How do you start your Monday mornings? For many of us, we spend the mornings making a mental note of everything that we need to get done in the coming week, all while attempting to recover for the weekend. However, for Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, Monday mornings are all about reflection.
“I really value quiet time in the morning,” Pichai tells the WSJ Magazine, “It’s the only time where I get to step back and reflect.”
“Monday morning is particularly the time when I really try to think about the important things I want to get done for the week, or deeper thoughts. I have a notepad and a pen and I often write down the three to five things I want to get done that week.”
In addition to spending his mornings reflecting, Pichai’s wellness routines allow him to live a healthy and incredibly fulfilling professional life.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai Wellness Advice
A quiet and nourishing breakfast
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, so if you’re hoping to start off your week on the right note, then you better not miss it.
Photo by René Porter on Unsplash
Pichai revealed that he normally has a quiet breakfast, which he spends reading the news so that he can get a good sense of what’s happening in the world. As for what he eats? The long-time vegetarian shared that he has had the same breakfast almost every day for 15 years—eggs and toast, and chai to drink.
Eggs are a great and versatile food that is not only highly nutritious but can also provide added benefits that include weight management and improved heart health. Chai is also a great breakfast drink because it can help to boost brain power, which you’ll need on a Monday morning, but it’ll also help improve your digestion.
Clear your mind
The last thing you want to deal with come Monday morning is a head full of thoughts, as this will likely send your stress levels soaring. Therefore, it’s important to find ways to manage your thoughts and clear your mind.
While Pichai sees the value of meditation, he admits that it’s something that he struggles to do. On the other hand, walking has proven to be very helpful to him.
“I find it much easier to think when I’m walking or pacing.” he says, Through the pandemic, sometimes it’s been helpful to take my dog out for a walk, and I can relax by listening to podcasts.”
Stay active
There’s no wellness routine that’s complete without exercise and while he may be running one of the world’s biggest companies, that doesn’t mean that Pichai doesn’t prioritize his fitness.
He shared that Saturday and Sunday are the times when he properly does workouts, usually opting for walk/hike. Additionally, he also makes sure to end his week with a workout on Friday evening. Now, while his exercise routine isn’t as heavy during the week, he does try to fit in a workout. He says, “Late at the end of the day before dinner, I’ll squeeze a workout in. I definitely get bored doing the same thing, so it can be a Peloton bike workout, or I just choose something and do it.”
Make your work life more fulfilling
The pandemic has definitely shifted our working habits. The future of this is something that Pichai is definitely excited about,
“I see it as a new canvas on which we can develop newer ways, which make people’s work-life more fulfilling and their personal lives more fulfilling.
Even 20 years ago, Google did things very differently, embraced the notion that there could be fun at work, and creating that flexibility gave people a chance to be more creative and collaborative and fostered a sense of community.”
Pichai acknowledges that pre-pandemic, the notion of work was often accompanied by extreme busyness and tough commutes, which left people stretched. As such, he believes that employers empowering employees to have that flexibility will bring out the best in them, for themselves, personally and professionally, which will work for the company as well.
MAIN IMAGE CREDIT:sundarpichai/instagram
Want to know more?
Different things in our daily life can create stress, affecting how we approach the week ahead. That said, here are some of the best exercises given below that can help you to reduce mental stress.
