You wake up with a start. Look at the clock. Shit. You accidentally slept in — and you had the best morning planned too. You were going to go to the gym, spend a few minutes journaling, and eat a healthy breakfast. And now what? You are rushing to the shower, throwing clothes on (whatever is on top of the hamper), and running out the door — probably to Starbucks for a last-ditch hit of caffeine and a breakfast sandwich. The rest of the day, you can’t focus, you’re bleary-eyed and lashing out at co-workers. By the time you get home, you can’t be bothered to do anything but slump on the couch and watch TV before bed. A whole day wasted.

We’ve all had days like this. An extra hour of unintended sleep somehow puts our whole day to hell. But how do we keep something so small from affecting our entire day?

Think back to your bad mornings and rough starts. Those days you were in a rush. What was the one thing you could have done to set yourself up for success or energy? If nothing comes to mind, try thinking of your best days. How did they start? What made you feel the most energetic. The activity that comes to mind is our Daily Linchpin: the one practice that counts for a hundred others and gives us the motivation that carries us all day. This is what we need to prioritize. Some days we won’t be able to everything, but prioritizing our linchpin practice, even a shortened or sloppy version, can make all the difference.

My daily linchpin is exercise. Days, where I can’t go for a run or go to the gym, used to be the worst. I got cranky and depressed. My insecurities ran wild, and I would spend the whole day dragging my feet. Now, however, when I’m in a rush, I prioritize this activity no matter what. Maybe I only have 30 minutes. I’ll go for a quick run. 5 minutes? Stretching and pushups. No matter what, I make sure I start my day off with some exercise. Even though it’s not perfect, prioritizing that single activity can make all the difference in my day.

Find your daily linchpin and stick to it. No matter what. Even if it has to push some less important activities out of the way. And don’t worry if you can’t do it to the best of your ability, or you don’t have as much time as you would like. A little bit goes a long way. Maybe your linchpin is meditation, do a few minutes of deep breathing before you leave. No time to do your three morning pages? Try for one. Whatever your linchpin is, stick to it relentlessly. It can be the difference between our best days and our worst.