This post brought to you by Erik Bertrand Larssen. The content and opinions expressed below are that of Daily Mom.
If you often feel scattered, unproductive or out of control in your day to day life, you are not alone. Distractions slow you down, negativity leaves you frozen, and a lack of obtainable goals keeps you from achievement. What if you could change all that in one week? Sounds unbelievable, right? Wrong! There is a new book, just released here in the U.S., that can teach you to change your ways, create new habits and get control of your scattered life.
Hell Week by Erik Bertrand Larssen will take you through one of the most challenging but rewarding seven days you have ever experienced in a quest to become your best self. Erik is a high level performance consultant and former military paratrooper who is an expert at helping people push their limits and reach a level of success they did not know was possible.
Each day of Hell Week has a theme and focus. Each day will help you focus on a different area of your life, and as you walk through the challenges you will see how each aspect of your life is connected and affects the other aspects.
The Themes
Monday: Habits – Which habits are helpful and which habits are harmful? Create good habits now that will carry you beyond Hell Week.
Tuesday: Mood and Focus – Focus on your state of mind. You can control your moods instead of your moods controlling you.
Wednesday: Time Management – Learn how to manage your time with thorough planning and preparation.
Thursday: The Comfort Zone – Get outside of your comfort zone and push yourself beyond your limits by staying awake for 41 hours. Stay off of social media all day and confront one of your biggest fears. That’s a lot for a Thursday!
Friday: Rest and Restitution – Focus on legitimately getting the rest you need after completing the hardest day of Hell Week.
Saturday: Inner Dialogue – Change your thought patterns. Move from the negative to the positive and take control of your inner dialogue.
Sunday: Reflection – Take the day to look back on everything you accomplished during the week. Process each experience. Get some perspective and think about what changes you wish to continue as you go forward into your life after Hell Week.
In addition to the theme of each day, there are 7 rules to stick to the entire time.
The Rules
There are 7 Rules to follow during Hell Week. These rules are designed to help you perform at the highest level possible. The rules are tough but are totally doable. Each rule will bring about a positive change in your life.
- Early to Bed, Early to Rise – During Hell Week, you go to bed at 10:00 p.m. and wake up at 5:00 a.m. So many Americans do not get enough sleep, and lack of sleep impacts your health and productivity in a very negative way. Get control of this problem with strict bedtime and waking time during Hell Week.
- Look Your Absolute Best at All Times – Put the old yoga pants back in the drawer, Mama. Erik wants you to dress your best in an effort to be your best. You are trying to create new patterns of behavior, and putting pride in your appearance is one of those patterns you will create.
- Exercise to the Extreme – Your physical fitness and your mental health are very interconnected. Exercise will translate into increased performance and success in every part of your life. During Hell Week, exercise every day for at least one hour.
- Stick to a Healthy Diet – You are focusing on healthy sleep and exercise, so it only makes sense that your diet should also be ideal. Avoid all junk food and don’t drink alcohol. Instead of three large meals a day, try 5 smaller meals. Prepare by stocking up on healthy food ahead of time.
- Take Charge of Your Digital Life – Most people are overloaded by their digital life. Social media is a huge distraction. We check our email right before we go to sleep at night and the second we wake up. Break harmful digital habits during Hell Week. You cannot use social media during work hours and refrain from watching TV at all during the week.
- Get Hyperfocused – With technology, the lines between work and play have blurred. We check our social media accounts at work and we check our work email lying in bed at night. During Hell Week, focus on work during work hours and once you get home, focus on being home. Stop trying to be everything to everyone all the time. Be 100 percent focused on where you are when you are there.
- Step Up Your Game – You will get out of Hell Week how much you put into it. If you go all out with the rules and the challenges, you will see incredible results. Work hard and with purpose no matter what the task before you happens to be. Complete every task. Dedication will pay off. Be proactive. Stay positive and be pleasant to be around during Hell Week. Focus and be aware of everything that is happening all week.
Does this sound like what you need to kick start real change in your life? Even if you are a stay at home mom, you can make some amazing changes with this challenge. You can take care of yourself in order to take better care of your children. Our writer, Kristen, is going to take the Hell Week Challenge next week and we would love for you to join her on this journey. Kristen is a stay at home mom. In addition to her work at Daily Mom, she is a virtual assistant and freelance writer. She is going to approach Hell Week from the perspective of a stay at home/work from home mom. You don’t have to work in a high powered, corporate job to benefit from Hell Week, and we are looking forward to seeing the positive changes in Kristen’s parenting, family life and work life after Hell Week!
What are you waiting for? Get your copy of Hell Week by Erik Bertrand Larssen right now from Amazon. The first section of the book will guide you through what to expect and how to prepare for Hell Week. The second section of the book takes you through Hell Week, with the theme and challenges for each day. The third section of the book will help you apply what you have learned to the rest of your life. Hell Week isn’t about having one challenging but productive week. Hell Week is about setting up lasting changes in every part of your life. Hell Week is about reaching the goals that you set while preparing for this very challenge and then beyond.
Let us know that you are joining the #hellweekchallenge. Join us by following @erikbertrandlarssen on Instagram. Let’s become our best self!
Photo Credits: Kristen
