, andwill always feel, tellingthemselves:Ifthenewhabitisthispainful,forgetit—it’snotworthit.

As a result, 95% of our society—themediocre majority—fail,

timeandtimeagain,tostartexerciseroutines,quitsmoking,improvetheirdiets, stick to abudget,or anyotherhabit thatwould improvetheirqualityoflife.

Here’swhere you have an advantage over the other 95%. See,whenyouareprepared forthesefirst10days,whenyouknowthatitis the price you pay for success, that the first 10 days will bechallenging but they’re alsotemporary, you can beat the odds andsucceed!If thebenefitsaregreatenough,wecandoanythingfor10days,right?

So, the first 10 days of implementing any new habit aren’t apicnic.You’lldefyit.Youmightevenhateitattimes.But youcandoit. Especially considering, it only gets easier from here, and therewardis,oh—justtheabilitytocreateeverythingyouwantforyourlife.

[Days11-20]PhaseTwo:UncomfortableAfter you get through the first 10 days—themost difficult 10

days—youbeginthe2nd10-dayphase,which isconsiderablyeasier.

You will be getting used to your new habit. You will also havedevelopedsomeconfidenceandpositiveassociations to thebenefitsofyourhabit.

While days 11-20 are not unbearable, they are stilluncomfortable andwill require discipline and commitment on yourpart.At this stage it will still be tempting to fall back to your oldbehaviors.Referencing the exampleofwakingupearly asyournewhabit, itwillstillbeeasier tosleepinbecauseyou’vedoneit forsolong. Stay committed. You’ve already gone fromUnbearable toUncomfortable, andyou’reabout to findoutwhat it feels like tobeUNSTOPPABLE.

[Days21-30]PhaseThree:UnstoppableWhen you enter the final 10 days—the home stretch—the few

people that make it this far almost always make a detrimentalmistake:adheringtothepopularadvicefromthemanyexpertswhoclaimitonlytakes21daystoformanewhabit.

Thoseexpertsarepartlycorrect. Itdoes take21days—thefirsttwophases—toformanewhabit.Butthethird10-dayphaseiscrucialto sustainingyournewhabit, long term.The final 10days iswhereyoupositively reinforceandassociatepleasurewithyournewhabit.You’vebeenprimarilyassociatingpainanddiscomfortwithitduringthefirst20days.Insteadofhatingandresistingyournewhabit,youstartfeelingproudofyourselfformakingitthisfar.

Phase Three is also where the actualtransformation occurs, asyournewhabitbecomespartofyouridentity.Ittranscendsthespacebetweensomethingyou’retryingandwhoyou’rebecoming.Youstarttoseeyourselfassomeonewholivesthehabit.

Backtoourexampleofwakingupearly:yougofromhavinganidentity that says I amnot a “morning person” toI am a morning

person!Instead of dreading your alarm clock in the morning, nowwhen the alarm goes off you are excited towake up and get goingbecauseyou’vedoneitforover20daysinarow.You’restartingtoseeandfeelthebenefits.

Too many people get overly confident, pat themselves on theback and think:I’vedone it for20dayssoI’m justgoing to takeafewdaysoff.Theproblemisthatthosefirsttwentydaysarethemostchallengingpartoftheprocess.Takingafewdaysoffbeforeyou’veinvested the necessary time into positively reinforcing the habitmakes it difficult to get back on. It’s days 21-30where you reallystart enjoying thehabit,which iswhatwillmakeyoucontinue it inthefuture.

ButIHateRunning“I’mnotarunnerthough,Jon.Infact,Ihaterunning.There’sno

wayIcoulddoit.”“Come on, Hal—it’s to raise money for theFront Row

Foundation,” JonBerghoff responded. “Look, I didn’t think I coulddoamarathoneither,butonceyoucommittoit,you’llfindawaytomake it happen. And I’m telling you, it is truly a life changingexperience!”

“I’llthinkaboutit.”Telling Jon I wouldthink about it was really just my way of

gettinghimoffmyback.Don’tgetmewrong,Iabsolutelybelievedinand supported the life-changing work done by the Front RowFoundation.Ihadbeendonatingmoneytotheorganizationforyears,butwritingacheckwasalittleeasierthanrunningamarathon.UnlessIwasbeingchased,Ihadn’t intentionallyrunsomuchasablockinthe10yearssinceIgraduatedhighschool.AndevenbackthenIonlyrantokeepfromfailingPEclass.

Besides, ever since breaking my femur and pelvis in the caraccident, back when I was 20, I was always afraid of what mighthappen if I put toomuch pressure onmy leg. In fact, every time Iwentsnowskiing,Icouldn’thelpbuthavevisionsofmetrippingandtakingahardfall,thenhavingthemetalrodinmylegbreakthroughtheskinofmythigh.It’sagruesomethought,butbreakingyourlimbsandbeingtoldyoumayneverwalkagaincandothattoyou.

AweeklateraftermyconversationwithJon,oneofmycoachingclients—KatieFingerhut—completedhersecondmarathon.“Hal,it’ssoamazing…IfeellikeIcandoanythingnow!”

Between Jon andKatie’s enthusiastic testimonies formarathonrunning,Iwasstartingtothinkmaybeitwastimeformetoovercomemy limiting belief aboutnot being a runner, and just start running.Likeeverythingelseinlife,iftheycoulddoit,thensocouldI.SoIdid.

The next morning, intent on completing my first mile on myjourney to completing a marathon, I put on mybasketball shoes(sound familiar?) andheadedout the frontdoorofmyhouse. Iwasactuallylookingforwardtoit!(Remember,thefirstfewdaysofanynewhabitareoftenexciting.)

Down thedriveway Ihustled,motivatedand inspired.Onto thesidewalkIran.AsIsteppedfromthesidewalktothestreet,myankletwistedonthecurbandIcollapsed.Lyingonthepavement,writhingin pain and gripping my ankle, I thought to myself,everythinghappensforareason,soIguesstodaywasn’tthedayformetostartrunning…I’lltryagaintomorrow.SoIdid.

30Days:“FromUnbearableToUnstoppable”That next day I officially began my marathon training. My

excitementonlylastedforafewblocks,asthephysicalpainbeganto

remindmeofwhatIbelievedforsolong:Iamnotarunner.Myhipsached.Myfemurwassore.ButIwascommitted.

Icompletedmyfirstpainfulmile,butIrealizedIneededhelp—Ineeded a plan. I drove to the bookstore and purchased the perfectbook for me:The Non-Runner’s Marathon Trainer, by DavidWhitsett.NowIhadaplan.

[Days1-10]The first 10 days of running were both physically painful and

mentallychallenging.Everysingleday, I foughtaconstantbattle inmyheadwiththevoiceofmediocrity,tellingmeitwasokaytoquit.Butitwasn’t.

Do what’s right, not what’s easy , I reminded myself. I keptrunning.Iwascommitted.

[Days11-20]Days 11-20 were only slightly less painful. I still didn’t like

running,but Ididn’t reallyhate itanymore.Forthefirsttimeinmylife, Iwas forming thehabitof runningeveryday. Itwasno longerthis scary thing I onlywatched other people doing on the sidewalkwhileIwasdrivingmycar.Afternearlytwoweeksofdailyrunning,itwasstartingtofeelnormalformetowakeupeveryday,andjustgoforarun.Iremainedcommitted.

[Days21-30]Days21-30werealmostenjoyable. Ihadalmostforgottenwhat

itfeltliketohaterunning.Iwasdoingitwithoutmuchthought.Ijustwokeup,putonmyrunningshoes(yes,Ihadinvestedinapair),andloggedmymileseachday.Thementalbattlewasgone,replacedwithrecitingpositiveaffirmationsorlisteningtoself-improvementaudios

whileIran.Injust30days,IhadovercomemylimitingbeliefthatIcouldn’trun.IwasbecomingwhatIwouldhaveneverimaginedinamillionyears…Iwasbecomingarunner.

TheRestoftheStory:“52MilesToFreedom”Just 30 days after beginning the habit of running—something

thathadbeen so foreignandunpleasant tome formyentire life—Ihadcompleted50miles,culminatinginmyfirst6-milerun.IcalledJon tocelebrate.Hewasexcitedforme,andalways looking tohelpme raisemy own standards, he presentedmewith a challenge. JonknewmewellenoughtoknowthatinthepeakemotionalstateIwasin, Iwould likelyacceptanychallenge. “Hal,whydon’tyou runanultra-marathon? Ifyou’regoing torun26miles,youmightaswellrun52.”OnlyJonwouldsuggestsuchlogic.

“I’llthinkaboutit.”This time, when I told Jon I wouldthink about it, I actually

meant it. Iwas intriguedby the ideaofpushingmyselfevenfurtherand running 52 consecutive miles. Maybe Jon was right. If I wasgoingtorun26,Imightaswellrun52.Imean,shoot, ifIcouldgofrom runningzeromiles tobeingable to run6consecutivemiles injust four weeks, and I still had six months until the Front RowFoundation’sannualRunfortheFrontcharityrun,whynotsetthebaralittlehigherandgofor52?SoIdid.Iwasevensomehowabletoconvinceafriendandtwoofmybravecoachingclientstodoitwithme!

SixmonthslaterIhadlogged475miles,includingthree20-mileruns, and had traveled across the country to meet with two of myfavorite coaching clients JamesHill and FavianValencia, and longtimefriend,AliciaAnderer,sothefourofuscouldattempttorun52milesduring theAtlanticCityMarathon. Joneven flewout toshowhissupport.Therewasjustonelogisticalchallengethough:Atlantic

City wasn’t set up for any “ultra” marathon runners. So, weimprovised.

WemetontheBoardwalkat3:30am.Ourgoalwastofinishourfirst26milesbefore theofficialmarathonbegan, thencomplete thesecond half with the regular marathon runners. The moment wassurreal.Theenergybetweenthefourofuswasablendofexcitement,fear,adrenalineanddisbelief.Werewereallygoingtodothis?!

Wemighthavebeenable toseeourbreath in thechillOctoberairhadthemoonlightbeenbrighter.Nevertheless,ourpathwaswellenoughlit,andsowebegan.Onefootinfrontoftheother,onestepata time, we moved forward.We all agreed that was the key to oursuccess that day—keepmoving forward. So long as we didn’t stopputting one foot in front of the other, as long as we kept movingforward,wewouldeventuallyreachourdestination.

Six hours and five minutes later, largely due to the collectivesupportandaccountabilityofourgroupworkingtogetherasoneunit,wecompletedourfirst26miles.Thiswasadefiningmomentforeachof us. Not because of the twenty-six miles we had behind us, butbecauseofthementalfortitudeitwasgoingtotaketogetourselvestorunthetwenty-sixmileswehadaheadofus.

Theexcitementwhichpermeatedeveryfiberofourbeingjustsixhours earlier had been replacedwith excruciating pain, fatigue, andmentalexhaustion.Consideringthephysicalandmentalstatewewerein,wejustdidn’tknowifwehaditinustoduplicatewhatwehadjustdone.Butwedid.

Atotalof15½hours fromthe timewestarted,James,Favian,Alicia, and I completed our 52-mile quest… together. One foot infront of the other, and one-step at a time, we ran, jogged, walked,limpedandliterallycrawledacrossthefinishline.

Ontheothersideofthatlinewasfreedom—thekindoffreedom

thatcanneverbetakenawayfromyou.Itwasfreedomfromourself-imposedlimitations.Althoughthroughourtrainingwehadgrowntobelieve that running 52 consecutive miles waspossible, none of usreally believed in our heart of hearts that it was probable. Asindividuals, each of us struggledwith our own fear and self-doubt.But themomentwecrossed that finish line,wehadgivenourselvesthe gift of freedom from our fears, our self-doubt, and our self-imposedlimitations.

ItwasinthatmomentIrealizedthatthisisagiftoffreedomnotreserved for the chosen few, but one that is available to each andeveryoneofusthemomentwemakethechoicetotakeonchallengesthat are out of our comfort zone, forcingus to grow, to expandourcapacity,tobeanddomorethanwehavebeenanddoneinthepast.Thisistruefreedom.

AreYouReadyforTrueFreedom?TheMiracleMorning30-DayLifeTransformationChallenge(in

thenextchapter)willenableyoutoovercomeyourownself-imposedlimitationssoyoucanbe,do,andhaveeverythingyouwant inyourlife,fasterthanyoueverthoughtpossible.TheMiracleMorningisalife-changing daily habit, andwhilemost peoplewho try it, love itfromdayone,gettingyourselftofollowthroughwithitfor30days—so you can make it a lifelong habit—will require an unwaveringcommitmentfromyou.

On the other side of the next 30 days is you—becoming theperson you need to be to create everything you’ve ever wanted foryourlife.Seriously,whatcouldbemoreexcitingthanthat?

—10—

TheMiracleMorning30-DayLifeTransformationChallenge

Anextraordinarylifeisallaboutdaily,continuousimprovementsintheareasthatmattermost.

—ROBINSHARMA

Lifebeginsattheendofyourcomfortzone.—NEALEDONALDWALSH

Let’s play devil’s advocate for a moment. CanThe MiracleMorningreallytransformyourlifeinjust30days?Imean,comeon—cananythingreallymakethatsignificantofanimpactonyourlife,thatquickly?Well,rememberthatitdidforme,evenwhenIwasatmylowestpoint.Ithasforthousandsofothers.Ordinarypeople,justlikeyouandme,becomingextraordinary.

In the last chapter you learned the simplest andmost effectivestrategyforsuccessfullyimplementingandsustaininganynewhabitin30days.DuringTheMiracleMorning30-DayLifeTransformationChallenge you’ll identify the habits you believewill have themostsignificantimpactonyourlife,yoursuccess,whoyouwanttobeandwhereyouwanttogo.Then,you’llusethenext30daystoformthesehabits, which will completely transform thedirection of your life,yourhealth,yourwealth,yourrelationshipsandanyotheraspectthatyouchoose.Bychangingthedirectionofyourlife,youimmediatelychangeyourqualityoflife,andultimately,whereyouendup.

ConsidertheRewardsWhen you commit toThe Miracle Morning 30-Day Life

Transformation Challenge, you will be building a foundation forsuccessineveryareaofyourlife,fortherestofyourlife.BywakingupeachmorningandpracticingTheMiracleMorning,youwillbegineachdaywithextraordinarylevelsofdiscipline(thecrucialabilitytoget yourself to follow throughwithyour commitments),clarity (thepoweryou’llgeneratefromfocusingonwhat’smostimportant),andpersonal development (perhaps the single most significantdeterminingfactorinyoursuccess).Thus,inthenext30daysyou’llfindyourselfquicklybecomingthepersonyouneedtobetocreatetheextraordinary levels of personal, professional, and financial successyoutrulydesire.

You’ll also be transformingThe Miracle Morning from aconcept that you may be excited (and possibly a little nervous) to“try”intoalifelonghabit,onethatwillcontinuetodevelopyouintothe person you need to be to create the life you’ve alwayswanted.You’llbegin to fulfill yourpotential and see results inyour life farbeyondwhatyou’veeverexperiencedbefore.

In addition to developing successful habits, you’ll also bedeveloping themindset you need to improve your life—bothinternallyandexternally.BypracticingtheLifeS.A.V.E.R.S.eachday,you’ll be experiencing the physical, intellectual, emotional, andspiritual benefits ofSilence, Affirmations, Visualization, Exercise,Reading, andScribing.You’ll immediately feel less stressed,morecentered,focused,happierandmoreexcitedaboutyourlife.You’llbegeneratingmoreenergy,clarityandmotivationtomovetowardsyourhighestgoalsanddreams(especiallythoseyou’vebeenputtingofffartoolong).

Remember,yourlifesituationwillimproveafter—butonlyafter—youdevelopyourselfintothepersonyouneedtobetoimproveit.

That’s exactlywhat these next 30 days of your life can be—a newbeginning,andanewyou.

YouCanDoThis!Ifyou’refeelinghesitant,orconcernedaboutwhetherornotyou

will be able to follow through with this for 30 days, relax—it’scompletelynormaltofeelthatway.Thisisespeciallytrueifwakingupinthemorningissomethingyou’vefoundchallenginginthepast.Remember,weallsufferfromRMS(RearviewMirrorSyndrome).So,it’snotonlyexpectedthatyouwouldbeabithesitantornervous,butit’s actually a sign that you’rereadyto commit, otherwise youwouldn’tbenervous.

ItisalsoimportantthatyoutakeconfidencefromthethousandsofotherpeoplewhohavealreadygonefromlivingonthewrongsideoftheirpotentialgaptocompletelytransformingtheirliveswithTheMiracleMorning. In fact, I’d like to take a moment to revisit andreview a handful of the Success Stories that were shared in theopeningpagesofthisbook.Ireallybelievetheexampleofotherscanshinelightonwhat’spossibleforus.

IwassoinspiredbythetransformationthatMelanieDeppen,anentrepreneur fromSelinsgrove,PAsharedwithus:“Iamonday79ofTheMiracleMorning,andsinceIbegan,Ihavenotmissedasingleday.Honestly,thisistheFIRSTtimeinmylifethatI’veeversetouttodo something and have actually stuck with it for more than just acoupleofdaysorweeks.Inowlookforwardtowakingupeveryday!It’s incredible, The Miracle Morning has completely changed mylife.”

Icouldn’thelpbutwishIhadknownaboutTheMiracleMorningincollege,or evenhigh school, afterhearing thedifference itmadeforMichaelReeves,astudentfromWalnutCreek,CA:“WhenIfirstheard about The Miracle Morning, I thought to myself, ‘this is so

crazythatitjustmightwork!’Iamacollegestudenttaking19unitsandworking full time, so that leftmewith zero time toworkonmygoals.BeforeIlearnedaboutTheMiracleMorning,Iusedtowakeupbetween7-9ameveryday—becauseIhadtogetreadyforclass—butnow I consistently wake up at 5am. I am learning and growing somuch through daily personal development, and I am LOVING TheMiracleMorning!”

Speaking of college students,Natanya Green—now a yoga

instructorinSacramento,CA—beganfulfillingherpotentialwiththehelp ofThe Miracle Morning while attending a CaliforniaUniversity:“After beginning The Miracle Morning in December,2009,asacollegestudentatUCDavis, Inoticedprofoundchangesimmediately. I quickly began to achieve long-desired goals moreeasily than I would have ever expected. I lost weight, found a newlove,attainedmybestgradesever,andevencreatedmultiplestreamsofincome—allinlessthantwomonths!Now,yearslater,TheMiracleMorningisstillanintegralpartofmydailylife.”

How could you not be impressed by the extraordinary level ofcommitment shown byRay Ciafardini, a District Manager fromBaltimore, MD:“I’m on my 83rd consecutive day of The MiracleMorningandjustwishIhadknownaboutitsooner.Itisamazinghowmuchclarity Ihave throughout theday,now, thanks toTheMiracleMorning.Iamabletofocusonmyworkandallothertaskseachdaywith so much more energy and enthusiasm. Thanks to TheMiracleMorning,Iamexperiencingarichermoreabundantwayofliving—inbothmypersonalandmyprofessionallife.”

Finally, I was blown away by the powerful story fromRob

Leroy, a Senior Account Executive in Sacramento, CA:“A fewmonths ago, I decided to try The Miracle Morning. My life ischangingsofastIcannotkeepup!I’msuchabetterpersonbecauseof this—and it’s infectious.My businesswas struggling, but after IstartedTheMiracleMorningIwasamazedathow,justbyworkingonmyselfeveryday,Iwasabletoturnitallaround!”

These Success Stories are from normal, everyday people, justlike you andme. Peoplewhowere living below their potential andusedThe Miracle Morningto finally close the gap and achieve thesuccess they truly want, and deserve. Now is a good time to beremindedofoneofthemostimportantsuccessprinciplesforyouandItoliveby:Iftheycandoit,socanwe.

Step 1: GetTheMiracleMorning 30-Day LTC Fast StartKit

Vi s i twww.TMMbook.com to download your freeMiracleMorning 30-Day Life Transformation Challenge Fast Start Kit—completewith the exercises, affirmations, daily checklists, trackingsheets,andeverythingelseyouneedtomakestartingandcompletingTheMiracleMorning30-DayLifeTransformationChallengeaseasyaspossible.Pleasetakeaminutetodothisnow.

Step2:PlanYourFirstMiracleMorningforTomorrowCommit to and scheduleyour firstMiracleMorningassoonas

possible—ideallytomorrow(yes,actuallywriteitintoyourschedule)—anddecidewhereitwilltakeplace.Remember,it’srecommendedthat you leave your bedroom and remove yourself from the

temptationsofyourbedaltogether.MyMiracleMorningtakesplaceeverydayonmylivingroomcouchwhileeveryoneelseinmyhouseis still sound asleep. I’ve heard from people who do theirMiracleMorningsittingoutsideinnature,suchasontheirporchordeck,orata nearby park.Do yourswhere you feelmost comfortable, but alsowhereyouwon’tbeinterrupted.

Step 3: Read Page-1 of the Fast Start Kit and Do theExercises

Read the introduction in yourMiracle Morning 30-Day LifeTransformation ChallengeFast Start Kit, then please follow theinstructions,andcomplete theexercises.Likeanything in life that’sworthwhile, successfully completingThe Miracle Morning 30-DayLife Transformation Challenge requires a bit of preparation. It’simportant that you do the initial exercises in your Fast Start Kit(which shouldn’t take you more than 30-60 minutes) and keep inmind that your Miracle Morning will always start with thepreparation you do the day or night before to get yourself readymentally,emotionally,andlogisticallyforTheMiracleMorning.Thispreparation includes following the steps inChapter 5: The 5-StepSnooze-ProofWakeUpStrategy.

Step3.1:GetanAccountabilityPartner[Recommended]I nChapter 3: The 95% Reality Check, we discussed the

undeniablelinkbetweenaccountabilityandsuccess.Allofusbenefitfrom the support that comes from embracing a higher level ofaccountability, so it’s highly recommended—but not required—thatyou get a like-minded accountability partner to join you inTheMiracleMorning30-DayLifeTransformationChallenge.

Not only does having someone to hold us accountable increasetheoddsthatwewillfollowthrough,butjoiningforceswithsomeone

else is simplymore fun! Consider that when you’re excited aboutsomethingandcommittedtodoingitonyourown,thereisacertainlevelofpowerinthatexcitementandinyourindividualcommitment.However,whenyouhavesomeoneelseinyourlife—afriend,familymember, or co-worker—and they’re as excited about it andcommittedtoitasyouare,it’smuchmorepowerful.

Call,text,oremailoneormorepeopletoday,andinvitethemto

join you forThe Miracle Morning 30-Day Life TransformationChallenge.Thequickestwaytogetthemuptospeedistosendthemthe link towww.MiracleMorning.com so they can get free andimmediateaccesstoTheMiracleMorningCrashCourse:

»TwoFREEChaptersofTheMiracleMorningbook»TheFREEMiracleMorningVideotrainingprogram»TheFREEMiracleMorningAudiotrainingprogram

Itwillcostthemnothing,andyou’llbeteamingupwithsomeonewhoisalsocommittedtotakingtheirlifetothenextlevel,sothetwoofyoucansupport,encourage,andholdeachotheraccountable.

IMPORTANT:Don’t wait until you have an AccountabilityPartner onboard to doyour firstMiracleMorning and start the30-Day Life Transformation Challenge. Whether or not you’ve foundsomeonetoembarkonthejourneywithyou,Irecommendschedulingand doing your firstMiracle Morning tomorrow—no matter what.Don’twait.You’llbeevenmorecapableofinspiringsomeoneelsetod oTheMiracleMorning with you if you’ve already experienced afewdaysofit.Getstarted.Then,assoonasyoucan,inviteafriend,family member, or co-worker to visitwww.MiracleMorning.com togettheirfreeMiracleMorning“CrashCourse.”

In less than an hour, they’ll be fully capable of being your

Miracle Morning Accountability Partner—and probably a littleinspired.

AreYouReadyToTakeYourLifeTotheNextLevel?What is the next level in your personal or professional life?

Which areas need to be transformed in order for you to reach thatlevel? Give yourself the gift of investing just 30 days to makesignificant improvements inyour life, onedayat a time.Nomatterwhatyourpasthasbeen,youcanchangeyourfuture,bychangingthepresent.

—Conclusion—

LetTodayBeTheDayYouGiveUpWhoYou’veBeenForWhoYouCanBecome

Everyday,thinkasyouwakeup,‘TodayIamfortunatetohavewokenup,Iamalive,Ihaveaprecioushumanlife,Iamnotgoingtowasteit.Iamgoingtouseallmyenergiestodevelopmyself,toexpandmyheartouttoothers.Iam

goingtobenefitothersasmuchasIcan.’—DALAILAMA

Thingsdonotchange.Wechange.—HENRYDAVIDTHOREAU

Whereyouareisaresultofwhoyouwere,butwhereyouendup depends entirely on who you choose to be from this momentforward.

It’syourtime.Don’tputoffcreatingandexperiencingthelife—happiness,health,wealth,success,andlove—thatyoutrulywantanddeserve for another day.AsmymentorKevinBracy alwaysurged:“Don’twaittobegreat.”Ifyouwantyourlifetoimprove,youhaveto improve yourself first. GetThe Miracle Morning 30-Day LifeTransformationFast Start Kit today atwww.TMMbook.com. Then,with or without an Accountability Partner, commit to your firstMiracle Morning and beginning your30-Day Life TransformationChallenge tomorrow.You know, tomorrow—thedayyoubeginyourjourney to creating the most extraordinary life you have everimagined.

IfthereisanythingIcandotosupportyouoraddvaluetoyour

lifeinanyway,pleaseletmeknow.

ContactMeAnytimeI’malwaysgratefultoconnectwithlike-mindedfolks,andfind

itespeciallycooltohearfrompeoplewhohavereadmybooks,seenmyvideos,orattendedmyspeeches.So,ifyouhaveanyquestionsorwould just like tosayhello,go towww.YoPalHal.comandclickonthe “Contact” tab to sendme amessage. I look forward to hearingfromyou,andexploringhowIcanaddasmuchvaluetoyourlifeasIpossiblycan.

Let’sKeepHelpingOthersMayIaskyouaquickfavor?Ifthisbookhasaddedvaluetoyourlife,ifyoufeellikeyou’re

betteroffafterreadingit,andyouseethatTheMiracleMorningcanbeanewbeginningforyoutotakeany—orevery—areaofyourlifeto the next level, I’m hoping you’ll do something for someone youlove:

Givethisbooktothem.Letthemborrowyourcopy.Askthemtoreadit.Orbetteryet,getthemtheirowncopy,maybeasabirthdayorChristmas gift. Come to think of it—what better book to givesomeoneforChristmasthantheonlybookthatmakeseverymorningfeellikeChristmas?!

Or it couldbe for no special occasion at all, other than to say,“Hey,Iloveandappreciateyou,andIwanttohelpyouliveyourbestlife.Readthis.”

If you believe, as I do, that being a great friend or familymember isabouthelpingyourfriendsandlovedones tobecomethebestversionsofthemselves,Iencourageyoutosharethisbookwith

them.Pleasespreadtheword.Thankyousomuch.

—ANESSENTIALBONUS—

Everybodyneedsfeedback,andit’saheckofalotcheaperthanpayingatrainer.

—DOUGLOWENSTEIN

Askforfeedbackfrompeoplewithdiversebackgrounds.Eachonewilltellyouoneusefulthing.

—STEVEJOBS

Itwas2o’clockinthemorning.Icouldn’tsleep.Stillrentingaroom from Matt, I was sitting at my cheap imitation-pine desk,crammedintomy12’x12’livingspace.Thissucked.Somethinghadtochange.OrmaybeIneededtochange.

Staring at my laptop and feeling frustrated with my life, Isuddenlygotinspired.Idon’trememberexactlywhatpromptedit,butIopenedupanewemailandstartedaddingaverydiversegroupofpeople to theTo : field. Close friends, family, co-workers, formerbosses,acquaintances, thegirl Iwasdating,andeven—believe itornot—myex-girlfriends. You name it, I was ready to make someradical changes in my life. I was ready for a quantum leap in mypotential,andIfelttheonlywayformetogetanaccurateassessmentofwhoIwas,howIwasshowingupinmylife,andwhereIneededtoimprovewastosolicithonestfeedbackfromthepeoplewhoknewmebest.

IstoppedwhenIgotto23emailaddresses,because,well,Iamahuge fan of Michael Jordan and have a mild obsession with the

number23. I began to compose an email to thesepeople,whoeachknewme in different capacities and to varying degrees, explainingthat Iwanted togrowpersonally, tobeabetter friend, son,brother,andcolleague,andthattheonlythingtodowastogetfeedbackfrompeople who could see things about me that I couldn’t see aboutmyself. Iasked if theywouldplease takea fewminutes to reply,attheirearliestconvenience,sharingwhattheybelievedwerethethreebiggestareas that Ineeded to improve. Iasked that theybebrutallyhonest, and assured them that they would not hurt my feelings. Infact,theonlythingthatwouldhurtmyfeelingswasforthemtoholdback,becausedoingsowouldonlylimitmygrowth.

I’dbelyingifIdidn’tadmitthatthiswasthemostnerve-racking

email I’ve ever composed. I almost chickened out. I considereddeleting it, and just going to bed.ThankGod I didn’t.No, I took adeepbreath,andIclickedsend.Then,Iwenttobed,fellasleep,andawaitedtheirresponses.

Sixhourslater,Iwokeup.Wait,didIreallysendthatemailat2o’clock in themorning, orwas that just adream? I logged intomyemail.Nope,notadream.Idefinitelysentit.AndIalreadyhadtworeplies.OnewasfromMom,andtheotherwasfromJ.BradBritton,awell-respectedRegionManagerat the200milliondollarcompany Iworkedfor.Ohboy,heregoes…Ipausedforasecondandremindedmyself that the purpose of this exercise was for me to grow andimprove, so nomatter what anyone said in his or her email, I wasgoing to keep an openmind and not get offended. Easier said thandone.

I openedMom’s email first.Hey son, I got your email.(ReallyMom? Ihadno idea thatyougot it.)Well, you know I think you’reperfect! But if Imustgiveyousomeconstructive feedback, it’s thatyoushouldcallyourmothermoreoften! Iknowyou’rebusy,but it

wouldbenicetohearfromyoueveryonceinawhile.Anyway,Iloveyou!Comevisitsoon…Love,Mom.Iopenedupablankdocumentonmy computer and titled it “Constructive Feedback and My NewCommitments.”#1.CallMomatleastonceaweek.

Then I opened the email from my Region Manager, J. BradBritton. J. Brad is someone I admired and had learned a great dealfrom.Nottomention,hewasoneofthemostpositivepeopleIknew.Althoughweonlysaweachotherafewtimesthroughouttheyearatconferences and on company trips, he knew me well, at least in aprofessionalcapacity.MyPalHal!Iloveyouremail.However,Iamonlywilling togiveyouthe3piecesof“constructive”feedbackyouhaverequestedifyouletmefollowitupwith3thingsIlikeaboutyou.Deal?Okay,heregoes…

J.Bradproceeded to enlightenme to a fewofmyprofessional

and social “blind spots,” all ofwhich caughtmeby surprise.To behonest,myfeelingsdidgetabithurt.Ifeltalittledefensive.That’snot true. I’m not really like that.He obviously doesn’t knowme aswellasIthoughthedid.Then,itoccurredtomethatitdidn’tmatterhowaccurateeachofhiscriticismswere,becausethatwashowIwasshowingupforhim—andprobablymanyothers.Itwasimportanttome not just thatI knew who Ireally was, but that I was living inalignmentwithmyvalues,andcongruentinallofmyrelationships.

Emailresponsescontinuedtopourinoverthenextfewdays.Bythe end of the week, 17 of the 23 recipients had replied with theirthoughtfuland (mostly)constructivecriticisms. Ihadaddeda lot tomy “Constructive Feedback andMyNewCommitments” documentsincemakinganoteofmymom’srequestformorefrequentcontact.So,whatweretheresults?

Let’s justsaythatIgainedmoreself-awarenessandgrewmore

in a week from reading those responses than I had grown in theprevious 5 years combined—and possibly my entire life. It wasincredible.Itwasn’teasytoputmyselfinsuchavulnerablepositionandlookatallofmyflaws—but itwas life-changing.Itwascareer-advancing. Itwas relationship-improving.And itwas all a result ofmustering up enough courage to send what is probably the mostimportant email that I have ever sent:TheEmailThatWillChangeYourLife.

BeforeIgiveyouTheEmailThatWillChangeYourLife below,word-for-word—soyou can copy, edit, and send it toyour circle ofinfluence—I’dliketotakeamomenttosharesomepositivefeedbackwithyoufromoneofmycoachingclients.Shesent this tomeaftershe had sentTheEmailThatWillChangeYourLife to her circle ofinfluence:

[FromTrudy,oneofmyVIPSuccessCoachingclients]:

Hal, I can’t believe how effective that email you gave us, the one forrequesting personal feedback, has been for me so far. Every reply I’vereceivedaddressesmyweaknessesandstrengthsfromthedifferentrespectiveanglesofmyfriends,coworkers,andfamilymembersthatknowme.Thishaspresentedmewithamorecompletepictureofmyself,andIfeelsorespectedto receive the help from everyone. Not to mention, the email is also founduniqueandwaswell-receivedbyeveryonewhoreceivedit!

Thankyou,Hal,forhelpingmesomuchwithyourV.I.P.SuccessCoaching.

Withgratefulness,Trudy

Prob l em :Feedback avoidance. Most people don’t enjoynegativefeedback,sotheycompletelyavoidaskingforfeedback.Thispreventsthemfromgaininginvaluabledataabouttheirstrengthsandweaknesses,thuspreventingthemfromcapitalizingontheformerandsignificantlyimprovingthelatter.

Solut ion:Actively seeking and learning from the honestfeedbackofpeoplewhoknowyou(invariouscapacities)isoneofthemost effective andfastest ways to gain a new perspective andaccelerateyourpersonaldevelopmentandsuccess.

Instructions:Typethefollowingtextintoanemail(feelfreetoeditandpersonalizetheemailsothatitsoundslikeyou.)Senditto5-30 people (themore the better)who knowyouwell enough to giveyouanhonestassessmentofyourstrengthsandweaknesses.Thismayinclude friends, family, colleagues, mentors, teachers, formeremployers or managers, customers, your significant other, and ifyou’re brave enough… wait for it—yourex-significant others.(Seriously.)

Important: Besure toput theoutgoingemailaddresses in theBCC field of the email, so that each recipient doesn’t see everyoneelseyou’resendingit to.(Or,youcancopyandpaste, thensendtheemailtoeachpersonindividually.)Subject Line:This means a lot… Or Would love to get youropinion…

EmailText:Dearfriends,family,andcolleagues:

Thankyousomuchforreadingthisemail.Thisisn’taneasyoneforme to send, but it is extremely important tome, so I sincerelyappreciate you investing your valuable time reading (and hopefullyrespondingto)it.

Thisemailisgoingouttoonlyaselectgroupofpeople.Eachof

you knowsme well, and I’m hoping will give me honest feedbackaboutmystrengthsandmostimportantly,myweaknesses(aka“areasofimprovement.”)

I’veneverdoneanythinglikethisbefore,butIfeel thatformegrowandimproveasaperson,IneedtogetamoreaccuratepictureofhowI’mshowinguptothepeoplethatmattermosttome.Inordertobecome the person I need to be to create the life and contribute toothersatthelevelsthatIwant,Ineedyourfeedback.

So,allI’maskingisthatyoutakejustafewminutestoemailmeback with what you honestly think are my top 2-3 “areas ofimprovement.”Ifitwillmakeyoufeelbettertoalsolistmytop2-3“strengths”(I’msureitwillmakemefeelbetterJ),youaredefinitelywelcome to. That’s it. Andplease don’t sugarcoat it or hold backanything. Iwillnotbeoffendedbyanything thatyoushare. In fact,themore“brutally”honestyouare,themoreleverageitwillgivemetomakepositivechangesinmylife.

Thank you again, and if there is anything else I can do to addvaluetoyourlife,pleaseletmeknow.

Withsinceregratitude,

YourName

FinalThoughtsOnTheEmailThatWillChangeYourLifeThat’s it! I hope youwill joinme,Trudy, andmyhundreds of

otherVIPCoachingclientswhohavemusteredup thecourage tobevulnerable and send this email. Some of the life-changing rewardsyou can count on will be increased self-awareness, deeperunderstandingofone’sself,andclarityonthechangesyoucanmaketoquicklytakeyourselfandyourlifetothenextlevel.

Withloveandgratitude,always…

“YoPal”Hal

—ACKNOWLEDGMENTS—

»Makesureyouatleastreadthelastparagraph(It’stoYOU)

Thismay be themost challenging part of writing a book. Notbecause I am short on people to acknowledge—quite the opposite.There are so many people who have touched my life and made asignificant impact that itwouldsimplybe impossible to thank themallinthenextfewpages.Infact,doingsocouldprobablytakeupanentire book itself. The sequel to this book could be titled:TheMiracle Morning ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. I don’t know that toomanypeoplewouldbuyit,butIwoulddefinitelyenjoywritingit.

First, Ihave togivedeep thanks to thewomanwhocarriedmearoundfor9½monthsandgavemethemiracleoflife—Mom.Iloveyousomuch.Thankyouforalwaysbelievinginme,anddiscipliningmewhen Ineeded it. I still need it.Oh, andyouneed tocomevisitmoreoften!J

Dad,ofallmybestfriends,youaremybestfriend.IamthemanIamtodaybecauseofthefatheryouhavebeenformemyentirelife.You have instilled somany values and qualities inme,which I amevenmoregratefulfornowthatIknowIwillbepassingthemontomychildren.Iloveyou,Dad.

To Hayley, you’re the best sister ever. Hands down. Nocompetition.However,notonly areyouagreat sister, you truly areone of my best friends. You are authentic, supportive, kind, andyou’realmostasfunnyasIam!Seriously,IamsogratefulthatYOUaremysister—Icouldn’timagineabetterone.

To the real-life woman of my dreams—Ursula. You are

everything that I have everwanted in awife, and somany things IneverknewIneeded,butnowcouldneverlivewithout.Istillmarvelathowperfectyouareforme,andIcouldn’tbemoregrateful tobecreatingandsharingourlivestogether.Andhow‘boutthemcutekidswemade,huh?ThankyouforblessingmewithSophieandHalsten.Withyouatthehelm,Iknowourfamilyisdestinedforalifetimeofloveandhappiness.

ToSophieandHalsten,Iknowyoucan’treadthisyet,butIloveyoubothsomuch.ThankyouforeachbeingeverythingIeverwantedinachild.Icouldn’tbemoregratefulforthejoyandhappinessthatyoubringtomylifeeveryday.

Tomyaunts,uncles,cousins,andgrandparents,Iamsothankfulfortheimmeasurableamountoflovethatyouhavealwaysshownme.I love you all and I will always cherish the times we’ve sharedtogether.Ilookforwardtomanymore!

Tomy in-laws—Marek,Maryla,Steve,Linda,Adam,andAnia—Iamgratefultobeapartofyourfamily.

Tomybest friends—mycircleof influence—anyguywouldbeluckytohaveanyoneofyouinhislife,andIsomehowendedupwithALL of you! We’ve shared A LOT of great times together, butbeyondthat,itiswhoyouarethatmakesmestrivetobebetter.Ifitistruethatwearetheaverageofthefivepeoplewespendthemosttimewith,I’vegotnothingtoworryabout!Foryourlifelongfriendship,Ilove you: JeremyKaten, Jon Berghoff,Matt Recore, Jon Vroman,JesseLevine,BradWeimert,RuthFields,JohnRuhlin,PeterVoogd,Tony Carlston, TeddyWatson, Larry Rodriguez,Alex Hayden, andBrianBedel.TomymanyfriendsthatImaynothavementionedhere,knowthatit’snotbecauseIdon’tloveyou.Ido.

To my extended family at Cutco and Vector——I can’t thankyou enough for the incredible opportunity you work so hard to

provideforpeople,everyday.TothePresidents,BruceGoodman,AlDiLeonardo, and JohnWhelpley, and ExecutiveVP,AmarDavé—Ithinkit’ssafetosaythateachpersonIthankfromthispointforwardisabletomaketheimpacttheydolargelybecauseofyourleadership.Thankyouforyourextraordinaryinfluenceandtheimpactyouhavemadeinmylife.TotheRegionLeaders—JeffBry,EarlKelly,ScottDennis, P.J. Potter, Loyd Reagan, andMikeMuriel, as well as theDivisionManagers,thankyouforhelpingtoshapemycharacter,andcontinuingtogivemeopportunitiestopositivelyimpactyourpeople.

Tomy friends on theCutco andVectorExecutive teams: JeffKunkel,FredGlaeser,JohnKane,StevePokrzyk,TrentBooth,AdamJester,andScottGorrell—yourselflesseffortspositively impact thelivesofthousandsofpeople,includingmyown.Isincerelyappreciateeachofyou.IwouldalsoliketothanktheStittfamilyforprovidingthefoundationforallthatisgreataboutCutco.

ThankyoutotheleadersandmyfriendsatVectorCanada—JoeCardillo, Angie MacDougall, Rhancha Connell, Sherrie Dickie,MichaelSmith,andMikeMcDonald.JoeandAngie, it’sbeenyearssince the first time you invited me to speak at one of yourconferences, and I remember being so excited that I could finallyofficiallycallmyselfan“international”speaker! Youarealwayssogenerous, and Ihope the trendof speakingatyour events continuesformanyyearstocome.

Thank you to my writing and editing gurus—Joel D and SueCanfield.Youwerethecatalystthatfinallygotmewritingagain.Thisbook wouldn’t exist if it weren’t for your expertise andaccountability.

TomybrilliantfriendandthecreatorofBookMama.com,LindaSivertsen—youare so talented andhave such agift formaking anyauthor’s book idea into a bestselling masterpiece. Thank you forcontributingyourgiftstothisbook.

To Gail Lynne Goodwin, Ambassador of Inspiration atInspireMeToday.com. You are simply one of the nicest, mostgenerousand inspiringpeople Ihaveevermet. I’mgrateful tohaveyouinmylife,andIcan’twaittogosailingwithyou.

To the mentors, teachers, and authors who continue to leadthrough your example of courage and selflessness, and fromwhomI’ve learned so much: Robin Sharma, Brendon Burchard, TonyRobbins,DaveDurand,TimFerris,MatthewKelly,RudyRuettiger,Anthony“AB”Burke,JeffSooey,WayneDyer,BillandSteveHarris,JamesMalinchak,StephanieChandler,RogerCrawford,KevinBracy,Will Bowen, John Maxwell, T. Harv Eker, Eckart Tolle, DaveRamsey,AndrewCohen,KenWilber,SethGodin,DerekSivers,ChrisBrogan,JonathanSprinkles,JonathanBudd,andMichaelEllsberg.

ToKevinBracy,youdeservesignificantcredit. Iwassitting inyour seminar just days before my firstMiracleMorning, and yourwordswerethecatalystformetoovercomemylimitingbeliefthatIwasnot a “morningperson.” You remindedme, “If youwant yourlifetobedifferent,youhavetobewillingtodosomethingdifferent,first.” Imay have never attempted to wake up at 5AM—let alonewrittenthisbook—ifitweren’tforyou.Thankyou.

To JamesMalinchak, you also deserve significant credit here.WhenIsharedTheMiracleMorningwithyouforthefirsttime,yougot excited, and you expandedmy vision: “Hal, I don’t think youeven see how big this is going to be, and howmany people this isgoingtoimpact!”Youhavepersonallyinspiredtensofthousandsofauthors, speakers, and coaches to believe in their message, see itbigger, and impact more people.You did that for me, and I can’tthankyouenough.

To J. Brad Britton, you taught me one of the most valuablelessons,which I continue to livemy life by and sharewith anyonewhowilllisten—dotherightthing,nottheeasything.Youdon’tjust

teachit;youliveit.ToAdamStock,thankyouforalwaysaddingvalueandwisdom

tomylife.Yourprofitabilitycoachinghasbeeninvaluable!To my assistant, Linda: you work so hard to ensure that our

clientsarewelltakencareof.Thankyousomuchforallthatyoudo,andallofthevaluethatyouaddtomylifeandtomyfamily.

To the students, teachers, counselors and advisors at everycollege or high school that I have ever spoken at: thank you forallowingmetheopportunitytolivemypurposethroughaddingvaluetoyourlives.

TomyprivateandVIPSuccessCoachingclients:IconsideritagreatprivilegetobeyourCoach,andIthankyouforallowingmetosupportyou in achievingyourgoals andconstantlybecomingbetterversionsofyourselves.Whetherornotyourealizeit,Ilearnasmuchfromyouasyoudofromme.Again,thankyouforallowingmetobeyourCoach.

To everyone who supported the launch of this book, yourselflessness and commitment to paying forward the benefits you’vereceivedfromTheMiracleMorninghaveleftmespeechless.First,IhavetothankTMMLaunchTeam—whatablastitwasworkingwithyoutopromotethisbook. Iwillforeverbegratefulandindebtedtoyou. Special thanks to Kyle Smith, Isaac Stegman, Geri Azinger,Marc Ensign, Colleen Elliot Linder, Dashama,Mark Hartley, DavePowders, Jon Berghoff, Jon Vroman, Jeremy Katen, Ryan Whiten,RobertGonzalez,CareySmolenski,RyanCasey,andGregStrine.

Finally, toyou, the reader: thankyou for allowingme tobe apart of your life. Let’s keep connecting on Facebook, Twitter, andthroughTheMiracleMorningCommunity.Please letmeknowhowyou’re doing, and if there is ever anything I cando to addvalue toyourlifeorsupportacauseyoubelievein,pleasedon’thesitatetolet

meknow.Allright,nowstopreadingandstartcreating.Neversettle.Createthelifeyoudeservetolive,andhelpotherstodothesame.

—ABOUTTHEAUTHOR—

HalElrodislivingproofthatweallhavetheabilitytoovercomeanyobstacleandcreatethelifeofourdreams.Atage20,Halwashithead on by a drunk driver, and found dead at the scene. Despitesuffering permanent brain damage and being told he would neverwalk again, he has gone on to become an all-time record breakingsales rep, hall of fame business achiever, ultra-marathon runner,bestselling author, international keynote speaker and hip-hop artist(hisnewmotivationalrapsong“TheMiracleMorning”canbefoundoniTunes.)Hehasdedicatedhislifetohelpingothersovercometheirchallenges so that they can fulfill the unlimited potential that iswithineachofus.Heistheauthorofthebestsellingbook,TakingLifeHeadOn:HowToLovetheLifeYouHaveWhileYouCreatetheLifeofYourDreams—oneofthehighestratedandmostacclaimedbooksonAmazon.com.(Readafewofthereviews,andyou’llseewhy.)

Hal is also one of the top-rated keynote and motivationalspeakersinthecountry.Whilecorporationsandnon-profitsregularlybringHal in to speak at their conferences and fundraisers, he has apassion for positively impacting young people. For more than adecade, “Yo Pal” Hal’s presentations have impacted over 100,000audience members throughout the United States and Canada, withapproximately 80,000 of those individuals having been high schoolandcollegestudents.

Hehasappearedondozensofradioandtelevisionshowsacrossthecountry,andhe’sbeenfeaturedinnumerousbooks,includingTheEducationofMillionaires,CuttingEdgeSales,LivingCollegeLifeintheFrontRow,TheAuthor’sGuideToBuildingAnOnlinePlatform ,The800-PoundGorillaofSalesandthebestsellingChickenSoupfortheSoulseries.

TocontactHalaboutmediaappearances,speakingatyoureventoronyourcampus,orifyoujustwanttoreceivefreetrainingvideosandresources,visitwww.YoPalHal.com.

ToconnectwithHalonTwitter,follow@HalElrod,onFacebookatwww.Facebook.com/YoPalHal, and throughTheMiracleMorningCommunityatwww.MyTMMCommunity.com.

Read Hal’s first bestselling book,Taking Life Head

On! HowToLovetheLifeYouHaveWhileYouCreatetheLifeofYourDreams. Justglanceatafewofthe50+5-StarReviews and you’ll quickly seewhy it’s one of the highestratedandmostacclaimedbooksonAmazon.com.

OneofHal’schildhooddreamscametruewhenhisfirst“motivational”rapsongdebutedoniTunes!ListentoitonHal’swebsiteat

http://TheMiracleMorning.com/I-Never-Thought-This-Dream-Would-Come-True/orbuyitoniTunesat

www.MiracleMorningRap.com

TableofContentsPraiseTHEMIRACLEMORNING™REALLIFE SUCCESS STORIES&RESULTS

Dedication»ANotetoYou,theReader—ASPECIALINVITATION—EpigraphINTRODUCTION: My Story, and Why Yours Is The One ThatMatters

—1—It’sTimeToWakeUpToYourFULLPotential—2—TheMiracleMorning™Origin:BornOutofDesperation—3—The95%RealityCheck—4—WhyDidYOUWakeUpThisMorning?—5—The5-StepSnooze-ProofWakeUpStrategy(FortheSnooze-aholics)

—6—TheLifeS.A.V.E.R.S.™>SixPracticesGuaranteedToSaveYouFromaLifeofUnfulfilledPotential

—7—The6-MinuteMiracle(ForTheBusyPeople)—8—CustomizingYourMiracleMorning™ToFitYourLifestyleandAchieveYourHighestGoals&Dreams

— 9 — From Unbearable To Unstoppable: The Real Secret ToFormingHabitsThatWillTransformYourLife(In30Days)

— 10 — The Miracle Morning™ 30-Day Life TransformationChallenge

—Conclusion—LetTodayBeTheDayYouGiveUpWhoYou’veBeenForWhoYouCanBecome

—ANESSENTIALBONUS——ACKNOWLEDGMENTS——ABOUTTHEAUTHOR—