by Gene Crawford | Oct 29, 2023 | Podcast
Ready to become a better version of yourself? This episode of the Podcast promises to take you on a transformational journey, providing practical steps to incorporate small, life-altering habits into your daily routine. I’ll explore the power of morning rituals, optimal habits for personal growth, and the impact of morning routines like that of Benjamin Franklin or Andrew Huberman. Let’s also unpack the importance of cutting out social media distractions and focus on building strong relationships, prioritizing your mental health, and ensuring you get adequate sleep.
In the second part of this episode, I delve into how tracking your goals over a seven-day period can provide a more realistic picture of your progress and offer you grace when you need it. You’ll learn how to engineer an effective workout plan using the FITT principle, and we discuss why self-punishment or overcompensation when you miss a goal can bring more harm than good. Prioritizing quality time with your loved ones, engaging in meaningful conversations, and continuous personal growth are all key factors in leading a well-balanced life, and I’ll share practical tips on how you can incorporate these habits into your routine. Get ready to challenge yourself, step out of your comfort zone and become the best version of yourself.
(more…)
by Gene Crawford | Oct 17, 2023 | Blog
The Power of a Routine
Unlock the incredible potential of daily routines that can change your life. Start your day with gratitude to set a positive tone and incorporate morning exercise to boost your mood and well-being. Don’t forget to nourish your body with a balanced diet and stay hydrated. Prioritize your mental wellness through mindfulness meditation and journaling, fostering self-reflection and personal growth.
Maintain flexibility and avoid an “all or nothing” mindset, so minor deviations from your plan don’t derail your progress. Strong relationships and sufficient sleep are vital for happiness and health. Keep growing personally by setting behavior-based goals. Dive deeper into this transformative journey with resources from experts like Hal Elrod, Mel Robbins, Andrew Huberman, Tim Ferriss, and Robin Sharma. Your daily habits can be the key to a more fulfilling life.
If you’d rather look at this in a presentation format, here you go.
Start Your Day with Gratitude
One of the most powerful habits you can adopt is starting your day with gratitude. This simple practice can set a positive tone for the rest of your day. Take a moment each morning to reflect on the things you are grateful for, whether it’s your health, loved ones, or even the warmth of the sun. Practicing gratitude can help shift your mindset towards positivity and reduce stress.
Morning Exercise for a Healthy Body
Physical activity is a cornerstone of wellness. Incorporating morning exercise into your routine can boost your energy levels, improve your cardiovascular health, and even enhance your mood. Whether it’s a brisk walk, yoga, or a full-fledged workout, make time to move your body in the morning to reap these incredible benefits.
Book-end the day with mindfulness or health
Morning routines are great, but starting AND finishing the day with something you find positive and/or helpful health-wise is a double win.
Nourishing Your Body
Balanced Nutrition
A well-balanced diet is essential for overall health. Focus on incorporating a variety of fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and whole grains into your meals. Avoid excessive consumption of processed foods, sugary drinks, and excessive caffeine. A nutritious diet can provide you with the energy you need to tackle your day while supporting your long-term health goals.
Stay Hydrated
Water is the elixir of life. Staying properly hydrated is vital for maintaining bodily functions, cognitive clarity, and healthy skin. Aim to drink at least eight glasses of water a day, and adjust your intake based on your activity level and climate.
Prioritizing Mental Wellness
Mindfulness Meditation
In our hectic lives, finding moments of peace is crucial. Mindfulness meditation is a practice that can help you stay grounded and reduce stress. Dedicate a few minutes each day to sit quietly, focus on your breath, and let go of the worries that clutter your mind. Over time, this practice can lead to increased emotional resilience and improved mental clarity.
Journaling for Self-Reflection
Journaling is a powerful tool for self-reflection and personal growth. Take some time each day to jot down your thoughts, emotions, and experiences. This practice can help you gain insight into your life, identify patterns, and set meaningful goals.
It can also help you stay focused on building “successful momentum” and not just focus on the negative aspects of your journey.
Avoid “Binary” or “All or Nothing” Thinking
Structural Flexibility
Build in time/space so you’re not derailed by minor fluctuations in your plans. Example: If you’re on a diet, you can eat desert, just make sure you eat it when it’s a really great one, not just a crappy one… Enjoy it but don’t regret it.
Frequency, Intensity, Time, and Type (FITT)
Another way to look at your workout routines (this could apply elsewhere too) but for example; if you’re traveling you can still adhere to the overall concept of getting in a workout, but you won’t get derailed because it’s not exactly what’s on the list for the day – you can vary things up to keep the momentum going.
Don’t punish, or over-compensate when you miss a goal or target
Stick to the plan you’ve created, don’t overcompensate by punishing yourself for a slp-up. If you have too much cake at that birthday party, don’t beat yourself up the next day in the gym, or starve yourself for the next few days over it. In the long run, this has more negative consequences than positive.
Building Strong Relationships
Quality Time with Loved Ones
Human connections are at the heart of our well-being. Make an effort to spend quality time with your family and friends. Engage in meaningful conversations, share experiences, and create lasting memories. These connections provide emotional support and enhance your overall happiness.
Getting Adequate Sleep
Establish a Bedtime Routine
Sleep is the body’s natural way of healing and rejuvenating. Ensure you get enough rest by establishing a calming bedtime routine. Avoid screens before sleep, create a comfortable sleep environment, and aim for 7-9 hours of quality sleep each night. A good night’s sleep can improve your mood, cognitive function, and physical health.
Sleep when you’re sleepy
You don’t have to just go to sleep when you’ve set the time for it, if you are tired and sleepy, go to bed. 🙂
Continuous Learning and Personal Growth
Set Goals and Challenges
Embrace a growth mindset by setting goals and challenges for yourself. Whether it’s learning a new skill, taking up a hobby, or pursuing further education, personal growth adds purpose and excitement to life.
Make goals Behavior based over Outcome focused
An example of this is NOT just looking at the scale every day – but focusing on getting in a workout every day or aligning your meals with a caloric deficit each day.
More Resources
Hal Elrod (Book: The Miracle Morning) – Promotes positive morning habits for a better life through his website and podcasts.
Mel Robbins (5-Second Rule) – Motivational speaker discussing morning routines and productivity.
Andrew Huberman (Neuroscience Insights) – Neuroscience expert shares morning routine science via podcasts and lectures.
Tim Ferriss (4-Hour Workweek) – Interviews successful individuals about their morning routines and productivity on “The Tim Ferriss Show.”
Robin Sharma (The 5 AM Club) – Advocates early rising and structured morning routines for personal growth and success.
by Gene Crawford | May 23, 2023 | Blog
Mastering Yourself
Continuous Learning and Improvement
The journey of mastering yourself begins with a commitment to continuous learning and improvement. It’s about expanding your knowledge, honing your skills, and developing your character. Whether it’s in your professional life, personal interests, or relationships, the pursuit of mastery requires dedication and perseverance.
To excel in your chosen field, embrace opportunities for growth and invest in your education. Stay updated with the latest industry trends, attend workshops and conferences, and seek out mentors who can guide you along the way. By consistently acquiring new knowledge and refining your skills, you become an expert in your domain, enabling you to provide exceptional value to others.
Setting Goals and Taking Action
Mastering yourself also involves setting clear goals and taking deliberate action to achieve them. Define your vision and break it down into actionable steps. By setting specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals, you create a roadmap for success.
Take consistent action towards your goals, pushing past obstacles and staying focused on your desired outcomes. Embrace discipline, develop effective habits, and maintain a growth mindset. Remember, it’s the small daily actions that accumulate over time and lead to significant personal growth and success.
Embracing Challenges and Learning from Mistakes
True mastery requires embracing challenges and seeing them as opportunities for growth. Challenges stretch your abilities, force you out of your comfort zone, and reveal your true potential. Embrace them with open arms and a resilient mindset.
Mistakes and failures are inevitable on the path to mastery. Instead of viewing them as setbacks, perceive them as valuable learning experiences. Analyze what went wrong, extract the lessons, and make adjustments accordingly. By adopting a growth-oriented perspective, you can turn setbacks into stepping stones towards excellence.
Serving Others
Volunteering and Making a Difference
Serving others is a natural extension of mastering yourself. It involves using your skills, knowledge, and resources to make a positive impact in the lives of others. One powerful way to serve is through volunteering your time and expertise to support causes you care about.
Find organizations or initiatives aligned with your values and contribute your time and energy. Whether it’s helping the less fortunate, supporting environmental conservation, or advocating for social justice, your efforts can create tangible change in the world. By selflessly giving back, you not only uplift others but also experience a sense of fullfilment.
Sharing Knowledge and Helping Others Grow
Another significant way to serve others is by sharing your knowledge and expertise. As you master yourself in a particular field, you accumulate valuable insights and skills that can benefit others. Take the initiative to share what you’ve learned and help others grow.
You can mentor aspiring individuals, offer workshops or webinars, or even create educational content such as blog posts or videos. By empowering others with knowledge and skills, you become a catalyst for their personal and professional development. Remember, true leaders uplift those around them.
Kindness and Support
Serving others doesn’t always require grand gestures or specific expertise. Sometimes, the simplest acts of kindness and support can make a tremendous impact. A compassionate word, a helping hand, or a listening ear can brighten someone’s day and provide them with the strength to overcome their challenges.
Practice empathy and kindness in your everyday interactions. Show genuine interest in others’ well-being, offer support when needed, and celebrate their successes. By creating a supportive environment, you inspire and motivate those around you to become their best selves.
The mantra “Master Yourself; Serve Others” encapsulates the essence of personal growth and making a positive impact in the world. By focusing on mastering ourselves through continuous learning, setting goals, and embracing challenges, we become better equipped to serve others.
Serving others can take various forms, from volunteering for causes we care about to sharing knowledge and providing support. By leveraging our skills, knowledge, and character, we can make a significant difference in the lives of others and contribute to the betterment of society.
Mark Divine
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention this powerful mantra that was taught to me years ago by retired Navy SEAL Commander Mark Divine:
The phrase “master yourself; serve others” means to first focus on developing your own skills, knowledge, and character, and then use those qualities to help and serve others. The idea is that by mastering yourself, you can become more confident, capable, and effective in serving others, and that serving others is a natural and rewarding extension of mastering yourself.
Mastering yourself involves taking the time and effort to learn and improve in various areas of your life, such as your work, your hobbies, or your relationships. It involves setting goals and working towards them, learning from your mistakes and experiences, and developing the qualities and skills that are necessary for personal growth and success.
Serving others, on the other hand, involves using your skills, knowledge, and character to help and support others. This can include volunteering your time and resources to support a cause that you care about, or using your expertise to help others learn and grow. It can also include simply being kind and supportive to those around you, and making a positive difference in the lives of others.
by Gene Crawford | May 21, 2023 | Podcast
In this solo episode, I share my experiences and lessons learned from over 20 years of running various businesses. I talk about the challenges I’ve faced, including a costly legal battle, which taught me the importance of paying attention to contracts and liability. I also discuss the essential qualities of a great leader, effective communication strategies, and the importance of taking time to detach and process decisions. I talk about importance of respect in building relationships and trust. Join me in this episode for valuable insights and inspiration to improve your leadership skills.
(more…)
by Gene Crawford | May 14, 2023 | Podcast
In this episode, we dive deep into confronting our shadow archetype, a concept introduced by Carl Jung that refers to the unconscious aspects of our personality that we reject or deny. We discuss the importance of self-awareness, embracing our shadow selves, and how doing so can lead to personal growth and a deeper understanding of ourselves. We also explore the impact of psychedelic substances, such as psilocybin and ketamine, on our subconscious, and how they may help us confront our shadow selves. Additionally, we delve into holistic health practices, such as meditation, journaling, and mindful eating, as well as enhancing communication and trust through coaching. Join us as we embark on a journey of self-discovery and confront the darker aspects of our personalities that we too often avoid or suppress.
(more…)
