Why Make Your Bed?

Do you make your bed regularly? Generally speaking, people fall into one of two camps when it comes to making their beds:

1) Making your bed sets the tone for the day. (Plus, it looks nice!)

2) Don't bother making your bed -- you'll just get back in it again.

Admiral William H. McRaven falls firmly into the first camp. In 2014, the Admiral gave a popular commencement speech at the University of Texas at Austin. He shared 10 lessons he learned from SEAL training that can help anyone better deal with life's challenges.

After his speech received an enthusiastic response, he expanded on the 10 lessons and put them into a book called Make Your Bed.. He incorporates great stories to drive his points home.

His first lesson is to make your bed:

1. You start your day with a task completed well.

2. When you make it daily, you exercise the discipline necessary to build a habit (a useful skill in many areas of life.)

3. No matter what else is going on in your life, a bed made well offers consistency, which you'll find reassuring in the midst of all that changes in life.

Making my bed became a habit years ago. I'll admit that there are days I don't make it -- and revel in my rebellion. With that said, I definitely feel better and start the day off in a positive frame of mind when I make my bed.

Do you make your bed every day? If not, I invite you to try it and see if the Admiral's points ring true for you.