Chris Salgardo,
Kiehl's President

I set my alarm for 7 a.m. But I always try to get at least seven and a half hours of sleep.

Sleep is critical for me. And if I don't get proper rest, I don't feel that I'm at my best. I have a full life that consumes me all day, and potentially late into the evenings, so a full night's rest is an essential recharge. When I'm rested, I'm able to set the stage for the morning and attack the day mentally and physically.

After waking up, I go straight to the kitchen and make a bowl of cereal. My go-to right now is Kashi Strawberry Fields. It's got dried strawberries, but I'll add fresh ones as well. With that, I'll take my vitamins with some orange juice and make an espresso to jumpstart things. I use the Francis Francis espresso maker, and the coffee comes in pods, so I just pop one of those in, add water, and it's done.

While I eat, I'll read the Times and the Post. I prefer the paper form, not the iPad. Both publications get delivered to my doorstep every morning and I spend a good 30 minutes reading before getting ready.

Having that first hour of the morning to myself is vital. It's that time before I pick up my phone, start checking emails and texts. Before I get into work mode. Once I do get into the emails, I become totally absorbed, and it could derail everything for the morning. There could be something I read or notice that will grab my attention, and then my process and routine will suffer. Surely, those 30-60 minutes aren't going to make a huge difference in getting everything I need done, but not allowing for this personal time results in me falling behind in my personal life.