Presence Practice
Slow the morning down so deliberate action replaces anxious energy.
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Time to result
- ~days to results
- Steps
- 5
- Confidence
- 97%
Steven Scoggins uses a morning Presence Practice to interrupt the anxious energy that once dictated his workdays. Before getting out of bed, he repeats a five-part mantra about health, wealth, wisdom, stewardship, and self-love four times. He then walks barefoot on the grass by the lake for about half an hour and deliberately slows his attention before going to the gym. The mechanism is state first, action second: reducing internal speed before opening the day helps him make intentional decisions instead of throwing effort at whatever feels urgent. Scoggins treats the routine as a daily operating condition, including on travel days, rather than a reward reserved for quiet schedules.
Origin
After his 2023 exit, Scoggins concluded that slowing his mornings could accelerate his business decisions. He built the practice around a mantra, outdoor grounding, and exercise.
Core principles
- 01The way you begin the day shapes how you work and finish it.
- 02Slowing down can improve the quality and speed of later action.
- 03Self-worth should not depend on constant business activity.
- 04A repeatable grounding routine makes presence easier under pressure.
How to run it
- 1
Protect an unrushed start
Wake early enough to complete the practice before work or travel begins. Treat the time as part of operating well, not as optional leisure.
Pro tip Move the wake time earlier on travel days rather than deleting the practice.
Watch out Do not turn an early wake-up into another badge of hustle.
- 2
Repeat the mantra
Before leaving bed, repeat the chosen grounding statements four times. Include a statement of self-worth so the day does not begin with a need to earn it through work.
Pro tip Use short statements that are easy to recall before checking a device.
- 3
Ground outdoors
Walk outside for about thirty minutes and attend to the grass, wind, water, or other immediate surroundings. Let the pace and sensory attention reduce anxious energy.
Pro tip A quiet walk can work even when the body is moving; the target is a stiller mind and spirit.
- 4
Enter work intentionally
Notice whether the urgency has settled before beginning business activity. Choose the first action deliberately instead of reacting to the first demand.
Watch out Starting messages and deals while still activated recreates the state the practice is meant to interrupt.
- 5
Move the body
Finish the morning sequence with exercise so the grounded state carries into physical action and the workday.
In the wild
Scoggins had to fly from the East Coast to California in time for the podcast. He still repeated his mantra and walked outside on the grass in the dark before getting on the airplane rather than allowing the travel schedule to erase the practice.
→ The routine remained a stable operating practice even on a demanding travel morning.
Common mistakes
Opening the day in go mode
Immediate activity preserves the anxious state and makes the rest of the day reactive.
Copying performative hustle
Waking at 4 a.m. merely because someone online recommends it can sacrifice useful rest without improving decisions.
Dropping the practice when busy
Scoggins treats busy and travel days as reasons to protect the routine, not reasons to remove it.
Is it for you?
Best for
Driven entrepreneurs whose mornings immediately turn into rushed messages, decisions, and activity.
Not ideal for
People who need urgent medical or mental-health support rather than a self-directed morning practice.
From the transcript
“how I started my day was how I did my day and finish my day.”
“if I could slow things down in my morning, I could actually accelerate things in my business.”
“To get into presence, you have to slow things down.”
From the episode
How a Homeless Dropout Built 8-Figures Without Burning Out