Better Family Habits: The 10x10x10 Challenge

What is the 10x10x10 Challenge? Quick Version

The 10x10x10 Challenge is a way to help everyone focus. It is a way for us to collectively do something together, that will instill entrepreneurial habits that make us succeed.

  1. There are 10 tasks
  2. Do all 10 tasks every day by 10:00 am
  3. Do this for 10 days

Sounds simple? Maybe it is. Then push yourself harder. For me, doing all 10 for 10 days by 10:00 am will be challenging.

Wake at the same time without snooze

No caffeine after 10:00 am

Dress professional, even if you are not going anywhere

Exercise for 10 minutes

Make your bed

Write something, not email

Take 10 deep breathes

Smile intentionally 10x

Eat a breakfast with <10 ingredients

Make a “To Do” list, then prioritize

1. When you decide to do it, you can invite one person to do it with you. They can be a partner (you’re both encouraging one another) or they can be a challenger (you’re competing against one another)

2. Do all 10 tasks everyday by 10:00 am for 10 days in a row

3. After you complete it, you may challenge 10 other people to do it.

 

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Where did 10x10x10 come from?

Goals change the way we think! How do we grow our business, life, and emotional well-being?

Habits.

When we establish habits that we do over and over, our brains begin to do them automatically and move onto other things. When those habits are around being an entrepreneur, family member, parent, or student we start to automate what helps us to succeed.

Recently, we had a baby. I should say, “We now have a baby” since she is not going away. I have taken two weeks off to spend with the baby, my wife, and my three-year-old daughter. I went from 40 hours per week at my full time job, plus my counseling practice, the business of counseling podcast, and this consulting and marketing resource, so 50+ hours per week, to hardly working.

I can see how people get stuck when they are not moving forward.

What is the 10x10x10 Challenge? Long Version

The 10x10x10 Challenge is a way to help everyone to focus. It is a way for us to collectively do something together, that will instill entrepreneurial habits. Each morning, by doing these 10 habits by 10:00 am for 10 days, we’re instilling small wins into the beginning of our day.

  1. There are 10 tasks
  2. Do all 10 tasks every day by 10:00 am
  3. Do this for 10 days

Sounds simple? Maybe it is. Then push yourself harder. For me, doing all 10 for 10 days by 10:00 am will be challenging.

With all of these, we want your brain to know that you are winning and that the rest of the day you will be winning as well. Each one of these tasks has a scientific reason for being on the list, but it all comes down to telling your brain that the day is going to be great!

The sleep we get after we hit the snooze button is not meaningful sleep. I love it, you love it, but it’s not helping us at all. Wake up every day at the same time to help get your body in a natural rhythm.

What?! Are you crazy. I know, this is probably going to be the hardest for me. However, caffeine has a half life of 6-8 hours, which means that if we drink it too late in the day, we have poor sleep and then are more tired and need more caffeine…you get it. By cutting ourselves off, we’ll actually have more energy. Shawn Stevenson’s interview with Pat Flynn on the Smart Passive Income Podcast goes super in-depth on this. It’s awesome!

I’ve been wearing collared shirts much of the time I’m at home. It helps me continue to think professionally, feel like I’ve accomplished something and I’m ready if something comes up. Also, if I run into someone when I’m out that could be a professional connection, I look put together.

I’m not going to lie, I am terrible at exercise. I had to start somewhere and 10 minutes seemed doable. The goal of exercise is to wake up the brain, prime it for the day, and allow it to start functioning at the highest level. Whether it is yoga, a brisk walk, a run, or dodgeball, do something active.

In Charles Duhigg’s book The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business he talks about “keystone habits.” These are habits that train the brain to respond in an optimal manner. Making your bed is one of these habits that will help us as entrepreneurs, business owners, life hackers, or stay-at-home moms. It gives us a quick win and makes our house look more put together.

Oscar Wilde said, “To write well, is to think well.” If we want to grow in life, we have to be able to have agility in our thinking. We must be able to respond to new situations and think quickly. As well, formulating thoughts, ideas, and then articulating those thoughts must be practiced. To write, to build a body of knowledge or thoughts, will inspire you toward fulfilling something new. Writing something, whether it is a blog post, article, thank you note, will help us to grow in our thinking.

Controlled breathing helps the parasympathetic nervous system to grow in influence.This combats our sympathetic nervous system, which is the “fight or flight” response. By starting our day with this, we are teaching our body to relax and handle the daily stresses of our lives. In his book, Relaxation Revolution: The Science and Genetics of Mind Body Healing, Dr. Herbert Benson discusses how simple controlled breathing changes our brain.

Smiling reduces stress, helps us connect more with others, and changes our outlook. In fact, numerous studies have shown that when someone is smiling during a phone call or while typing an email, their responses are received better than non-smilers.

It’s amazing how far we have come from our natural diets. As a way to reduce unnecessary foods and increase whole foods, have only 10 ingredients for breakfast. This is harder than one would think. I looked at Honey Nut Cheerios Cereal they have 12 ingredients, so none of those. But Organic Amazon Flakes only have 3. Here are examples that work: oatmeal with dried cherries, butter, and brown sugar. Fruit with yogurt.

So often we make a “To Do” list and then do the list in the order that we wrote it. Instead, make a list, then go back through and order the tasks based on what you want to get done. Don’t check email right away, instead put that as a “To Do” list item. Decide what you want to accomplish, then do it. Don’t let email determine what you are doing for the day.

10x10x10 Challenge Rules

1. When you decide to do it, you can invite one person to do it with you. They can be a partner (you’re both encouraging one another) or they can be a challenger (you’re competing against one another)

2. Do all 10 tasks everyday by 10:00 am for 10 days in a row

3. After you complete it, you may challenge 10 other people to do it. Here are some ideas:

  • Facebook: I just completed the 10x10x10 Challenge, I challenge (tag friends) to do it, I think it will help you grow: www.PracticeofthePractice.com/10x10x10
  • Twitter: Completed #10x10x10, I challenge @_____ @_____ @_____ www.PracticeofthePractice.com/10x10x10
  • Email: Hey _________, I just completed the 10x10x10 Challenge and it really helped me by (fill in how it helped you), I’m challenging you to do. I know you can!

Will you help promote the 10x10x10 Challenge?

If this helps you grow, get motivated, or inspire you, will you tell others about it? Here are some ways that you can help:

  • Use the hash tag #10x10x10 on Twitter or Instagram to tell your story
  • Pin picture of ways that you completed the 10x10x10
  • Write a blog post about the experience and link back to this page
  • Tell people on Facebook what’s working for you
  • Discuss on LinkedIn how 10x10x10 helped you professionally
  • Share with us via email or comment what you’re doing or did during your 10x10x10 Challenge
  • Share the 10x10x10 infographic with anyone you know that could benefit from the 10x10x10 Challenge

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