My Morning Routine
⇾ Miles Fisher,
Actor and Entrepreneur
You’ve seen and heard him everywhere. Here’s how he makes it happen.
Miles Fisher is a “jack of all trades.” After landing in Los Angeles after college, he got into making YouTube videos. And after several went viral, Hollywood came calling and he landed roles on Mad Men and in films like J. Edgar. “I thought of myself as a marketing guy, but I decided to detour on the acting path for a while,” he says. “But I never possessed a sense of equity in my work—it felt like I was just renting a career.” So he decided to take his love of coffee and find a way to improve the coffee-at-home experience. Bixby roasts and ships coffee the day you order it and offers various formats from gourmet whole-bean to custom Keurig pods and single-serve bags. And the naturally curious father of two also just launched a podcast with his father—Coffee With the Greats—where he chats with successful business leaders on what it means “to be great.” How does the guy do it all? Plenty of coffee and a good attitude it seems. And maybe a little golf to blow off steam. We caught up with Fisher recently to find out.
The Series
Those moments between turning off the alarm and getting into our work routine can be the most defining 60 minutes of our day. Benjamin Franklin set a day's worth of plans by 5 am and Steve Jobs asked a simple question: "If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?" Our rituals are a reflection of us. So we've ventured out to discover how some of our most influential and fruitful peers get started.
My Routine
I’m definitely a morning person.
I can't think clearly after 4 pm—not in any productive capacity anyhow. So I've been a fairly early riser my whole life. I'm usually up and at 'em by 5:45 am most days.
I try to hit eight hours.
All bets are off now with the pandemic, but eight hours feels right, right?
My first hour is ideally analogue.
When the alarm goes off, I roll over and kiss my wife, Lucy. I don't pickup my phone, knowing that as soon as I look at it, I'm playing defense against the rest of the world's agenda. So before checking my email, I queue up a podcast as I make my way to the kitchen to brew some coffee.
Our second daughter was born just a few months before the pandemic so the first hour of my morning is an effort to take things slow and tech-free. I drink my coffee, read the Wall Street Journal in print on the couch with my two little girls, my wife and a very happy (and increasingly rotund) black Labrador.
I drink coffee every single morning.
And I always have since school. At Bixby Roasting Co., we're always tasting coffees—several hundred a year—and selecting only the very best that we can get an unfettered supply of, so I'm happily always brewing, tasting and testing.
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Most days it’s just black coffee until noon.
On a special occasion, I'll make French toast and bacon. When my girls get a bit older, I'm looking forward to Sunday morning drives to the donut shop—windows rolled down, dog's tail ferociously wagging with his head hanging halfway out the car, Paul Simon's Graceland or João Gilberto & Stan Getz on the speakers, and the sound of young girls giggling.
I’m naturally pretty motivated, but ...
I've discovered that it's important for me to have something to look forward to—both long term and short term. Before leaving the house in the morning, I focus on the one thing I'm excited about that day. It's a little carrot at the end of the stick that keeps me inspired to suit up and show up.
I try to stay active.
ClassPass was the answer for me. Before the pandemic, it was an extraordinary value proposition. I have no idea how the gym makes its money back but for the consumer, the platform is a steal—I'd do about six classes a week, rotating between HIIT, Pilates, weights and cardio classes. Now that the world's on deep freeze, I get out for a run some days. I sound like a 65-year-old but golf is really the most exercise I get these days. I always walk and I carry my own bag.
I rely on my to-do list and calendar compulsively.
They govern the only finite resource in life: time. I'll also add to my calendar at the day's end to retroactively mark a phone conversation or interaction. At the end of each year, I print, bind, and archive my calendar and to-do lists as personal records. I have detailed daily records beginning with my sophomore year of high school. Honestly, ten years from now, I'll know the exact day and time we had this conversation.
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Grooming is a mix of high tech and classic products.
I like an old school Marvis toothpaste on a Phillips Sonicare whilst in the shower with hot—scalding hot—water. I want serious haircare, but I also use vintage handmade combs that I've collected from all over the world.
I shave daily.
But the Philips OneBlade is awfully clever. And it keeps it relatively quick and easy.
Clockwise, from top left
Endymion deodorant,
$39.60 by Penhaligon's
OneBlade electric razor/trimmer,
$34.95 by Philips Norelco
Medium roast coffee,
$12 by Bixby Roasting Co.
Fitness classes,
from $15 by ClassPass
Nutritive Bain Satin shampoo,
$24.50 by Kerastase
Classic strong mint toothpaste,
$21 by Marvis
Sponge wax,
$23 by Hanz de Fuko
Ultra Facial Cream SPF 30,
$32 by Kiehl's
Endymion deodorant,
$39.60 by Penhaligon's
Nutritive Bain Satin
shampoo, $24.50
by Kerastase
OneBlade electric
razor/trimmer, $34.95
by Philips Norelco
Medium roast coffee,
$12 by Bixby Roasting Co.
Fitness classes,
from $15 by ClassPass
Classic strong
mint toothpaste,
$21 by Marvis
Sponge wax,
$23 by Hanz de Fuko
Ultra Facial Cream
SPF 30, $32
by Kiehl's
I shave daily.
But the Philips OneBlade is awfully clever. And it keeps it relatively quick and easy.
I’ll seldom think about what I’m going to wear in advance.
It's almost always on the spot. Most often, I'll tend to start with the pants. Then fill out the ensemble based on the sense of occasion for the day.
I never leave home without a watch on my wrist.
But come to think of it, I keep my golf clubs in the back of my car so unless I'm off on foot (which is seldom in Los Angeles), I've always got my sticks with me.
Podcast Connoisseur
Podcast Connoisseur
I've been a podcast junkie for over a decade now, from news and longform interviews to audio documentaries and more. They're the nutrition-rich media alternative to the empty calories offered on TV and social media. Starting my own podcast with my father has given me more personal satisfaction than any movie or TV show I've ever acted in.
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