Rabbi Y. Jacobson: "Recipe for a Meaningful Year"

After a discussion of the importance of beginnings, Rabbi Jacobson offers the following example (emphasis added):

If, upon awakening, we first eat a piece of cheesecake and run to check our e-mail, we allow our basic physical instincts to gain primacy in our lives. As the day lingers on we may find ourselves shallow, empty and insecure.

On the other hand, if one wakes up and, contrary to his animal instinct spends an hour in meditation, study and prayer, he can then turn even the most difficult encounter during the day into a positive and growing experience. This is because he first aligned himself with the space in his identity that is secure, genuine and idealistic.