Ep. 5: Before Your Feet Hit the Floor: How to Prime Your Day on Purpose

Before Your Feet Hit the Floor: How to Prime Your Day on Purpose

Before you open your eyes, your body is already preparing for the day ahead. So here’s the question: What did you tell it to expect?

Because if you don’t decide, something else will—your phone, your inbox, or the anxious thought already running through your mind.

In this episode of the Make Life Count podcast, we’re talking about how to prime your day: intentionally directing your attention toward who you want to be, how you want to love, and what matters most before the day’s demands take over.

We’ll share the story of a Delta employee whose practice of naming his gratitudes before getting out of bed changed how he approached his work and everyone he encountered. We’ll also explore how anticipating stress may affect your cortisol, memory, mood, and interactions with others.

Priming doesn’t require a perfect morning routine. You can begin before your feet hit the floor—or pause and reset at any point in the day—with three questions:

• Purpose: Who am I today?
• People: Who needs my highest and best today?
• Practice: What is one moment I will win?

Priming is not pretending. It doesn’t deny grief, dread, pressure, or difficulty. It helps you recognize where you still have agency and choose how you want to show up. On the hardest days, your win might simply be taking a shower.

Our hope? That you walk away ready to expect on purpose, direct your attention toward what matters, and remember that you can always begin again.

Let’s make it count.

The Make Life Count Dare

For the next seven mornings, answer the three priming questions before your feet hit the floor.

GET THE PRIME YOUR DAY CARDS!

Hosts: Krista Gilbert, Emily Love, Emily Jamieson (EmJ) — The Transformation Triad

Research & Resources Referenced

• Cortisol and anticipated demands — research by Greg J. Elder and colleagues found that anticipating demanding tasks increased participants’ cortisol awakening response.
• Stress anticipation and memory — Jinshil Hyun, Martin J. Sliwinski & Joshua M. Smyth found that anticipating stress upon waking was associated with poorer working memory later that day.
• Morning mood and performance — Nancy P. Rothbard & Steffanie L. Wilk examined how employees’ starting moods shaped their perceptions, emotions, and performance.
• Morning light and cortisol — a systematic review found that bright early-morning light can increase cortisol compared with dim light.
• Susan David — Emotional Agility and her TED Talk, The Gift and Power of Emotional Courage, referenced in the conversation about grief and responding to difficult emotions honestly.

Connect with The Transformation Triad

• Website: thetransformationtriad.com
• Instagram: @thetransformationtriad
• YouTube: @thetransformationtriad
• Contact: thrive@thetransformationtriad.com

Your life is happening now. Live your purpose. Love your people. Own your practice. MAKE LIFE COUNT.