44 Tips for Traveling Long Distance

Last year I traveled more than I traveled in my entire life. I’ve been on 4 continents and circled the Earth 2 times by plane. It was an exciting time, knowing my propensity for travel as a personal development tool, but it was also pretty draining. Never having long distance trips until that was definitely a huge roadblock for me. I had to learn on the fly (sometimes, literally on the fly). Somewhere between my 2nd and 3rd trip I started to write down some simple steps I should follow, sort of self directed tutorial. For your information, long distance traveling means for me one to two weeks trips which includes at least a transcontinental flight longer than 7-8 hours.

Here is a (hopefully incomplete) list of tips I gathered last year. Looking at it, I just know there is so much more to be explored, but I can’t avoid a feeling of satisfaction and fulfillment for already being in all the beautiful places I’ve been so far. If you’re an experienced traveler, this list will look like common sense, but if you’re just starting out you may find out some simple, practical, yet most of the time underrated advice.

Packing

If possible, you should automate as much as you can. I’m easily bored, so packing is just not my stuff. Whenever I can put this on auto-pilot, I put it.

1. Make A Standard Packing List

And refine it every trip. I do have a minimal packing routine and I always start by getting it done first. After my minimum is done, I try to figure out what exactly I need in rapport to that specific destination: is it going to be clothing? Or maybe some specific medicines I should carry on? Sun glasses and sunscreen? I’m usually done in one hour, regardless of the final destination.

2. Pack Light

Especially when you’re going long distance try to understand that you can’t really take with you everything. Packing light means to have a bare minimum and then a little bit of extra. But not more. Most of the stuff you’ll need in case of an emergency will be available at the destination too, so instead of carrying too much with you, better have a little more cash.

3. Have At Least 5 Kilos Less Than The Airplane Limit

Usually, the maximum accepted weight for a bag is 20 kilos. So, instead of trying to figure out how to reach that limit with more stuff from home, try to go with at least 5 kilos less. You will badly need those kilos for stuff you’ll got home from the destination. On my first trip I had to actually leave some clothes to my friends to make room for some presents.

4. Load Your Digital Companion

I use my iPhone as my travel mate. So, I make sure I load it with everything I need just as I pack my bag with clothes and personal hygiene stuff. I put maps on the GPS app, audiobooks for the plane, make sure that I have enough space for photos and even load 1 or 2 movies just in case I get bored by the inflight entertainment system.

5. Take Some Meds

It’s a good idea to have some light meds with you. Depending on where you go, taking some prophylactic shots in advance is also a very good idea. I usually carry some antibiotics, some bandaids and some digestive pills. I stick them in a pocket of my personal hygiene bag and I only verify the expiration date each time I get on a new trip.

6. Have And Use A Local Dictionary

Again, I use my iPhone for that and it does a great job. I have a number of dictionaries, especially for exotic countries, like Japan, or Thailand. Whenever I get the chance I exercise my language skills with locals. It’s one of the best parts of my long distance travels. And since I’m not a native English speaker, I can also use a plain English dictionary as well.

7. Get An Universal Plug Adapter

They have different plugs in Europe, United States, Oceania or parts of Asia. It’s better to get an universal kit that would become part of your standard list above, especially if you’re part of the digital nomads tribe, as I am. You can get adapters for free during your stay in hotels but form the 3rd or 4th travel it’s easier to just make it part of your baggage.

Planning

I like the feeling of randomly putting my finger on an Earth map, making that spot my destination. But between that gesture and the actual plane take-off there’s a little bit of extra action. It’s important and it’s about planning.

1. Book Your Flight And Hotel Together

You will get some discounts if you do that and it’s also easier to maintain the necessary documents. Having all the reservations in one plastic envelope makes it easier to access them on crowded and / or hectic airports . If your trip has multiple segments (flights + hotels) keep them in a separate plastic envelope.

2. Don’t Create A Fixed Itinerary

Most of my long distance trips have been one week long. It’s a shame to stick into such a limited time as many attractions as you can even before landing there. I usually go with my intuition and try to book some guided tours on the spot, if need will be. But most of the time I’m on myself. It’s far more flexible and much more fun.

3. Plan Your Transfer From Airport To Hotel In Advance

It’s very important to solve your transportation from airport to the hotel (or your accommodation of choice) in advance. Some of the airports can be pretty far (Narita is 1 and a half hour to center Tokyo by train, for instance) while others can offer limited on the spot transportation. A smooth transition to the hotel will also have a positive effect on your entire trip.

4. Don’t Plan Anything Important In The First 36 Hours

You’ll be pretty tired after a 9+ hours flight, not to mention that jetlag will most likely give you a hard time. I usually spend the first day and a half walking around the hotel, knowing the environment, finding local stores and transportation. Once I know my way around the hotel and I have a decent amount of food supplies in my room, I can go out and experience more.

5. Get Roaming On Your Phone

It’s far more convenient than buying local calling cards. I use it because it helps me keep all the data in a central point, not mangling with several phones at once and also keeps me for making long, unnecessary calls. On the other hand, when there’s a need to make a call, I can do it instantly.

6. Budget Your Local Currency Leftovers

You will have local currency leftovers. Meaning the small notes you end up with at the airport, when you’re ready to leave that country and don’t know when you’ll going to be back again. During my first long travels those leftovers were in the 70-80 USD range. Quite a lot. After a little bit of exercise I reduced them at around 15-25 USD, which is basically a decent meal at any airport restaurant.

7. Identify Human Connections At Destinations

Find them on the Internet, on discussion groups, on blogs. Find some people you know in advance and try establish a connection with them. Not only they will become useful guides but they will also enhance your overall experience of traveling. It’s not as much about visiting places as it is about making friends.

Destination

Knowing where you go is important, although keeping a little bit of mystery around is also pretty exciting. But there are several things I learned to do before and sometimes right after I get to my destination of choice.

1. Get Info About The Food

If you’re on a special diet, as I was back when I was a raw foodist, get as much information as you can in advance. I overlooked this step only once, during my trip to Japan, and incidentally Japan is one of the most unsuitable places for a raw vegan to be. I actually had to break my diet during that visit and even after, so now I’m a little bit cautious on this one.

2. Assess Political Situation

I don’t travel in hot areas of the world, but even if you don’t do this on purpose, traveling long distance can get you close to hot areas (if your plane has been rescheduled for instance and you have to connect on a different airport in a different country). Assessing the political situation of the closest countries on your itinerary is a good idea.

3. Read Reviews On Travel Sites

But take them with a little bit of salt. I use only a few of travel sites, wikitravel being the most important one. Most of the time I’m just trying to get in the vibe, know the local habits, the local geography and cultural norms, letting the actual discovery to occur once I’m there.

4. Look Up The Itinerary on Google Maps

Especially on long distance trips this could be a very interesting activity. When I first come to New Zealand I actually didn’t realize that I would have 2 10+ hours long flights. The segment between Bangkok and Auckland seemed like a few hours, when in reality was 10 hours. That made me a very loyal client to Google Maps ever since.

5. Follow Your Intuition

Don’t always go for the famous places. Risk your time a little. The very best moments of my travels were the unexpected ones. I searched for a floating market in Bangkok (while the real floating market was 150 km away), got lost on some mountain roads while driving in Alps and got lost in a park near Danube Tower in Vienna.

6. Search For The High Points

Literally. Every big city has a high point. I’ve been on Eiffel Tour in Paris, France, on Sky Tour in Auckland, New Zealand, on Danube Tower in Venna, Austria, on Tokyo Tower in Tokyo, Japan and so on. There’s something really special about climbing on those high points and see the city unfolding under your feet.

Flying

A big part of your long distance trip will be on a plane. Don’t overlook this because you can’t really sleep all the time. Besides, there are a lot of interesting things you can do on a long distance plane if only to make sure you’ll arrive at your destination in the best possible shape.

1. Request An Aisle Seat

Even if you’re going to be bothered by other passengers to get up and down, it will be good for your body. Not to mention that you have the freedom to get up and walk whenever you want. Unless you really want to look at the Earth from 10.000 meters every minute of your 10+ hours flight, take an aisle seat.

2. Don’t Oversleep

It’s not good for your body. Out of 9-10 hours of an average transcontinental flight, I found that maximum 3 hours of sleep are the best you can get. Oversleeping will have a very strange effect on your body and will make your jetlag fighting a little bit difficult. Try some light conversation instead.

3. Don’t Abuse The Inflight Entertainment System

Every transcontinental plane has what they call an inflight entertainment system: movies, tv shows, documentaries, music or games. From my experience one of the best combos is maximum 2 movies and 1 documentary per flight. More than that is going to have quite an adverse effect on your brain. Balance the entertainment flight with some sleep, light conversation and discrete physical exercise.

4. Exercise Your Muscles And Joints

Doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll have to run to the restroom and back every 15 minutes (your flight attendants could be especially upset by such a behavior) but do try to activate some groups of muscles every half an hour. Your legs especially must be worked out, in a very discrete and effective way, but don’t forget your shoulders and neck.

5. Get On The New Local Time

Once you’re on the plane, set up your clock to the local time at the destination. If you had at least 3 weeks between your trips, it’s a good idea to get on the local time with 1-2 days in advance, in order to reduce some of the jetlag. Regardless of that, once you are on the plane, think and live by the new time at the destination.

6. Prepare For Glitches

Flying is by far one of the safest and best organized ways of traveling, but this doesn’t makes it perfect. Even flights can be delayed, or technical problems may postpone your flight with several hours or days, or you can jump into a bird. Be ready to face those situations and don’t get panicked. Eventually, you’ll get there, that’s all that counts.

7. Fully Recharge All Electronic Devices Before Getting On Board

You will need your kindle, your iPod or your laptop. During the flight, your electronic devices can be a very good replacement of the inflight entertainment system, if you can’t find something you like. Not to mention that you will need them functioning at your destination. Of course, you must switch them off during landing and taking off.

8. Take Off Your Shoes

This is not a joke. First time I saw some of my flight colleagues doing that I was quite surprised. But after 3 hours of hurting feet I finally understand. Don’t worry about walking in your socks on the plane, it’s much cleaner than you think and you’ll get rid of those socks anyway. Having healthy feet once you get down from the plane is so often underrated.

9. Keep Your Tickets And Passports Handy

Don’t stick them to the bottom of your backpack or handbag. Always keep them at hand especially when in the airport. You will need them at security checkpoints, at boarding and sometimes during the flight when you will complete arriving cards (various countries need some of those cards completed when you enter them).

10. Keep Your Tickets And Vouchers Available

I book electronically most of the time so I don’t really have tickets but receipts and itineraries. I print them and I also print all the vouchers (most of the time for airport to hotel transportation). Don’t underestimate the stress you’ll experience in a foreign airport. Make sure you can react fast to any request regarding your tickets or vouchers.

11. Get A Name Tag For Your Bags

Many airlines are providing this at the check-out desks, but many still aren’t. A name tag will have your exact name and address on it, gets attached to the bag handle and makes it much more easier to identify your baggage at the carousels.Your bag may look very much like another bag and in this case the name tag is the only distinctive element.

12. Keep The Flight Timetable Available

Again, I use my iPhone Notes app for that. For each long segment I write down my flight number, my plane type and the expected duration of the flight. It helps me gain a feeling of clarity in the middle of unknown surroundings. You may put it in a notebook or on a piece of paper. For me, it worked with the iPhone and helped me keep my head clear during 20.000+ km long flights.

13. Airports Are Part Of The Trip

I always enjoy walking inside airports, watching people and trying to get a glimpse of the local lifestyle. I don’t take airports as transitory, tasteless points in my journey. Whenever I can, I try to connect with people, to visit interesting places, to get in airport lounges or to capture beautiful pictures of planes taking off or landing.

14. Hunt For Power Outlets

Some airports have designated places for charging electronic devices, some not. Whenever I am at a coffee shop or in a waiting room, I hunt for the closest place to a power outlet. And take it.

15. Take An Extra Sweater On Board

Although many airplanes are providing light blankets, on long flights the temperature can get pretty low. Better be prepared with an extra sweater. When flying at 10.000 meters for more than 9 hours, the cold combined with the lack of humidity can be pretty nasty.

16. Get Hydrated

The air in the plane cabin is extremely dry, due to the pressuring conditions. It’s very easy to get dehydrated but it’s also very easy to avoid it. Be sure to tell to flight attendants to get you water or juice every time you need it. Some prefer to take some moisturing creme for the hands or face, I’ve been ok without it, but your mileage may vary.

Accommodation

This is something really personal, so your choice may be different than mine, Regardless of the quality of the accommodations, and of the main goal of your trip, I found out that you will always need at least those 3 simple tips.

1. Look For Basic Hygiene

I usually book hotels when I know in advance where I’m going. In 99% of the cases hotels are clean and safe. But depending on the trip, budget and local context, I can book some bed and breakfast or even a backpackers hostel. Whenever I have to choose on the spot, I usually ask to see the room in advance. Saved a lot of frustration, many times.

2. Sleep Well

Don’t overextend yourself by staying late, especially when you’ve been jetlagged. Sleep as much as you want, because you don’t want to be hit by an unbearable need to sleep in the middle of a visit to some important attraction, or even when you’re in a public spot, like a restaurant or coffee shop. Assess the room in advance and ask if it’s quiet and / or sleep friendly.

3. Make Human Connections

I split my accommodation between hotels, hostels and bed and breakfast facilities. Every time I try to make some human connection with somebody there, being the concierge, the owner of the house or just some random sleeping colleagues in a backpackers hostel. The next step for this will be of course coach surfing but I’m not sure I’m ready for it. Yet.

Field Activities

This is what you’re actually doing, the core of your trip. Of course, it’s entirely personal so the only tips here are related to your interaction with the world, and how to streamline it as much as possible.

1. Get Local Currency As Fast As You Can

If you can get it with you in advance, that’s even better. I travel mostly with EUROs and US dollars and that covers pretty much every part of the world. Be aware that exchange offices in the airports are usually much more expensive than the bank offices in the town, or have some huge commission. From my experience, it’s always better to get local currencies at a local bank.

2. Update Your Itinerary Frequently

And by that I mean let your friends and followers in the digital world knowing where you are. I am a digital media citizen and I do update my itineraries as often as I can (meaning when I get some free wifi spots, data roaming being horrendously expensive everywhere in the world). It’s good not only for letting your closest ones that you’re safe and sane, but also for personal branding. I got a few interesting followers from each country I visited after some of my long distance travel tweets.

3. Know Your Surroundings

That goes hand in hand with the planning activity which says not to do anything important in the first 36 hours. I use those hours to know: shops around, restaurants around, walking areas and public transportation areas. If there’s internet in my hotel room (99% of the cases, that is) I’m also browsing some Google Maps around my accommodation address to see the big picture.

4. Buy Day Or Week Long Public Transportation Tickets

If your planning was good, you should know in advance the costs of public transportation. In almost any of the cases, buying day long passes or even week long passes proved to be an incredible money (and time) saver. Depending on the local context you may use some exotic transportation, like Thailand tuk-tuk’s but don’t rely on them for getting fast and safe at a certain destination.

5. You Can’t Have Enough Photos

Never. Traveling long distance is such an eye opening experience, in every way you look at it. I never know when I’m going to be back there, so keeping a strong visual record will always help me remember the best I can. Most of the time I use – again – my iPhone, but recently I took the habit of carrying with me a brand new Canon 450D.

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That’s it, I hope you found it useful. If you have more, feel free to add them in the comments. Living life as a holiday is one of the best ways to live life, after all.

Start Your Day in 33 Different Ways

Mornings are underrated. I consider them fundamental for the whole diurnal experience. What you do in the very first moments of your morning will fundamentally and inexorably shape your entire day. Most of the time you spend your mornings by routinely performing some habits, on auto pilot. Hence, your days will routinely unfold towards you, the same way day after day, on auto pilot.

Consciously inserting your intentions in these very first moments will have a huge effect. Taking charge of those moments it’s like activating some subtle, unconscious triggers which will ultimately determine your whole daily experience, exactly the way you want. Mornings are fundamental. This is why I experimented a lot with my very first moments of the day.

Here are at least 33 ways in which you can transform your days by only spending 5 minutes every morning.

1. Write In Your Journal

I love the morning stillness and the unspoken promise of something ready to start. Mornings are fantastic for journaling. Whenever I do it, I feel like I already consumed several hours from that day and yet I’m only at the very beginning of it. Journaling acts like a mind emptier and out of nowhere I feel energized and ready to go. Not to mention that in the morning I have less inhibitors and my journaling is far more authentic.

2. Enjoy The Morning Silence

And do nothing. Just feel the silence and let it spread over your mind and body. I’m fascinated by all the little noises that are born from that morning silence: from my familiar house noises (wife and daughter waking up, steps, windows, doors) up to the neighborhood noises (car engines, low voices, small buzz). Everything starts in that silence and sometimes I think that if I focus enough on it I could actually predict, or even create all those little noises.

3. Be Grateful For Something 5 Minutes

Point your mind to something you’re really grateful for and stay there. Might be your family, your wealth, your health or just your present moment. Feel grateful for it. There’s nobody between you and that thing, there’s nobody watching or listening. You’re free to feel grateful and happy. And then start your day as usual. It’s only 5 minutes, yet the impact of such a day starter is overwhelming: whenever I’m doing it I feel like walking 2 centimeters above the road for the entire day.

4. Open Windows

Regardless of the current season. If it’s cold outside, even better. Open your bedroom windows, your living room windows, your kitchen windows. Let the fresh air inside, welcome the small buzz of the city waking up, silently watch the last forces of the night walking away. Let yourself be refreshed. The yesterday you is no longer there and the today you is slowly getting in shape. Those open windows will unconsciously allow you to receive change and novelty with much more ease during the day.

5. Throw Away A Useless Object

You’re going to spot it pretty easily if you put your mind to it. It often happens to me to stumble upon unneeded stuff in my house during the early morning. If it’s a chair staying in my way, maybe its place is not in my house. Maybe it’s a piece of paper or a wrecked device. I find joy and a subtle enthusiasm in throwing away things that are only cluttering my space, and doing it first thing in the morning makes it even more powerful.

6. Help Somebody

Write an answer to an old question, do part of a small chore, move an object out of somebody’s way. No need to be huge or visible. Just keep in mind the intention of being helpful immediately to somebody else. During the morning your mind is far more clear and you have access to more energy than usual. Hence, your helping activities will be much more effective if you decide to do them as the first thing after you wake up.

7. Meditate For 5 Minutes

Empty  your mind and isolate from your environment. Focus on your breathe. If there are thoughts coming in your way, acknowledge their presence and then kindly ask them to go away. Meditating in the morning is easier, there are fewer perturbing factors. Even after a good sleep, your mind is still trying to find answers, to solve problems, to fight or resist. Do yourself a simple, yet solid service and pack your morning time with an extra meditation on top.

8. Think How To Help Somebody During The Day

This is different from number 6 in terms of the actual time of the helping act. Now you’re planing how to help somebody during the day, you’re visualizing the context and try to find a specific time in your schedule for this helping act. Again, doesn’t have to be huge, a piece of advice, facilitating something or a small gift. The mere act of planing how to help somebody will change the course of your entire day.

9. Exercise

Like in getting physical. I’m not doing this every single day, but I’m doing it often enough. A part from your brain there’s a body, too. A collection of joints, muscles and bones. And in order to be balanced you have to take care of those too. The good news is that your body has a feedback mechanism for the good things you do to it: it’s called “endorphins”. Every time you start your day with a decent workout, you’ll be blessed with a decent rush of endorphins. Usually, it lasts until evening.

10. Spend 5 Minutes In The Garden

Alternatively, spend some times near your flowers. Or your terrace. Just be outside in the first minutes of the day, trying to breathe the fresh air and feel the vibe of the green life. Clear you mind and open your senses. Let your awaken body to synchronize with this frequency and don’t start the day until you completely immersed in this flow for at least 5 minutes. I seldom run into a fight or even got closer to some aggressive scene when I start my day like this.

11. Forgive Somebody

Let go. Forgive and forget. Morning are very good for that because you have so little inference from the outside world, only your own mind and personal history. Does it really matter that much? Feeling that grudge and anger towards somebody who hurt you? Yes, he hurt you, but it really matter that much? Forgiving somebody as the first thing in the morning makes me want to conquer the world the very next minutes. And it works really well with forgiving yourself too.

12. Think For 5 Minutes At Someone You Love

Again, that person may be your family, someone you loved at some point in your life or someone who just appeared. Keep that person in mind, imagine having a conversation or doing something together. Create an internal representation of a desired bond. Not only it will actually attract that person towards you (somehow) during the day, but what you think in those moments will add up to the relationship in a very mysterious way. It’s like what you think it’s already happening.

13. Read A Poem

Poetry, or any form of art, talks to your irrational mind. Usually, your morning is cluttered with rational thoughts and activities: get up and ready for the job, prepare the kids, get the morning tasks solved. Talking to your irrational mind will break this circuit, but it will do it creatively. For instance, my favorite morning poem is “If”, by Rudyard Kipling. Every time I read it, even if the day is packed with difficult tasks, somehow, I find the energy and right attitude to get over them. Totally irrational.

14. Make Coffee or Tea For Your Partner

I like this whole beverage ritual in the morning, I think it has something to do with deeply buried recollections of religious rituals we humans, as a species, performed during the history. There’s something sacramental about preparing the water, making fire, putting the right amount of tea or coffee. It’s like asking gods for benevolence. Only this time is not about gods, it’s about your partner. Paving your road through today with your partner blessing.

15. Write A Thank You Letter

You don’t have to send it, just write it. When I first experienced this I had a little bit of a shock. I realized I don’t know how to do it. And for whom. That was a sad shock. Not having somebody to say “thank you” in your life can bring in quite a sorrow. So, be sure to start at least one of your mornings with a “thank you” letter. Bring to the light people or events you are thankful for. If you say “thank you” to something first thing in the morning, you’re inviting those specific type of events into your life.

16. Take A Day Off From Your Job

And use the rest of the day for yourself. Even if you’re self employed, or especially if you’re self employed, take a day off. And start it clean, from the early morning. Those free days are somehow bigger when I decide to have them unexpectedly. If I start my morning with the clear decision to take the day off, something very strange will happen: my businesses will run smoother without me. My blog traffic will spike. It’s like too much work means getting in the way of your own success.

17. Do Some Crafting For 5 Minutes

If you’re a man, fix something, replace a light bulb or use your screwdriver to harden some piece of furniture. If you’re a woman, modify some clothes. (Later update: You can do it the other way around, if you really think this is a sexist approach – read the related comments below. And please, get over it it’s just a simple example, I never thought, nor do I will, that because you’re a woman or a man you should do ONLY a certain type of things. Are we cool now?) Just do something with your hands, without any preparation, in the morning silence. In a very surprising way, this morning crafting will unfold some new opportunities. You can find a solution to an old problem or you will solve something for somebody else. It’s like this morning crafting will actually make you craft the rest of your entire day.

18. Learn A New Word In A Foreign Language

Just one word. Every morning, for several weeks. I used to learn some hiragana and katakana only in the morning (and that proved really interesting during my first trip to Japan). It forces your brain to find parallel ways to solve problems and your body to stay focused on a small problem from the very beginning of the day. Again, in a very strange way, learning a new foreign word each morning makes me dream about foreign lands. Which is quite a way to start your day.

19. Imagine Your Morning in a New Country

How your morning will be in New Zealand? Or in Thailand? Or in Austria? If you’ve ever been there, try to remember the smells, the air, the noises. Waking up in a different country every morning might be a fantastic experience (I might do this one day, by the way). If you’ve never been there, just try to imagine your morning there. After spending 5 minutes in a distant country, getting back to your actual day will feel like coming home from a long trip. Which is, partially, true.

20. Go For A Short Walk

Like the first thing in the morning, before even having breakfast. Breathe the air, look at the neighborhood. Watch the morning light and hear the noises. Move around. When you got home, your day will be different. This short walk often acts like setting up the scene for something I want to happen. Walking around alone, before igniting the day, makes me feel like a director inspecting the stage. Everything looks cool, let’s make a great film today.

21. Write A Powerful Goal

Mornings are very good for writing goals. I especially like that time of the day for writing goals because I have very few interference from the outside world. Which makes me much more authentic. I value more the goals written in the morning because I am less influenced. I know for sure that during the morning I don’t have to prove anything to anyone, I’m just me and what I want. Some of my best health decisions are picked up during the morning.

22. Clean Your Desk

Again, this must be done before having breakfast, or before any other domestic task (and this also assumes you work from home, at some point). Put things in order, wipe the dust, prepare your working setup. And then start the day as usual. After having breakfast, interacting with your family or just finishing your morning routine, come back to your office. A shiny, fresh and neat vibration will welcome you. A short sign of appreciation from yourself.

23. Sing a Song

I do this all the time in the shower. And I highly recommend it. Despite what your neighbors may say (or even some of your early riser family members). Singing a song goes hand in hand with reading a poem. Doesn’t matter if you know how to sing. just go ahead and knock some “Let It Be” as loud as you can (“Let It Be” is my favorite shower song, by the way). If you hear me humming some tunes in my beard that’s a good sign I started with a loud song in the shower.

24. Read and Evaluate your Morning Phrase

Do you have a morning phrase? Craft one, it’s easy. Starting a day with a morning phrase it’s like a mental programming exercise for maximizing your potential. It may take even less than 5 minutes and it’s a powerful tool for energy channeling. The trick is to keep it for at least several weeks. But the advantage is that this exercise is very powerful. Wanna setup a millionaire mindset? Or just planning or quitting smoking? Put it in a morning phrase and use it.

25. Delete Some Email

Or some old, unneeded files. That’s the mirror in the virtual world of number 5. Remove the clutter. Get rid of old messages, logs or files. Be in the flow. They say you have to let go the current you in order to become who you really want. I used to be a packer. Making folders and packing and storing everything in my computer. Now I start my mornings every now and then with a refreshing session of file deletion. Making room for what the day may bring in.

26. Watch The Sunrise

Easiest of all and yet so underrated. There’s so much power and simplicity in watching the sunrise, connecting to the light and actually feeling how the Sun will start another day. And you’re there witnessing this cosmic process. Every time I watch the sunrise, being it at my home or in a foreign country, I have a subtle feeling of responsibility. This huge cosmic mechanism is turning around me as my playground: what am I going to do in it today?

27. Read Your Yesterday Journal

If you keep a journal, of course. Look at yesterday from the very first moment of your new day. What do you love about yesterday? What do you don’t like about it? Now you have the chance to change those things. Reading your journal first thing in the morning is a surprising experience. Seeing what you wrote without any noise and with a clear mind will reveal things that you didn’t noticed. Maybe because you didn’t like them?

28. Do A Short Yoga Session

You don’t have to be an expert yogi to start your day with a mild yoga session. I often find myself lighter and more flexible when starting the day with a short suite of Surya Namaskara, or Sun Salutation. It stretches your body and calm your mind. I once did this for more than 6 months, every single morning. It was perhaps the most calm and balanced period of my life. And besides calm and balance, what else do you need when you start your day?

29. Visualize 3 Moments From Yesterday

Keep your eyes closed and try to remember 3 moments from yesterday. It’s not reading about them in your journal, it’s trying to visualize them in your mind. First of all, the very selection of those 3 moments will tell you something about your current state. Are those moments embarrassing or happy? Second, keeping them live in your head will help you find a solution or a sequel to them. It will help you keep yesterday linked to today. Some people call this flow.

30. Visualize 3 Moments From Today

Can be practiced in tandem with the one above, or separately. Visualizing 3 moments from today means actually create those 3 moments. See yourself performing those actions, attending those meetings, saying those words or writing those sentences. It’s early in the morning and nobody is pressuring. You have the freedom to see yourself exactly as you want to be. In my experience, almost any of these “predicted” moments are actually happening during the day.

31. Take A Picture Of Yourself

I started this as a technical challenge a few years ago (trying to automate my Mac PhotoBooth) and proved to be enlightening. Not the actual process of taking a photo of myself each morning, but seeing those photos in a fast moving sequence months after. You can’t fool the camera in the morning. All your problems, joys, frustrations or thrills are so transparent in a photo taken in the first moment of the day. It’s like a message you send to your future self without even knowing the message.

32. Identify One Task To Be Canceled

It must be one. Out of your entire to do list for today there must be one task which can be canceled. Sometimes I wake up with the only thought of identifying my canceled task for the day. I usually chose this approach after a very intense and tiring yesterday. It give me a sense of freedom and flexibility. And most of the time the freed time will make room for something interesting, or at least surprising. It’s like opening your door to the unexpected.

33. Chose A Theme Of The Day

This works in tandem with your personal mission (if you don’t have a personal mission maybe it’s time to find one). Find one red stripe which will go through your entire day. Like making this day “the productivity day”. Or “the observation day”. Or “the money day”. This will be the dominant vibe of your entire day. By setting course in the very first moments of the morning you will maximize your chances to actually create your day on that exact theme.

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Already picked one? Great, now go ahead and pick one way to end your day.