I have always been a information hoarder. Countless books and audios, podcasts and tutorials, Tony Robbins fan club membership… Okay, that one is not really true, despite my affection for Mr. Robbins. After all, it was his audio series Personal Power that inspired me to act and start my first business. I have been on a path my entire life toward self-improvement, as I am sure you have. Because that is why you are here. Reading…

There are three things I do most everyday. It’s a personal checklist that I feel guilt over if I don’t complete. Not so much for today’s productivity, but knowing that just one incomplete of these three tasks will affect my abilities and productivity tomorrow.

#1 Break a Sweat.

I do my best thinking during and after exercise. I can’t tell you how many brain orgasms I have had while on a run or a bike ride, some of my best ideas have come during exercise. And I mean “holy cow” ideas. The tranquility and independence of a jog, for example, clears my mind of the bullshit, and allows me to focus. It helps me simplify and strategize.

You don’t have to run, however. Or bike, shoot hoops, or go for an arctic swim, for god’s sake. You just have to break a sweat. Pick something you enjoy. It can be a team sport, an endurance sport, or contact sport. It doesn’t even have to be a sport. Be creative.

Let your mind go during the activity, but when you are done, try to tackle a task or a problem that has given you difficulty. I guarantee that you will have SOME change in perspective that will make the problem or task more clear.

#2 Visualize

When I was an athlete in high school and college, my coaches were incessant on the practice of visualization. I used it to fine tune my basketball jump shot and my route adjustments as a wide receiver in college. I have also used it in my business life, visualizing my approach and delivery of a presentation, imagining my short-term development for long-term success, as well as systematically envisioning the individual steps of a project. I used it then, and I still use it now.

I find it easier to visualize if I not only visualize, but also vocalize my thoughts. Yeah, I’m the guy in traffic talking to himself. But I am not crazy, I am trouble shooting and categorizing the challenges in my life for better consumption and solution creation.

Try to discover what moments within your day would be optimum for visualization. Is it on your commute, when you are doing laundry, or on your lunch break. Find out when these times are, then take advantage of the benefit of visualization.

#3 Learn One Thing

As I stated before, I am a bit of an information hoarder. I have more reference material than most people I know, and I read them often. One of my normal practices is reading prior to bed, looking for one tidbit of information to ponder as I fall to sleep. I find that this focuses my mind on one single morsel of knowledge, therefore clearing my mind of all of the other crap from my day. I sleep sounder, and generally wake up thinking about the one fact I learned the night before.

But this can happen at any time of the day, the point is that you learn atleast one thing every single day. It can be found in a single paragraph, or a single word. A pie graph, or a tv commercial. But when it happens, recognize it, and then internalize it. Make it become a part of you.

So there they are, the three part checklist of my everyday. There is not a big time commitment here, so they should be easy enough to execute. Try incorporating them into you life, and see how three simple things can boost your brain power and productivity today…and tomorrow.