I just recalled the end of a conversation I had with a fellow at a the Oakwood bar a few weeks ago. We chatted briefly, and upon parting ways he left me with:

Make it a great day.

Normally I would have thrown out my usual “later, hope you have a good one,” but his command was echoing through my ears like the roar of an animal I had never seen before. So I stood bewildered, pondering those words, as he walked away. He probably thought I was a jerk for not responding, but I honestly got stuck in a moment.

That closing instruction, “make it a great day,” leaves someone with a task. It reminds you that life isn’t up for grabs, you control your own destiny.

No matter what kind of day you’re having, you can always turn it around.

Here are 5 things you can do to change the direction of even your worst day.

• Exercise. Whether that’s taking a break from work to crawl on the floor and do 10 pushups and 20 situps every hour for a day, having vigorous sex with your partner, or taking a lunch trip to the gym, you can always find a way to get your heart pumping.
• Eat Healthy: It’s so damn easy and cheap to go to McDonald’s and grab a value meal. But what does that say about the value of your insides? That grade-E beef covers your arteries with more cholesterol than you could imagine and makes you pay for every bite. Instead, take a bag of oranges and a apples to work, munch on some carrots, eat a few hard-boiled eggwhites, and drink 10 glasses of water. You’ll walk away with your head held high and without suffering horrible heartburn and instant regret.
• Clean your Desk. Get rid of the clutter and spray something that smells pretty in the area. Get rid of visual distractions so you can focus on the task at hand.
• Learn a New Word. There are plenty of sites that will give you a new word every day. Find one you like and set it as your homepage. Or visit a random wikipedia article to get even more in depth.
• Hug Somebody. And hug them right. Squeeze them tight and take a deep breath to get the scent of their hair. If you don’t have someone that will let you do that without calling HR, I suggest you go to a bar, strike up a conversation, buy the person a drink, and 9 times out of 10 you can sneak in a good hug when leaving (and bonus points if you leave them with the message to Make It A Great Day)

Rules:

• Habit shall be something simple I would like to improve about myself.
• I will list the habit here on this blog, making myself accountable to the interwebs.
• Progress shall be trackable and measured daily.
• Results will be posted.

For January, I will change my sleeping behavior in order to wake up earlier each workday. Through most of 2008, I found myself not awaking until nearly 8am on weekdays, missing out on a great part of the day. I will strive to awake before 7am each day, giving me time to relax and have a cup of coffee prior to starting my commute. Today was my first day, and it was with only a minor struggle that I managed to pull myself out of bed at 6:54, after snoozing my alarm only once!