What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast audiobook cover - And Two Other Short Guides to Achieving More at Work and Home

What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast

And Two Other Short Guides to Achieving More at Work and Home

Laura Vanderkam

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Career & SuccessProductivity

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What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast
Mastering Mornings+
5 Steps to Habit Change+
Weekend Optimization+
Workplace Success+
Career Growth+

Quiz — Test Your Understanding

Question 1 of 10
Why do the world's most successful people prefer to tackle their most important personal and professional goals in the morning?
  • A. Because they are required to report to their superiors early in the day.
  • B. Because willpower and energy are typically depleted by daily chores and obligations later in the day.
  • C. Because they need to reserve their evenings exclusively for networking events.
  • D. Because studies show that human creativity universally peaks precisely at 5:00 a.m.
Question 2 of 10
According to the book, what type of tasks should make up the best morning routines?
  • A. Urgent tasks like answering emails and returning conference calls.
  • B. Mindless household chores like doing the laundry and washing dishes.
  • C. Collaborative tasks that require the immediate input of your coworkers.
  • D. Non-urgent but important things that require extra self-motivation.
Question 3 of 10
What is the first step Laura Vanderkam recommends for transforming your morning routine?
  • A. Waking up at 5:00 a.m. every day for a week.
  • B. Creating a strict schedule that accounts for every minute of your morning.
  • C. Tracking how you spend your time over a full 168-hour week.
  • D. Purchasing a planner to write down your top three daily goals.
Question 4 of 10
When attempting to establish a new morning habit, why does the author suggest starting slowly and taking on just one activity at a time?
  • A. To prevent feeling overwhelmed and abandoning the routine when sticking to it gets tricky.
  • B. Because human memory can only retain one new habit per month.
  • C. To ensure you have enough time left over to sleep in on the weekends.
  • D. Because adding multiple activities will inevitably make you late for work.
Question 5 of 10
How does the author suggest making weekends more meaningful and avoiding the trap of 'doing nothing'?
  • A. By leaving the entire weekend open for spontaneous adventures.
  • B. By planning ahead and scheduling three to five 'anchor activities'.
  • C. By dedicating Saturday entirely to household chores so Sunday is free.
  • D. By completely disconnecting the home's internet router from Friday to Monday.
Question 6 of 10
Why does the author recommend making a list of your top one hundred dreams rather than just your top ten?
  • A. It proves to your accountability partner that you are ambitious.
  • B. It guarantees that you will accomplish at least ten of them within a year.
  • C. It forces you to move past extravagant wishes and identify accessible activities for a regular weekend.
  • D. It helps you realize that most of your dreams are actually related to your career.
Question 7 of 10
When people estimate how they spend their time, what common mistake do they make regarding their work hours?
  • A. They significantly underestimate how much time they spend working.
  • B. They overestimate how much time they spend working.
  • C. They accurately estimate their work hours but underestimate their sleep.
  • D. They confuse their working hours with time spent doing household chores.
Question 8 of 10
How did fitness entrepreneur Chalene Johnson ensure she made progress toward her large, long-term goal of making her firm more profitable?
  • A. She worked 80-hour weeks until the goal was met.
  • B. She delegated all her daily tasks to an accountability partner.
  • C. She spent her mornings exclusively answering client emails to clear her inbox.
  • D. She set smaller, achievable daily goals to maintain high motivation.
Question 9 of 10
In the context of workplace success, what does the author mean by 'career capital'?
  • A. The financial savings you have accumulated in your retirement account.
  • B. The budget your company allocates for your personal development.
  • C. The experience, networks, skills, and professional trust you have earned over time.
  • D. The physical assets and technology you use to perform your job.
Question 10 of 10
According to the study by Teresa Amabile and Steven Kramer, what factor was present on 76 percent of the days when employees reported feeling happy?
  • A. They received a financial bonus or promotion.
  • B. They made a breakthrough or noticed signs of progress.
  • C. They were allowed to leave the office early.
  • D. They spent their morning routine exercising before work.

What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast — Full Chapter Overview

What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast Summary & Overview

What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast (2013) is a guide to the early hours. Packed with useful tips drawn from the lives of today’s highfliers, it lays out an actionable plan that’ll help you design and implement your perfect morning routine. Do that, and you’ll find time for the things that matter most to you. Even better – once you’ve mastered a few time-management skills and revolutionized your mornings, you’ll be set to boost your work performance and get the most out of your weekends.

Who Should Listen to What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast?

  • Managers
  • Parents
  • Entrepreneurs
  • Busy bees

About the Author: Laura Vanderkam

Laura Vanderkam, an American blogger and public speaker, writes about productivity and time management. A regular contributor to the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal, she is also the cohost of the podcast Best of Both Worlds. Her other books include 168 Hours and I Know How She Does It.

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