If you feel like each of your days looks the same as the last, it might be time to try something new. Today can't be the same as yesterday and this year can't be the same as last year if you want to keep propelling forward in business and in life. Whether you're dreaming of expanding your business, growing your team or exceeding last year's sales numbers, don't step into the future thinking of the past.

Author and Ph.D. candidate Benjamin P. Hardy says that in order to move forward, you must embrace the difficulty and uncertainty of the unknown. We explore his insight in this issue of Promotional Consultant Today.

1. Wake up earlier. Make sure you get the recommended hours of sleep each night, which is about seven hours for most adults, and set your alarm to wake earlier. A healthy amount of sleep is linked to increased memory, enhanced creativity and even a longer life. Hardy says the very act of waking up earlier creates a sense of motivation in your life.

2. Pause for prayer or meditation. After a restful sleep, begin your day with some prayer or meditation. This allows you to focus on the positive and develop a grateful mindset. When you feel gratitude, you naturally attract the positive.

3. Journal for a few minutes. Grab a pen and notebook and jot down your dreams or goals. By visualizing them, you make them more emotional. As you adopt the practice of daily journal writing, you'll find that the right people will start coming into focus and you'll begin to have a clear understanding of how to make your goals happen.

4. Squeeze in some exercise. The world's healthiest, happiest and most productive people begin their day with some exercise. It doesn't take much to reap the benefits. By moving your body, whether you go for a jog or do some yoga, you'll generate a flow of inspiration and clarity while lowering your stress levels.

5. Do something brave. Try starting your day by stepping out of your comfort zone. Make that phone call. Publish that blog post. Pitch that idea. When you're courageous for just 20 seconds at a time, day in and day out, you'll find yourself growing personally and professionally.

6. Read or listen to something uplifting. Take just a few minutes each morning to start your day with something that boosts your spirit or prompts you to see the world in a new way. When you're constantly learning, you put yourself in the zone to perform at your highest.

7. Do at least one thing toward your long-term goal. Hardy recommends tackling your hardest projects first or you risk not doing them at all. If you take one big step toward your goal each day, you'll realize it's closer than you think.

8. Deepen your connections with others. Always take time to invest in the people in your life, both personally and professionally. Each morning, take some time to do something kind, thoughtful or useful for someone important in your life, and you'll start your day with more joy.

How you start your day determines the course of your day, which adds up to your weeks, months and years. Commit to completing these eight tasks every morning and you'll position yourself for more happiness and more success.

Source: Benjamin P. Hardy is the author of Willpower Doesn't Work and a Ph.D. candidate in organizational psychology.