Obama and I are very different. Not because he is black and I am white or that he is male and I am female. Not even because he is the President of the United States and I am a Life Coach. We are different because I eat something different for breakfast each morning and he doesn’t!
If you aren’t aware, Obama eats a bowl of cold cereal and banana every morning, according to the Harvard Business Review. In an effort to narrow down all of the important decisions he makes on a daily basis, he practices “routinizing the routine.” He would rather spend less mental energy on everyday menial and monotonous tasks to conserve energy for more important decisions. I get it. However, this is where Obama and my personal philosophy differ. For me, those everyday tasks add up and affect my overall energy. To wake up each morning and mindlessly eat the same meal and dress the same way would feel as though I was sleep-walking. I know humans are creatures of habit and that routines and rituals are great, but I come from the school of thought that it is important to mindfully check in with yourself in order to make decisions that best suit you in each and every moment.
When we start to live out of habit, life becomes repetitive and stagnant. When we stay in the moment to choose what our body craves, what our mind wants and what would feed our soul, we are truly living. You might be wondering: Wade, we are talking about breakfast here, how can you grow via a simple breakfast decisions? My response is there is growth and opportunity in every moment we breathe! Being mindful of how you nourish yourself when you first wake up is the spark and starting point for all that you feed yourself for the rest of the day. I don’t just mean food. I’m talking about entertainment, sights, sounds and textures. I believe experiencing the same sensations every morning numbs you and prevents your senses and intuition from fully being alive. I am all for simplifying life. However, deciding your breakfast and starting your morning gets to be the perfect place to practice mindfully connecting to your inner self.
If you are ready to break the routine and stop eating your cold cereal and banana; try tapping into yourself on a cellular level. Take a minute to pause, breathe and check in with your body and explore what your taste buds crave. Be curious as you explore, and just notice what arises in the body and mind. Maybe your body is telling you it wants oatmeal, eggs, toast, fruit, yogurt or even quinoa for breakfast. Get as creative as you want and just explore what would be the most nourishing. Heck, create your own out-of-the-box concoction. Start your morning by creating a healthy and satisfying breakfast that will jump-start your day and awaken your senses so that you can actually make more alive and productive choices. Turn your mental energy to renewable energy by staying engaged and awake to the world around you and inside of you. When you pay attention to what your body wants, you are energizing it in a more powerful way that can also transform your day.