Today morning at 6.30AM when I was jogging in the ground near my house, I found the old age group starting little early today. This motely group of people above 65 years is quite regular in the morning. They all do their exercises together by standing in a circle for about 45 minutes.
Its good fun to watch all of them clapping, moving their bodies, exercising and then finally shouting loudly to open up their vocal cords. I believe this is quite common in the morning in any ground where some people, out of habit and others try to develop the habit of exercising in the morning.
After their 45 minutes drill, there was something different all of them did today. Immediately after finishing, they all started doing high five (the gesture of celebrating in which two people clap each other’s palms with their arms raised). I was running and the moment I saw them, I slowed my speed because it was quite unusual to watch 65+ year olds doing high five’s. We have been used to either doing it ourselves, or watching young people do it, not a common view to watch old age people pick up this gesture.
After finishing my run, I happened to meet one of the gentlemen of that group and without controlling my anxiety went up to him and asked – “Uncle, why did you guys high five today”. Initially he wasn't sure of what I was asking but then when I demonstrated it with my hands, he realized I was asking about their new joyous moment.
“Son, we have started doing this new thing from today to simply celebrate our lives”. I wondered why suddenly these people want to celebrate their lives. He said, “Son, majority of us are more than 65+ years old and there is generally nothing to celebrate. Most of us are well settled, our children are well settled and most of us enjoy the company of our grand children. So, all in all we are contended in life. However, when we meet in the morning, the idea is to enjoy our life to the fullest and live the way, the best can live”.
“By doing high five amongst us, we try and give ourselves a kick in the morning and celebrate the fact all of us could see the morning Sun. Not many of us are sure who wouldn't see the next day’s Sun, considering our age. So, when we meet we have decided to High five the fact that we have started one more day, healthy”.
What an inspirational thought, I was amazed. These people have lived a highly contended life, all of them having done fairly well in their careers and settled well with their families. Their spirit to live life and enjoy it to the core is commendable.
This is a common view when you start your day early morning. I see everyday, so many people walking, jogging, doing exercises and some even doing yoga. There is a large yoga group that starts at 6AM and some 25-30 people yoga everyday for more than an hour. The freshness in the air, almost minimal pollution levels in the air and the sight to watch rising Sun is stupendous.
I was wondering that people who don't get up early morning perhaps miss so much of this beautiful life. The cool morning breeze (that's the only time when the breeze is cool) that passes your face, hands and legs when you are walking and running is such a nice feeling.
I am a staunch believer of the 5AM Club that gives you so much in life, provided you are a regular member of this club. Getting up at 5AM and starting your day with exercise, writing daily journal and reading some inspirational books, definitely puts you ahead of others. This is definitely a big miss for people who aren’t a member of this Club.
Just imagine by simply starting your day early, you can:
- Watch the beautiful Sun rise;
- Hear the birds chirping;
- Exercise and keep yourself fit;
- Start your day and move ahead when others are still asleep;
- Think in quiet, items you need to focus upon;
- Read books that you may not get time to read during the day;
- Manage your work much better;
- Take out time to think on your dreams and aspirations and take steps to work on them;
- Take the lead in your work schedule when others are still busy sleeping;
- Work on your new ideas as you don't get time in your busy day;
- Reach office early and manage your work much better.
There are hundreds of other reasons why people who get up early and join the 5AM Club are massively successful vis-à-vis those who are not a member of this club. Also, by moving in different circles early morning (such as those you create in your gym or in the park where you go for jogging, or the club you go for swimming etc), you also get to know many different people that you generally don't get to meet at work. This is a great way to form a circle of people around you, leading to forming some nice social groups.
Whenever I am unable to get up early morning, I always have the guilt of missing the beauties of early morning life. I feel so incomplete, irritated and sometimes I am unable to focus on my work when I am not getting up early.
Getting up early morning is like drinking wine where you get high slowly, but once you get high, it feels heavenly.
“By getting up early in the morning, you control the day, rather than the day controlling you”
You can also read my article on joining the 5AM Club at - Click here
Authored by Nimish Goel (www.nimishgoel.com), a qualified chartered accountant who’s passion is to coach young chartered accountants and aspiring students achieve the best in their life. Nimish used to work with EY and PwC in India and has also worked with KPMG in Europe. He now runs his own consulting company and runs a blog www.nimishgoel.com. He can be reached for any queries and issues on his blog.
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