In 2013, we introduced you to one of the hardest mindset exercises ever: the 90/1/100 challenge, and it was received so well that we decided to introduce part 2 in 2014. So to keep with tradition it only makes sense that we bring you this 3rd challenge called: Wake Up, an incredibly difficult and detail-oriented exercise that will completely re-align how aware you are in your day-to-day life. Being aware is one of the most critical traits of today’s most successful individuals; and while you don’t have to be aware in order to make money in life, you certainly will need to be if entrepreneurship is the path you choose to take.
What is the wake up exercise?
It is an exercise focused on understanding how aware you are in your day-to-day life. In my book Third Circle Theory, I teach people the ability to decipher their existence as it pertains to their circumstance, society, and life. This exercise is also a good measure of helping you understand how much of life you go through not actually paying attention to what happens to you versus what you are creating for yourself.
The complete exercise is 2 parts and will take 6 days total to complete (2 segments per day for three days). The first segment will be 3 days in a row of observation and note taking, the 4th day a recap, and days 5 and 6 will be focused on re-adapting yourself to what you learned. If done properly, the exercise should be repeated every 6 months to a year until you are completely awakened to the real world and can honestly say that everything you do is a by product of your own direction, rather than forced upon you by your environment.
What change can you expect?
It is very possible that after you complete this exercise you will come to the realization that you are a zombie within the world you live in, and it may be a bit discouraging at first and even depressing. The reality is that you must be prepared to face any reaction you may have to make sure the experience is positive, not negative. The goal is that within the next few days following the exercise, you will already start seeing significant results of how you see things. Think of it as an awakening experience that enables you to be more in control as time passes. While you may think that always being in control can be stressful, it can also be empowering and allow you to become limitless in your approach to life and business.
Here is the exercise itself:
Take 3 pieces of blank paper and a pen and put them by your bed side on a Sunday night so that they are available to you first thing Monday morning. These will be the only tools you need to complete the exercise.
On Monday morning when you wake up your goal will be to go through your day as you usually would, but with one exception: you are going to write EVERY single thing you do on those pieces of paper and be as descriptive as possible. This includes details like “I turned off my alarm clock at 8AM” or “I brushed my teeth with an electric toothbrush by Oral B and used Colgate toothpaste” and so on and so forth. From the clothes you picked out, to the places you visited that day, even to the people you spoke to (even if for 1 sec), every single thing must be written down.
Repeat the process for three days, as you never know what you may have missed the first two days; maybe a detail like the brand of cologne you used. Just keep writing as many things as you do, even if it’s a repeat from the 1st or 2nd day.
After 3 days of writing, consolidate your lists into one list by eliminating everything you did repeatedly more than once over the period of 3 days, but only keep the one description that is most complete. An example would be if on day 1 you wrote “I put on clothes and wore perfume” and day 2 “I put on a pink shirt, blue pants, and Marc Jacobs perfume” then cross off day 1 and only keep day 2’s description.
Transfer all the leftovers that are not duplicates clearly word for word without altering anything on to new pieces of paper so that everything you have written is in chronological order. It is irrelevant how many sheets you have.
Once you have all the information, it’s time to start the next phase of your exercise which is the self-analyzing part.
Ask yourself WHY you did what you did and the manner you did it – meaning why did you wake up at 8AM, and why did you use the brand Colgate to brush your teeth?. If you do not know why you did something, down to every detail written on that one line, simply put an “X “next to that line. If you know exactly why you did it and the reason behind every detail, then mark it with a “V” as a checkmark.
Then ask yourself if you understand HOW the things you used or did that day affect your life. An example would be if you understand how eating organic chicken is good for you or how the toothpaste you use works, as a business or scientifically. Each time you understand HOW, mark an extra “V” for checkmark and “X” if you don’t.
Finally ask yourself what you did and if you really understand what the significance of the action (each line) was that day. What did you meet with a certain person for? What impact did brushing your teeth have on your life? This isn’t philosophical, it’s simply identifying purpose behind the madness of routine. Also mark your findings with an “X” for not knowing, and “V” for knowing.
The goal is to then determine out of all possible outcomes how aware you really are based on the possible answers. Simply multiply the amount of sentences by 3, and this will be your most aware state of being. Let’s assume you have 100 sentences written; that would mean you have a positive score of 300 as the maximum and 0 being the lowest score. Write down how many X’s and how many V’s are on your sheet and determine the following using this scale:
Highest Level of Awareness (you are in control of your life) – less than 5% of your answers were X
Good Level of Awareness (you understand why things happen to you and around you)- less than 10% of your answers were X
Average Awareness (you see things, but don’t question them) – less than 20% of your answers were X
Low to No Awareness (you don’t see or understand anything around you, you are a byproduct of your environment) – more than 35% of your answers are X
Being aware is extremely important and this exercise in itself will help you increase your overall awareness. The first step to being more aware is to realize you are not, and then follow it with a whole lot of curiosity to help you understand why.
