What could you do with an extra hour every morning?
Do you usually wake up, hit the snooze button a couple of times, and scroll through Instagram for a little while before you get out of bed? It’s okay — we’ve all been there, me included! But what if we approached our mornings a little differently?
Think about your heroes. The great thinkers, writers, entertainers, and creators of the world. What do they have in common? They get up early and hit the ground running. They know that to be productive and successful, they have to take full advantage of their time.
The greatest people in history woke up before the sun, and today, my guest is here to show you that you can too. I’m bringing one of my favorite guests back on the show to share more of his wisdom with you guys. He’s developed the optimized morning routine that anyone can follow to maximize their productivity and happiness, and he’s here with me to share it with you!
His name is Robin Sharma, and he’s a true icon. He’s worked with everyone from Nike to NASA, and today we’re bringing his genius straight to you. His most recent book, The 5 AM Club, takes you through the morning routines of the world’s greatest thinkers, superstars, and millionaires and teaches you how to get the most out of your 5 AM “victory hour.”
In our latest interview, Robin and I talk through that morning routine and why it works. And for those of you who think getting up at 5 AM must be the highest form of torture, we’re going to share why and how you actually can learn how to get up early and get the most out of your morning. And finally, Robin and I talk about the importance of rest and recovery, and how you can use your times of rest to optimize your performance in every area of your life,
“… I think one of the most important things a human being can do is press the pause button each morning while the rest of the world is asleep and ask yourself, ‘How can I fortify my mindset? How can I insulate my heartset? How can I optimize my healthset? How can I escalate my soulset … so that when I walk out in the world, I’m creative, I’m productive, I’m compassionate, I radiate positivity, and I have resilience in case I get knocked down?’” – Robin Sharma
I’m so glad I got to have Robin back on the show! He is a brilliant guy, and he’s changing the world with his message. Let’s dive in to see how we can all optimize our mornings and be our greatest selves!
(And by the way, if you stick around all the way until the end, Robin’s going to offer some great free resources just for The School of Greatness listeners!)
Who Is Robin Sharma?
Robin Sharma is a world-renowned expert in the art of optimizing your morning routine and being the best you can be. He’s spoken at events for many major players in the business world — companies like Nike, GE, Coca-Cola, NASA, and Microsoft. He is truly on a mission to serve the world and help us all get the most out of our mornings.
But Robin isn’t just a coach and a speaker — as if that weren’t enough! He’s also a multi-time bestselling author. His very first book, The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari, become a #1 bestseller. At the very beginning of his career as a motivational speaker, Robin started giving seminars on the book to tiny audiences. From there, he worked to steadily grow his reach and serve more people with his message of self-awareness and greatness.
Since then, Robin Sharma’s books have inspired over 15 million people in more than 96 countries! His latest book, The 5 AM Club, is full of tips and wisdom Robin has picked up over his 20 years of working, leading, and serving with love and understanding. I’m excited to dive deeper into the power of the 5 AM victory hour and learn how we can all level-up our four interior empires! (If you need a refresher on the four interior empires, check out Episode 754!)
And today, Robin Sharma can claim “podcast host” on his list of job titles! His podcast, The Mastery Sessions, reaches tons of new listeners every day. Through the show, Robin continues his work coaching and teaching millions of people to level-up their lives and be as great as possible.
This interview will inspire you, inform you, and help you tap into your innate inner greatness and reach your highest potential, so keep reading!
How to Structure Your “Victory Hour” and Get the Most Out of Your Morning
Robin Sharma’s approach to a morning routine is unique, and it’s actually very simple. He follows a 20/20/20 formula, meaning you spend 20 minutes on each stage of the whole routine. Let’s review the formula, and then I want to talk a little more about why it works. (Remember — if you want to get some more details about the formula’s specifics, you can check out Robin Sharma’s previous appearance on the show here!)
“… The 20/20/20 formula is simply this: You get up at 5 AM — and anyone can get up at 5 AM — … [and] for the first 20 minutes, 5:00 to 5:20, you move. … Second, … from 5:20 to 5:40 … reflect. … And then the final pocket of the 20/20/20 formula that I talked about in The 5 AM Club is grow.” – Robin Sharma
Pretty easy formula, right? You start by exercising — and I’m talking about really breaking a sweat. According to Robin, when you exercise, you release something called BDNF — brain-derived neurotrophic factor — which really optimizes your brain. You also release serotonin and dopamine, which make you feel good and set you up for happiness and productivity throughout the day.
Then you reflect. This step is all about meditating, praying, journaling, just sitting in silence with your thoughts, or doing whatever else you need to do to reflect on yourself. I think it’s a great idea to do some affirmations! Use this 20 minutes to fill up your cup and enjoy some distraction-free time alone.
And finally, grow. This is when you ask yourself the tough questions — “What are my priorities today? How do I need to show up in my life right now? What do I need to change to be a better version of myself?”
Guys, this is the morning routine of the greats. Robin calls it the “victory hour,” because it absolutely gets you in a flow state and sets you up to succeed for the rest of your day. Geniuses, entrepreneurs, movie stars, and millionaires alike know that to be successful, you’ve got to start each day by getting those good juices flowing and making sure you’re in the right mindset to conquer your goals and succeed. You can do it too!
