5 things successful people do
5 things successful people do
Before 8 a.m.!
I stumbled upon a sensational YouTube video back in May.
It’s so good I’ve watched the 30-minute address four times: twice alone, once with Parker and again just before writing this column.
The speaker, Terri Savelle Foy, admittedly sounds like she’s 7. But forget her funny voice. Foy packs a powerful message. After sharing her heart-wrenching testimony, Foy does a masterful job inspiring her audience with insights on how to advance their lives in record time.
The video’s title is “5 things successful people do before 8 a.m.” Foy’s premise is that the secret of your future is hidden in your daily routine.
“You can’t have a million-dollar dream with minimum-wage habits,” Foy said.
Foy’s video, only five months old, has more than 1.4 million views.
My first viewing came one month before I started binge-listening to “The 5AM Club.” Foy unexpectedly laid the foundation for the version of me that now rises before the sun. We behave, Foy said, in a manner consistent with how we see ourselves.
“Success is in your routine,” Foy said. “If you change your routine you can change your whole life.”
Foy introduced me to the rule of five, which she adopted from pastor, author and speaker John C. Maxwell. The concept calls for identifying an area of your life you want to strengthen then selecting five things you can do each day to progress in that area. With consistency, you’ll eventually achieve your goal.
The principle, in its most basic form, is one I’ve studied for the past few years and have now added to my playbook.
Books like “Atomic Habits” by James Clear and “You Owe You” by Eric Thomas instilled an understanding that my behavior patterns matter above all.
Maxwell put it best in his response to an audience member who once told him that he dreamed of doing what Maxwell does for a living.
“And John Maxwell said, ‘young man, it’s not a matter of doing what I do,’” Foy relayed. “He said ‘the question is do you want to do what I did so you can do what I do?’”
Here are five things Foy said successful people do before 8 a.m.
Pray and meditate. Foy defined praying as talking to God and meditating as listening for God. Foy rattled off a list of celebrities she said she had no idea subscribed to meditation. And I loved the caveat she gave. “Now keep in mind, most of them communicate with the universe,” she said. “But we communicate with the creator of the universe, right?” Based on advice from her father, the late televangelist and author Jerry Savelle, Foy also suggested to always have a journal and a pen. Practice hearing the voice of God, she said, and write down whatever comes up in your spirit. Journaling provides direction.
Read. Foy admitted that she purposely didn’t read for 11 consecutive years. Instead, she chose car karaoke during commutes and binge-watched television at home. One day she forced herself to read for 20 minutes. She likened it to torture. But the more she read, the more she learned. And the more she learned, the more money she began earning. “As I began to grow, everything began to grow,” she said. The K.E.Y to success, Foy added, is to “keep educating yourself.” She quoted late entrepreneur, author and motivational speaker Jim Rohn, who said: “Learn to work harder on yourself than you do on your job. If you work hard on your job, you’ll make a living. If you work hard on yourself, you can make a fortune.”
Listen to audio messages every day. According to Foy, 88% of the world’s wealthiest people use drive time to learn and grow. “They turn their car into a classroom,” Foy said. Back in 2002, Foy challenged herself to listen to a faith-building message every day for 21 days. She’s done it every day since. She started by attaching a Post-it note to her bathroom mirror as a reminder. The message read “push play.”
Write and review your dreams and goals. According to Foy, your chance of success increases by 42% when you write down your goals. “You become what you behold,” Foy said. “Whatever you keep before your eyes it will eventually show up in your life. We move toward what we consistently see.”
Exercise. “Stop looking at the one hour you don’t have,” Foy said. “Look at the 20 minutes you do have and go for a walk. Do something.” Foy said she stopped speaking negatively and started saying positive declarations such as “I am fit, firm and muscular” and “I eat whatever I want to eat and I maintain my perfect weight.” Foy said the more she spoke those declarations, the more she lost weight.
