Victory Hour – The Billion Dollar Morning Routine

Whether you’re an early bird or a night owl, a fresh start of the day can help you make the most of it. We’ve been listening since our childhood that “early to bed early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise” but we didn’t think about it. Today, numerous studies have shown that those who wake up early and start their day with a winning ritual makes most of their day, stay fit and live longer than others. Billionaires like Tim Cook, Sir Richard Branson, Dwayne Johnson, Tony Robbins and Elon Musk wake up early and improve their mind, body, heart and soul. Also, those who wake up early enjoy increased productivity, enhanced cognitive function, better sleep quality and alleviated mood. You will find numerous morning routines and exercise on the internet but this article will share a secret morning ritual known as The Victory Hour.

The Victory Hour

After discussing the benefits of waking up early, you might have a question that what time is ideal to wake up. The answer is 5 am. But you will also think that what I should be doing by waking up that early. Well, the answer is simple. We should follow an hourly routine from 5 am to 6 am in which we can practice different rituals to make the most of our day. This routine is divided into three pockets namely, Move, Reflect and Grow. Each pocket contains an activity for 20 minutes. Let’s have a closer look to them.

Move: 5 AM to 5:20 AM

After waking at 5 am, you should start doing some physical activity. Keep this in mind that its not necessary to go to the gym. You can just hit a 20-minute workout at home like cardio or resistance training. High-Intensity-Training is recommended as it will allow you to sweat more in less time. This will help your brain to release dopamine, the natural feel-good hormone. Your brain will also release Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) that improves focus, cognitive function and thinking power. On the other hand, cortisol — the stress hormone is high in the morning. Sweaty exercise will decrease it and lead you towards better mood and productivity. Exercising first thing in the morning will also help you to reduce fat and maintain a healthy weight.

Reflect: 5:20 AM to 5: 40 AM

Its 5:20 am and you got fire in your belly, thanks to the workout. This is the time where you can use the next 20 minutes to reflect in isolation. You can think about the life and see whether your daily actions are leading to the desired goals or not. If you don’t have any goals yet, you can do the same in this timeframe. We can also meditate in these 20 minutes. As numerous studies show that meditation helps us to increase focus, reduce stress, improve productivity and makes us happier. You can also do journaling as it will help to set goals, compare results and plan for the day.

Grow: 5:40 AM to 6:00 AM

Now that you have completed the initial two rituals of the victory hour, its time to learn something new. In the last 20 minutes (5:40 am to 6:00 am), you can focus on your growth by gaining knowledge in your field. For this, you can read self-help books, motivational stories and autobiographies of great achievers. But if you are not into reading, you can listen a podcast, book summary or follow a trainer and watch short videos. This will help you to not only upgrade your knowledge but to stay ahead and maintain a competitive advantage.

Final Thoughts

Are you ready to adopt this routine? But beware that if you follow it for a few days, it won’t work. If you want to make a lifetime routine, follow it for 66 days. Because in the first 22 days, our brain breaks patterns of old habits. In the next 22 days, our mind makes paths for new habits. Finally, in the last 22 days, the brain strengthens newly developed neurological paths which makes the routine automated.