Kaden ran into our room, like he does most mornings, 4:53am.

Now, I’m all for getting up early, I love the 5am club, but there’s something about being woken up by a toddler that just isn’t the same as getting up on your own.

I missed my first domino.

Last week when Kim and I were recording our podcast, she brought up a point that I think is worth isolating in an entire lesson…

Find your domino.

We all have them.

They are the things, that if you do it, it leads to a better day, a day of less grumpiness, or maybe even a domino that leads to you being healthier like cooking instead of takeout, or working out instead of watching Netflix.

For me, my morning domino is reading in the quiet with a hot cup of good coffee.

Pre-kids it used to be for 45-60 minutes (haha!).

Now, it’s maybe 15-30 minutes (or 15 seconds), before the kids get up.

Don’t get me wrong, I love my kiddos, but there’s something so enjoyable about being in quiet to kickstart the day.

That’s my first domino.

If I wake up to chaos, the rest of my day feels like chaos.

If I carve out those few minutes of quiet first thing in the morning, my day seems to go much more smooth.

Now, like this morning, it doesn’t happen every morning, but I try to stay disciplined to assure it happens more mornings than not.

So, here’s my challenge.

What’s your domino?

We all have these small things, that once you “knock it down” it creates this cascading effect of achievement, productivity, or calmness.

For example, the small habit of signing up for your workouts in our app, or putting your workout clothes out the night before.

Miss those things, you might not workout.

Hit that domino, and you’re going to crush it.

Today, more than ever, we need to identify those small dominos, that once knocked over, have a cascading effect.

Keep pushing.

1% Better.

Dedicated to Your Success,

Doug Spurling