CEO Jamie Wood, 43, started climbing the corporate ladder at a young age. Wood’s family’s in finance and she thought she’d follow suit. But after diving in, she burned out “really bad at the end of my 20s,” she told CNBC Make It at the Fast Company Innovation Festival in New York City last week.
Burning out led to Wood’s fascination with how the brain operates. She founded Autonomic, a brain wellness platform that analyzes user behavior and helps build new habits geared toward lowering stress and improving energy, focus, mood and sleep.
Wood calls the platform “a personal trainer for your brain.”
Wood has worked with neuroscience experts for years and used what she’s learned to create some of her own habits for optimal cognitive functioning.
Here’s her “non-negotiable morning routine.”
1. She avoids looking at her phone first thing in the morning
First, Wood avoids looking at a digital device for the first 30 minutes of her day.
“Your first activities in the morning can strongly affect your ability to concentrate, stay motivated, and think clearly for the rest of the day,” she says. “Your prefrontal cortex, the part of your brain that helps you focus and make decisions, is especially influenced by what you do and experience soon after waking up.”
Research shows that when looking at a screen, people’s attention span decreased from an average of two and half minutes in 2004 to an average of 47 seconds in 2016.
Instead, Wood spends the first 30 minutes of her day brushing her teeth, taking a shower and getting dressed.
2. She drinks ‘a warm cup of water with a pinch of salt’
Wood also makes sure to hydrate.
“I boil the kettle and have a warm cup of water with a pinch of salt and some lemon or orange slice,” she says. Staying hydrated improves quality of sleep, cognition and mood, according to the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
“A tiny pinch of salt or a balanced electrolyte solution — water with a pinch of salt, a splash of citrus, or a little honey — can enhance cognitive function and response times after overnight dehydration,” she says.
3. She spends time outside
Wood then goes outside and looks in the direction of the sun or, if it’s cold, sits by an open window facing East soon after waking up.
Light is considered a major stimulus in helping the body understand when it’s time to do things like sleeping and being awake, according to the Stanford University Lifestyle Medicine Program.
“Exposing the eyes to outdoor light within 30 to 60 minutes of waking, ideally for 1 to 3 minutes, even on overcast days, sets your brain’s internal clock, circadian rhythm, correctly,” says Wood.
“This daily habit supports better energy, sharper thinking, and healthier sleep.”
If you can’t go outside immediately, natural light between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. can also help, she says.
4. She does some movement
Finally, Wood gets in some movement in the morning, even for a few minutes. “If it is nice I go for a little walk around the block,” she says.
“If it isn’t nice out, I do gentle movement inside.” That could mean jumping jacks, push-ups, or stretching.
“Morning exercise releases dopamine and norepinephrine, the brain’s focus and motivation chemicals,” she says. “This boosts mood, sharpens focus and improves attention, memory, cognitive flexibility and learning for hours afterward.”
All of these habits help prep Wood for her schedule. “I do all of this before to prime my brain for the day,” she says. “The effects I have noticed are significant.”
Want to be your own boss? Sign up for Smarter by CNBC Make It’s new online course, How To Start A Business: For First-Time Founders. Find step-by-step guidance for launching your first business, from testing your idea to growing your revenue. Sign up today with coupon code EARLYBIRD for an introductory discount of 30% off the regular course price of $127 (plus tax). Offer valid September 16 through September 30, 2025.
Plus, sign up for CNBC Make It’s newsletter to get tips and tricks for success at work, with money and in life, and request to join our exclusive community on LinkedIn to connect with experts and peers.
