5 things I learned about the 5am club

Launched over 20 years ago by leadership and performance guru Robin Sharma, The 5am club concept seems to go in and out of popularity, but right now this morning routine to help maximise productivity and overall wellbeing seems to be having a resurgence and I can name at least 20 friends or associates who made it one of their new year resolutions.

I’ve been a staunch 5am-er for as long as I can remember now, and I truly do credit it with being one of the keys to my own personal success.   But I’ve learnt a lot along the way, so I thought I’d share my top 5am club tips with you today and how it can work for everyone, yes even those who say they aren’t a morning person, if do it the right way and your way.

1. You need to go to bed early

This may sound like common sense, but I’ve lost track of the number of people who have said they tried 5am club and it just didn’t work for them. When I question them on it and try and find out why, most were still going to bed between 11pm and 1am and expecting to spring out of bed at 5am and were disappointed they did not.  For good health and wellbeing, you still need to get between 7 to 10 hours of sleep and so getting 4-6 hours of sleep is never going to enhance any area of your life.   If you want the 5am club to work, then you have to go to bed early.  I am asleep by 10pm latest these days. I’ve even been known during lockdown times to be in bed at 7.30, but make sure you are getting enough sleep as a basic first step.

2. Be patient – It doesn’t happen overnight

The 21/90 rule states that it takes 21 days to make a habit and 90 days to make it a permanent lifestyle change.  So, don’t expect to be springing out of bed at 5am straight away. My advice to many friends was actually to phase it.  If you normally get up at 7am, try 2-3 days at 6am to start adjusting your body and then move back to 5am.   The key thing is to commit to making this lifestyle change and you will get there, it will become a habit.  Commit to it for 90 days and it will just become part of your everyday life and that’s what you want to get to.  Yes, I do have the odd day off where I don’t set my alarm, but actually now my body clock is so adjusted I wake up at 4.50-5am with no alarm, even on my “days off”.

3. You need to make 5am club work your way

The original 5am club concept from Robin has a precise formula and included 20 minutes exercise, 20 minutes planning, 20 minutes study and some meditation.  The idea being you get all these elements done before work so you’re in the best place for a great day.  The original formula may work for some, but it may not work for you and that’s ok. I don’t do my 5am club the way it was originally designed. I have a very specific formula that works for me and what I need to get done before 9am to feel in a good place.  I am not really into meditation and the thought of that was off-putting, so I threw that out and enjoy 20 minutes of fresh air on my terrace with a cuppa instead as that has the same result for me.  One of my daily tasks is to have my email inbox, LinkedIn and social media inboxes up-to-date and clear before 9am as that makes me feel good. One of my 5am club friends always tries to accomplish 5 things before 9am that they would never have if they got to at their desk at 9am.  They write it all down and find celebrating the 5 things they got done while everyone else was sleeping a motivating way to look at it.

4. Find your 5am club ‘tribe’

You may laugh, but I have 5am club friends. I have a tribe of friends who are all solid 5am-ers now and we arrange catch up calls, coaching and just send each other positive messages bright and early.  As a busy owner of two businesses, I sometimes struggle to catch up with my friends and my social life has definitely taken a back seat since I started this journey and as we know personal connection is so important on the lonely entrepreneurial journey.   Now I arrange Zoom cuppas with friends at 6am and it’s a great feeling by 9am to have had a lovely catch up and empowering chat with a friend.  We don’t dress, we don’t put make-up on and it’s totally ok – 5am club doesn’t need to be perfectly groomed.

5. Remember, you run the day and the day does not run you

I think one of my greatest learnings from 5am club and what I’d like you to take away, is that it’s a powerful tool for shaping your day and putting you in control. Often, it’s all too easy to give our “power” away by letting our businesses take over our lives. But by putting this relatively simple change in place it enables us to firmly run our day and not let the day run you, as you’re achieving the key things that need to be in place for a successful day.  Sometimes my days are so busy and I feel like I got “nothing” done between 9am-6pm but sit in meetings. But if my routine between 5am to 9am is right, then I can sit there in meetings most the day and know I got all the key stuff done before and I’m in a good place and I worry less.

It’s sounds a bit of a cliché, but 5am club truly did change my life for the better and I always advise everyone to give it a go. I won’t accept “I’m not a morning person” as an excuse as I know many people who said this who now swear by it.  Today I allocated one hour in my early morning routine to writing this article, 6am to 7am and now it’s not even 7am and I can read through this and feel I achieved something else which makes me feel good and that’s what it is all about for me – feeling happy, in control and in a good place by 9am when most are only starting their day. 

So, my one over-riding take out for you is that 5am club works – you just need to do it your way and make it work for you and your life. 

*Natasha Hatherall-Shawe is founder and CEO of TishTash Marketing