No Limits: The Art and Science of High Performance

by Mukesh Bansal

Performance Hack #14: Create Your Rituals Why did some of the finest thinkers in history have some of the strangest rituals? Ludwig van Beethoven, for example, would begin his day of work only after a breakfast of coffee made with exactly sixty beans. As weird as it may sound, the significance of rituals like this one lies in the role they play in preparing the body and mind for the day’s performance. When you do the exact same thing every single day, down to the minutest detail, your body and mind respond with the exact same behaviour each time. So, developing little rituals around your work, however quirky or simple, can help you in attending to your tasks with the same focus and intensity every time, bringing out your most productive self.