Life is chaotic, filled with constant stress about bills, social status, and the like. All of this takes an incredible toll on the mind. Actually, it is a miracle that there are not more mental breakdowns.
In times like these, living by a code is a necessity:
Work. Exercise. Meditate. Eat. Sleep. Repeat.
Hard work should be a primary focus in every man’s life. It brings about social status, financial success, and the ability to successfully support a family. Work makes a man feel satisfied and accomplished at the end of each and every day.
Exercise is an absolute necessity and should never be excluded from life. A common misconception here is that you have to work to complete exhaustion, leaving puddles of sweat. So long as you put in a good 30 minutes to get the heart rate up, you have done well. Exercise is necessary at least 3-4 times a week.
Meditation is your savior; it is the key to peace, tranquility, and happiness. However, your other endeavors often occupy most of your time, forcing you to skip out. Luckily, meditation can be combined with other tasks. Tasks such as working out, cleaning, hiking, walking, and more allow you to restore balance to your mind while knocking other things off of your to-do list. Note that meditative tasks only count as meditation if done in solitude and with absolute focus.
Maintaining a healthy diet is essential to productivity. The most important thing to remember: Avoid sugar like the plague. Sugar negatively affects your mood, skin complexion, and overall health. Despite its consequences, sugar is in just about everything you can buy from the store. If possible, shop organic. If not, just do the best you can.
Just like a healthy diet, sleep is crucial, especially when productivity is involved. Yet, it is neglected more often than not. To quickly end this neglect, force the body to adapt to a sleep schedule. Keep in mind that the amount of sleep necessary varies from person to person, and discovering what works best takes a bit of trial and error.
If you break the cycle, which may be necessary at times, start it again. Never completely abandon the code. Memorize it and repeat it until the day you die:
Work. Exercise. Meditate. Eat. Sleep. Repeat.