The 5 am club

everything
you know
about creating the morning routine of a high-impact leader and a supremely
successful businessperson. I desperately want to improve my performance
and my daily productivity. I’ll also need your help to restructure my life. To
be honest, I’m feeling more inspired today than I’ve felt in a long time. But
I’m not in the best place.”
“Yeah, brother,” said the artist. “Tell us your secrets for an epic morning
routine that helps me become the best painter—and man—I can become.” He
waved his notebook in the air as he spoke. “Send us your plane. Take us to
your village. Give us some coconuts. Let us ride your dolphins. And improve
our lives. We’re all in.”
“None of what you’ll discover will be motivation,” noted the scraggly
soul with a degree of seriousness he hadn’t shown before. “All of this will
definitely be about 
transformation
. And it will be supported by strong data,
the latest research and immensely practical tactics that have been battle-tested
in the tough trenches of industry. Get ready for the greatest adventure you cats
will ever experience!”
“Excellent,” declared the entrepreneur as she reached out to shake the
weather-beaten stranger’s hand. “I need to admit that this entire scenario has
been extremely odd for both of us but, for whatever reason, we now trust you.
And, yes, we’re totally open to this new experience.”
“You’re very kind to do this for us. Thank you,” blurted out the artist. He
looked somewhat surprised by the extent of his graciousness.
“Awesome. Smart decision, guys,” came the warm response. “Please be
outside this conference center tomorrow morning. Bring at least a few days’

---

worth of clothes. That’s all. Like I said, I’m stoked to take care of everything
else. All expenses are on me. I thank you.”
“Why are you thanking us?” wondered the entrepreneur.
The homeless man smiled tenderly and scratched his beard thoughtfully.
“In his final sermon before he was assassinated, Martin Luther King, Jr., said,
‘Everybody can be great because anybody can serve. You don’t have to have
a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree
to serve. You don’t have to know about Plato and Aristotle to serve. You don’t
have to know Einstein’s Theory of Relativity to serve. You don’t have to
know the Second Theory of Thermodynamics and Physics to serve. You only
need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.’”
The tramp wiped a morsel of avocado from the edge of his mouth and
then carried on what he was saying.
“One of the big lessons I’ve learned over the years is that giving to other
people is a gift you give to yourself. Raise the joy of others and you’ll get
even more joy. Increase the state of your fellow human beings and, naturally,
your own state of being ascends. Success is cool. But significance is rad.
Generosity—not scarcity—is the trait of all of the great men and women who
have upgraded our world. And we need leaders, pure leaders and not
narcissists obsessed with their own self-interests, as never before.”
The homeless man looked down at his large watch one last time. “You
can’t take your title, net worth and fancy toys with you when you die, you
know? I’ve yet to see a moving truck following a hearse on its way to a
funeral.” He chuckled. The two listeners grinned.
“He’s a treasure,” whispered the entrepreneur.
“Def is,” acknowledged the artist.
“Stop saying ‘def’ so much,” said the entrepreneur. “It’s getting
irritating.”
The artist looked a little shocked. “Okay.”
“All that matters on your last day on Earth is the potential you’ve
leveraged, the heroism you’ve demonstrated and the human lives you’ve
graced,” the homeless man said eloquently. He then grew quiet. And let out a
deep breath. “Anyhoo. Incredible that you’re coming. We’ll have a cool
hang.”
“May I bring my paintbrushes?” the artist asked politely.
“Only if you want to paint in paradise,” came the homeless man’s reply
with a wink.

---

“And what time should we meet you outside this place tomorrow
morning?” asked the entrepreneur, placing her handbag onto a thin, bony
shoulder.
“5 
AM
,” instructed the homeless man. “Own your morning. Elevate your
life.”
Then, he disappeared.

---

Chapter 6
A Flight to Peak Productivity, Virtuosity and
Undefeatability
“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma—which is
living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your
own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They
somehow already know what you truly want to become.”