“The Perfect Day” Exercise

This was one of the most impactful things I’ve done in my life. I learned about it when I was speaking at the Freedom Business Summit back in september 2019 (https://freedomsummit.net/#about). There were 10 other speakers, all of them highly successful entrepreneurs who had made their fortunes in wide ranging areas from Podcasting, Dropshipping, Instagram Influencer talent management & marketing, Amazon FBA to restaurants. So of course, I stuck around after my keynote to hear what these folks had to say. 

Something that came up several times in many of their talks was how crucial doing the “Perfect Day” exercise was for them in altering their lives. So what is the Perfect Day exercise? 

You take a blank piece of paper and literally write out what your perfect day looks like. Break it down to 30 minute increments, what you are doing, how do you feel, who are you with. For me, it was a day full of time to read, listen to podcasts and think, while having meals or coffee meetings where i could have good & intelligent conversations with family and friends. 

It’s a very simple exercise but it’s incredibly powerful. After I did this initial exercise, I compared it to my calendar and saw the massive delta between what my normal day looked like versus my perfect day. I was literally on the phone or in meetings from 8 am through till late in evening. Fire fighting, fixing things, being pulled from one direction to another without having time to think or rest. It had gotten particularly bad for me in 2018 and 2019. 

It explained why I was feeling so drained, unhappy and worn out. It was a wake up call that forced me to rethink my career and make some changes to my lifestyle in general. Many of these changes have finally come to pass thankfully, some through my own deliberate action and others inflicted or pushed on me by the world and events. Yet, I can genuinely say I am much happier based on the mood journal I’ve been keeping over this last year. 

While I am still far away from this Perfect Day exercise, it’s something I do revisit and review. It’s a very powerful tool that helps you connect and think about all the key aspects of your life like relationships, money, health, family and work/business. It’s also an invaluable tool for planning your future. And it’s an exercise I have recommended to many others. I promise you it will change your life for the better. 

If you are interested in learning more: here are some other articles to learn more on the Perfect Day exercise and will act as good guides to put your own together:

The Life Transforming Magic of the Perfect Day Exercise

How the "average perfect day" exercise can help you set goals

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