Your First Hour of Work: A Daily Kickoff Strategy for a Less Stressful Workday
Your workday likely begins with a barrage of emails, Slack notifications, and meetings—each clamoring for your immediate attention. As a high achiever in the business world, this chaos is familiar. However, how you handle the first hour of your workday can dictate whether you feel overwhelmed or in control.
Here’s a strategic guide to leveraging that first hour for maximum productivity and composure. The objective? To help you manage stress, prevent burnout, and set yourself up for sustained success.
Your First Hour: How to Allocate Your Time
1. Start with Strategic Stillness (5 Minutes)
As you sit down to your desk, resist the urge to dive headfirst into work. Instead, allocate five minutes to intentional stillness:
Practice deep breathing: Inhale for four counts, hold for four, exhale for six. Repeat this cycle five times. This activates your parasympathetic nervous system, calming your body and mind.
Coffee Aromatherapy: If you’re a coffee drinker, the aroma of coffee is scientifically proven to stimulate your brain, and prompt you to feel more awake and alert without even taking a single sip. As you practice your deep breathing, enjoying the aroma of your fresh brew is a wellness coupling that can help you get centered for the day.
Set an intention: Ask yourself, “What’s the single most important outcome I want today?” This helps you prioritize and focus. Having a daily intention to guide your action will also help you feel more connected to the purpose of your work.
The Payoff: Mindfulness practices have been shown to reduce cortisol levels and improve clarity. A brief pause gives you a sense of control amidst the chaos.
2. Triage Your Inbox and Notifications (10 Minutes)
Approach your inbox and Slack with a strategic mindset, rather than reacting to every notification. Spend no more than 10 minutes here:
Identify urgent items: Quickly flag emails or messages requiring immediate action. Mark them for follow up with Google’s star system or move them to a “priority” folder.
Ignore low-priority distractions: Leave non-urgent messages for later. Not everything requires your immediate attention. Turn on your blinders and get comfortable letting non-urgent messages wait— this includes emails, Slack and Teams messages, and channels with questions that don’t align with your Top Priorities.
Pro Tip: Leverage filters or rules to automatically sort recurring low-priority emails into designated folders. For Slack and Teams, set a daily away message for your morning prep time block to help manage expectations of those around you.
The Payoff: By triaging early, you reduce cognitive load and prevent feeling scattered.
3. Map Out Your Power Blocks (15 Minutes)
Rather than diving into tasks, take time to structure your day using "power blocks"—dedicated periods of focused work. Here’s how:
Define your top three priorities: Write them down. These should align with your overarching intention for the day.
Schedule deep work: Block uninterrupted time for high-value tasks. Protect these slots from meetings or distractions.
Plan your breaks: Incorporate short breaks (5-10 minutes) between power blocks to recharge.
The Payoff: Structured time management ensures you’re productive without succumbing to the chaos of multitasking.
4. Hydrate and Fuel Your Body (10 Minutes)
Peak performance starts with fueling your body. During this time, prioritize simple actions:
Hydrate (non-negotiable): Drink at least 16 ounces of water to rehydrate after sleep. You need it.
Fuel up (optional): Breakfast is a personal choice depending on what works best for you.
If you just finished a workout before starting your work, now is a great time for a balanced snack.
If you feel better starting your day fasted, hold off until late morning or lunch.
If you feel better starting your day with fuel, opt for a balanced snack or breakfast to stabilize bloodsugar.
The Payoff: Staying hydrated and nourished supports mental clarity and decision-making, reducing the physical toll of stress.
5. Incorporate Movement (5-10 Minutes)
Movement boosts energy and resets your nervous system. Even brief activity can make a difference:
Stretch: Target your neck, shoulders, and back to release tension from prolonged desk work.
Mini workouts: Perform 10 squats, 10 pushups, or 5 quick rounds of yoga sun salutations.
Take a walk: A short loop around your home or office can increase blood flow and sharpen focus.
Pro Tip: Get a workout in before you even start your work day. Do a strength training session or cardio workout, or go for a power walk— if you work from home, treat it as your “morning commute” and walk a few miles for the time you would typically spend commuting to an office. All you need is 30 to 60 minutes to get your activity in early.
The Payoff: Physical activity enhances mood, reduces cortisol, and primes your mind for the tasks ahead.
6. Align Your Mindset (5 Minutes)
Before tackling your first task, take a moment to recalibrate your mindset:
Practice realistic gratitude: Write down one thing you’re grateful for and one challenge that is on your mind.
Reframe stress: Shift from “I have to” to “I get to.” For instance, “I get to lead this project because I’m entrusted with critical responsibilities.”
The Payoff: A positive, solution-oriented mindset reduces anxiety and fosters resilience.
The Hour in Action
Here’s how the first hour might look:
0:00 - 0:05: Begin with strategic stillness.
0:05 - 0:15: Triage your inbox and notifications.
0:15 - 0:30: Map out your power blocks and priorities.
0:30 - 0:40: Hydrate and refuel.
0:40 - 0:50: Incorporate movement.
0:50 - 1:00: Align your mindset.
By dedicating this first hour to intentional actions, you’ll shift from a reactive to a proactive approach, reducing stress and boosting productivity. High achievers don’t just work harder; they work smarter. And the first hour is your opportunity to set the tone for success.
Article References
The sources cited in the article:
Harvard Business Review (HBR). "Make Your Workday Work for Your Mental Health." HBR - Make Your Workday Work
Forbes. “Try These 10 Strategies to Get Hours of Time Back Each Week.” Forbes - Strategies to Get Hours of Time Back Each Week
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ). "How to Improve Your Time Management Skills." WSJ - How to Improve Your Time Management
Harvard Business Review (HBR). "Make Time for The Work That Matters.” HBR - Make Time for Work That Matters
WeWork. “How to Prioritize Tasks When Everything’s Important.” WeWork - How to Prioritize Tasks When Everything is Important
Forbes. “4 Morning Habits for a Highly Productive Workday.” Forbes - 4 Morning Habits for a Highly Productive Workday
Forbes. “The Power of a Mindful Morning Routine.” Forbes - The Power of a Mindful Morning Routine
National Institutes of Health (NIH). “The Importance of Creating Habits and Routine.” NIH - The Importance of Creating Habits
