Have you ever seen movies with young soldiers and boot camps? You may have noticed that their bunk beds are always neat and tidy. This detail seems tiny and unimportant, but making your bed can help you start your day off right. During the training for becoming a member of the US SEAL team in Coronado, California, the author and his fellow cadets were drilled to make their beds properly. Moreover, they figured that making a bed should be the first thing to do after waking up.

If some cadets didn't stick to this rule, they would have to do the "sugar cookie" ritual, which included diving into the Pacific Ocean and rolling in the burning sand on the coast. You may wonder why making your bed is so crucial. The task requires little effort, but carrying it out first thing in the morning can help you start your new day in the right and productive way.

This small action sets the ball rolling: having completed one task, you'll find the other tasks from your to-do list much more manageable. Furthermore, making your bed will make you feel worthy and productive before you even realize it. One more valuable lesson from the military is the significance of teammates in life.

The author understood it through a bitter experience. Once, he had a parachute jump, which had every chance to end fatally. While in the air, the man was hit by the parachute of another jumper. This clash resulted in the intertwining of his parachute with his leg. The parachute deployment force caused his pelvis to break and the abdominal muscles to tear from the bone.

During the recovery process, which took months, the author realized the value of the people who can help you go on. If his wife, Georgeann, didn't support him, McRaven would probably have suffered from depression and self-pity. There are times when we are in great need of support. It is simply impossible to handle everything on your own.