The Hour of Power | Jack Canfield

Hi there, I'm Jack Canfield, and today I want to talk to you about a highly effective tool that I use daily called the Hour of Power. If you spend an hour of day doing these three things, you will be happier, healthier and more motivated than you ever felt. So what exactly is this hour of power? It's a full hour that is broken up into three 20 minute sessions. 20 minutes of exercise, 20 minutes of meditation, 20 minutes of reading, positive, uplifting books, webcasts, whatever it might be you want to go out there and read. Could be magazine articles, but reading is critical. Now, I've been exercising, meditating and reading most of my adult life. But it wasn't until I read about this concept of the hour of power 15 years ago that it coalesced into a structured daily practice. I get it all done early in the morning before I take my shower and get ready for the day. And it leaves me relaxed, energized and inspired, ready to take on the day. And it corresponds to the latest research that has found that when you are building a new habit, it is best to do it in the morning as your willpower tends to get weaker as the day goes on. And there are more things that can emerge during the day that can interfere with your ever even getting to them. The benefits of doing just these three things, 20 minutes of exercise, 20 minutes of meditation, and 20 minutes of reading are very powerful. When you meditate regularly, you make better decisions. You have more inner peace. You have more energy and increased focus. Reading something inspirational, positive or uplifting or educational every day ensures that you're always learning and growing. And exercise, even if you're just taking a brisk walk or stretching for 20 minutes, will make a huge difference in your overall health and your longevity. And if you can engage in aerobic exercise like running, swimming, cycling, stair stepping, or working out on an elliptical machine, or doing high intensity interval training. And if you want to, you can switch the order of the three activities. You can also choose what hour of the day you'd like to reserve for your personal hour. Power to now, for the reasons I just mentioned, I usually schedule my hour of power for the first hour when I wake up in the morning. This really jump starts my day and allows me to feel energized, focused and fully engaged. And each day I might change up my routine a little bit. One day I might exercise by taking a 20 minute walk around my neighborhood. The next day I might jog on the treadmill or work out on my elliptical machine. But whatever type of exercise you choose to do is stick. What is more important is that you just commit to doing it. Now the same goes for the meditation portion of the hour. There are so many amazing meditation resources out there for everyone, but the most important thing is to find one that you feel connected to and spend 20 minutes really grounding yourself. And if you'd like, help getting started, I've created a free ebook on the four step meditation technique that I use and it's pretty perfect for beginners. And remember, you don't need to be sitting in a remote cave in India somewhere to meditate. Although it'll be pretty cool. You can meditate almost anywhere. In your home, in your office, at a park, at the beach, or by a lake. Even in your car, of course, if it's parked. Now again, just go with your internal guidance and find a place that you feel calm and present in and use those 20 minutes to center your mind and your body and your soul. And last but not least, the third portion of your hour of power is 20 minutes of reading. So get your hands on positive, uplifting material. It can be a book, such as an autobiography of someone famous. It could be a self help book or a spiritual book. It could be a magazine article, even something from an online magazine. And if you want, you can even watch a TED or a TEDx talk online as long as it's about something uplifting and inspiring. Now the main thing is to find something that interests and excites you and that you'll look forward to reading. And by reading positive material, your subconscious mind will be immersed in the affirmative which helps you to remain in the positive state throughout the day. I want to leave you with some homework. After watching this video, I want to suggest you test drive the hour of power for 30 days and after 30 days see how you feel. And if you want to experiment, you can try moving your hour to different times of the day. And notice if having your hour power in the morning worked better than having it in the evening. Remember, you can always change the terms of your hour. It's your hour of power, but I want you to have fun with it and know that it's extremely effective in centering you, uplifting you, and helping you create a powerful, positive day. So thanks again for watching and remember, nothing in your life will change for the better until you do. And if you found this video helpful, please like it, share it with a friend who you think would benefit from it. And subscribe to my channel for more videos like this one. And if you'd like some additional resources on meditation and personal development. Make sure to visit my website@jackcampfield.com.