24 Hours
Randy Wolken, President & CEO

“If you tell me what you did today, I will tell you who you are.” I recently read an article titled with this saying. It really hit home. We live our days 24 hours at a time. The day is the most important period of our lives. How we spend our days is how we live our lives. Have great days and you will have a great life. Period.

But, how do you have great days? Answer this question and you will unlock your life code. If you are like most, the day can be a blur. The weekend arrives and you look back and ask yourself, “what did I accomplish this week?” It can get downright depressing when you look back and don’t feel good about what you have done with your days—or even worse, can’t remember what you did or accomplished.

I have learned the hard way that good daily routines set me up for good days, weeks, months, and years. And good daily routines are built on habits I create and do every – or most – days. Good habits help us prepare our minds, hearts, and schedules for productive days. Good habits can help us stay healthy, get better and more sleep, and enjoy our work more. Each morning I meditate, pray, take my vitamin, review my purpose, and select my top three priorities to ensure I have the best hours of my day ahead. Other habits during the day have the same effect in making my day productive. What daily routines do you have to help you get the most of your days? What could you build into your routines that would help you have a great day every day?

Beyond habits, it’s important to do what we love or find a way to love what we do. Better days are days we are passionate about the work we are doing. Passionate work is work that we find meaningful, work that challenges us, and work that we are good at. All three are necessary. The highest priority items of my day usually contain all or at least two of these three attributes.

The best days also involve caring for or serving others. Plenty of research indicates that the quality of our relationships has a huge impact on the quality of our work and the joy we find within it. Great friends, teammates, and acquaintances are found in service to them and genuine care for them. Build great relationships as you do your work and you will not work a day in your life. You will laugh, strive, cry, and find overall happiness with great relationships. How are your work relationships? Are you as close to your teammates and customers as you can be? How could you improve your relationships with them? These are critical questions to ask yourself for your success and happiness.

These are just a few lessons I have learned to make the best out of the 24 hours I get each day. What lessons have you learned that you could share with others? What do you want to do more of tomorrow to make it the best day ever? Use the next 24 hours wisely. What you do each day is who you really are.