I have a buddy that helps me stay accountable for getting up early and other habits that are important to me. Every day we text and I report on if I have gotten up at 4:30am and gotten stuff done, or not.

The other morning I was a little tired. Then, my workout partner texted me that he couldn’t make it that morning. So, I slept in until 5:30am, then get up and got to work.

I was feeling pretty good about this, I had only skipped working out, but had still gotten up early. When I texted my morning report I sort of played off my getting up an hour late as no big deal. His response was brilliant.

He texted, “What grade are you giving yourself for this morning?”

Ouch!

I literally laughed out loud at the breakfast table. He knew I was slacking and I just hadn’t admitted it to myself. His question forced me to assess how I had done for the morning. The honest answer was that I had not done my best, and that is not good enough.

Now I’m asking myself this question all the time. “What grade are you giving yourself for…. ?” The question is helping me to focus on doing my very best in every situation.

Photo by Astaine Akash on Unsplash