A few months ago, this article surfaced on my twitter feed, courtesy of Fast Company, called “What Successful People Do With the First Hour of Their Work Day.”  Prior to reading, I’d already incorporated light exercise, meditation and prayer into my daily morning routine. The article sparked my interest and one of the main takeaways for me was the idea of Tony Robbins’s “Hour of Power.” Over the past months, I’d had a significant elevation in stress because of personal and professional demands. The idea of staying still for an hour or even thirty minutes (“30 Minutes to Thrive”) seemed easy enough but as I tried to implement it into my routine, I found myself blocked and even more anxious at the idea of doing nothing. Slowly, I came to realize the importance of stillness and quiet. I could organize my thoughts, think linearly, reflect on gratitude and most importantly learn to clear my head. For me personally, meditating has been an essential part of my current journey. I learned to adopt a positive attitude regardless of if I felt positive or not, carve a blueprint for the rest of my day, and I began to get real clear on what my values are. If you are sure of your values, maintain a healthy state, and adopt an attitude of gratitude, life begins to pick up in an organic way. Above, I’ve included a song , a cover of Cindy Lauper’s “Time After Time”, by one of my favorite jazz vocalists Cassandra Wilson. Sometimes, I play it while I am meditating because its such a peaceful, hopeful song. Here is a link to a free download of Tony Robbins’ “Hour of Power” talk. If anything, the practice of finding at least 5 minutes a day to just be still and re-group has been invaluable to me.