Starting your day with high-value activities helps prime you for the rest of the day. I have two set morning routines, one that aligns nicely with your reading and writing focus.

Every day, I wake up at 6:30 am, do two Spanish grammar lessons, practice my classical guitar, make my bed, and fill in my Five Minute Journal.

4 out of 7 days, I also work out for an hour. The other 3 days, I take that hour to read and journal in my standard, long-form journal.

These routines make it so that no matter how my day goes, I feel accomplished, like I took care of myself, and I was active and creative. It also keeps me on such a tight timeline I can’t lose time to my phone — there just isn’t any to lose.

Several psychology studies have shown “will power” isn’t real — the people who seem to exhibit it are actually just better at ignoring temptation. If you build healthy habits and strictly timed routines, its harder to fall into the temptation trap because you just can’t see it.

Thank you for writing and sharing your perspective, Srinivas!