Does The Miracle Morning Actually Work?

What is The Miracle Morning?

The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod is a quick-read, self-help book on how to have an effective morning routine that will in turn enhance your life. The book is based around SAVERS. SAVERS is a morning routine set to get your morning started off right, which will allow you to excel and thrive during the rest of the day. I decided to take on this morning routine for a full month to see the impact it has on me and if it actually works.

What are SAVERS?

SAVERS stands for:

Silence

Affirmations

Visualization

Exercise

Reading

Scribbling

For my morning routine, this is how I personally broke down SAVERS:

Silence = Praying to God & 5-10 minute meditation.

Affirmations = Saying out loud and/or writing down my affirmations such as “Today will be a great day” or “I will only think positive thoughts today.”

Visualization = Closing my eyes and imagining where I want to be in my life, almost as if it is playing out like a movie. Focusing on the big picture, but also the small details.

Exercise = I know exercise in the morning can turn many people off, but this doesn’t need to be an intense, all-out 45 minute to 1 hour workout. I would either do a very quick push-up/pull-up combo which only takes a few minutes to complete, a 15 minute stretch, or 20 minute yoga depending on the time. Then, I would follow it up with an in-depth exercise at the gym later on in the day.

Reading = I read every day, even if it was just 10 pages a day.

Scribbling = This means writing in your journal. (I guess SAVERJ just wasn’t as catchy.) There are proven long-term benefits to journal writing. Doing this will get your brain flowing and give you a sense of clarity for the rest of the day.

What are the Problems with The Miracle Morning?

The Miracle Morning sounds like a great morning routine to get your day started off on the right foot. There are definitely a lot of positives to take away from it, but this morning routine does not come without its fair share of problems:

Time

Elrod suggests waking up half an hour earlier to be able to encompass all of the miracle morning and fit it into your daily routine. Even if you are able to wake up earlier (which if you are like me is a struggle), I am not convinced 30 minutes is enough time to fit the entire routine. Even if you do the bare minimum requirements, it still will take over 30 minutes from my experience. Since many of the actions suggested in the book are great things to do, I would not recommend doing the bare minimum, which means it will take even longer. However, if you do, it will roughly take about this long:

Miracle Morning Routine Timeframe

Silence = 5 minutes (meditate or pray there isn’t enough time for both)

Affirmations = 3 minutes

Visualization = 10 minutes

Exercise = 5 minutes

Reading = 15 minutes

Scribbling = 5 minutes

Total time: 43 minutes

Visualization

This was by far the hardest part of the process for me. Since the book does not do a great job explaining how to visualize, here are some ways that might help:

First, I would need to prep myself to get ready to visualize, as suggested in the book.

Then, I would spend 10 minutes with my eyes closed thinking about where I went to be in life. This could be envisioning yourself in a bigger house, your dream job, with a family you hope to start, anything at all.

Once you get the vision in your head and see the picture clearly with detail, start to envision specific ways that you will get there. So, if you are visualizing yourself working at your dream job – let’s say Product Manager at Tesla – you will break it down into smaller steps. This includes seeing yourself:

• applying to the job
• doing an interview
• getting hired
• interacting with co-workers
• envisioning your work environment
• meeting Elon Musk;)
• and so on.

Ultimately, the best way to learn how to visualize it is to just do it. If you are like me and like to research everything before taking affirmative action, try using these 5 tips on how to visualize.

Creativity Block

I usually like to write or work on projects in the morning, shortly after waking up because that is when I feel the most creative. As humans, we only have a small window, maybe a few hours a day, that we are working at our highest capacity. This period of time usually comes in the morning time, around 10 or 11 am. You should use this time to be as productive as possible and work on what is the most important to you. For a percentage of the population, however, some brains peak early in the morning. If that’s the case, you don’t want to spend your morning doing a routine. Spend that time being productive and then do your routine after.

Should You Do The Miracle Morning?

The short answer, yes.

The long answer?

The Miracle Morning is a great routine that can help improve many aspects of your life. It has:

• assisted me in boosting my spirituality through meditation and prayer
• helped me stick true to my goal of reading every day.
• helped me to get through some tough days with affirmations and visualization
• The exercise and scribbling allowed me express myself through different outlets like exercise and journaling

All of the suggested actions in the book work and help with self-improvement…

But you don’t need to do everything in the morning!

While Mr. Elrod will probably disagree, I don’t feel it necessary to do the entire routine when you wake up in the morning. We are busy as it is in the morning and adding an extra hour to your morning routine can be draining! Yes, it can actually have the opposite effect. Rather, I would suggest breaking up SAVERS throughout the day:

Silence = Either do your prayer and meditation early in the morning or right before you go to bed.

Affirmations = This should be done in the morning, as they are your affirmations for the rest of the day and something to look back on during difficult parts of the day.

Visualization = This should be done early if you are trying to visualize your day. If you are visualizing long-term goals such as buying a house, you can fit this in whenever you have time, such as during your lunch break.

Exercise = If you know you are not going to be able to bring yourself to exercise later on in the day, do this first thing in the morning, after a nice glass of water. There are also a lot of health benefits to exercising in the morning. If your mornings are already jam-packed as it is, and you know you are committed, you can do this later on in the day.

Reading = This is another one I believe you can fit in anywhere depending on your schedule. In the morning, on your lunch break, the train ride home, or at night before bed. Just make sure to do it!

Scribbling = Writing in the morning is probably your best option. It will help you get prepared for the day. Writing at night is also a great way to reflect on the day. However, journaling is great at any time of the day.

The Miracle ‘Day’

There you have it. As you can see, I have taken the ‘morning’ out of ‘miracle morning’ but I still think the routine is very effective and has great habits to fit into your everyday life. SAVERS encompass a lot of great qualities such as spirituality, and positive thinking, strengthening both your physical and mental health. When learning about somebody else’s routine or habits, it is great to try it out for yourself and then tweak it based on your own life and goals. If you can follow this morning routine’s main concepts while putting your own unique spin on it, go for it!

Best,

Eric