Kick Butt Tip: How Actress Reese Witherspoon Starts Each Day

I hope you are having a wonderful day today. So, let me be a bit nosey. Exactly, how do you start each day? What time does your alarm clock go off? What does your cooked breakfast look like or do you prefer a liquid start to the day?  If you read, what type of text do you reach for?  Do you use a daily to-do list or do you just rely on memory?

I read a comment by actress Reese Witherspoon the other day that made me reflect on the questions above.

While discussing her healthy habits and goals, Witherspoon wrote, "Are there any that have improved your daily life? Here are some I’m working towards:
1. Start the day with a big glass of water.
2. Get 10 minutes of outdoor light.
3. Spend 30-60 mins reading without distraction every day.
4. In bed by 10pm. No late night TV binges. Try to get 8 hours of rest.

If you were asked to make a list of your daily habits and goals, what would your list look like?

Actress Jennifer Aniston says that on days that she has to work, she rolls out of bed at 4:30 in the morning. She then does her face washing, prepares hot water with lemon and then takes twenty minutes for personal meditation.

For me, my day starts at 3:45 in the morning. Personally, I love mornings and I love getting my day started before most people do. My favorite thing is just the quiet and peaceful nature of an early morning.

I would love to share morning routines with you. We can learn from each other, right? Shoot me an email at DonChase@WKML.com.

Go get 'em tiger! God don't make no junk. You, yes you are awesome! Now go be awesome!

- Don Chase's Kick Butt Tip of the Day is a daily motivational feature designed to give you the inspiration you need to power through your day. Check out all the Kick Butt Tips here.

Just because you don't have the best credit, that doesn't mean you have to give up on improving it. There are actually some pretty easy and quick ways to bring up your credit score. Even if you already have good credit, there's always room for improvement. I recently learned that paying off a big debut, such as a car or house, can actually bring down your credit score. That surprised me, but the reasoning makes sense.

It may seem counter-intuitive, but it's true. Paying off a big debt can actually ding your credit score and make it lower. "Paying off debt might lower your credit scores if removing the debt affects certain factors such as your credit mix, the length of your credit history or your credit utilization ratio," Equifax.com states. "Paying off your only line of installment credit reduces your credit mix and may ultimately decrease your credit scores." Also, closing or paying off a credit card could also make sure scores drop. That's "because your total available credit is lowered when you close a line of credit, which could result in a higher credit utilization ratio," they state. That said, it's not all doom and gloom. Investopedia.com adds that often times, paying off debut helps your credit score. That's especially true if you're someone who has too much debut. That's also true if you already have a low credit score.

So, let's say you're in a situation where you really want to improve your credit score. Thankfully, there are some simple ways to do so. There are some more complex ways, too. We'll get into those, as well. But, even a few small changes can make a big difference. Here are some quick ways to try to improve that coveted credit rating.

If your credit limit increases and your balance remains the same, that will lower your credit utilization. It can improve your credit. This is one of the quickest ways to improve your credit score. Moreover, if your income increases or you have more years of positive credit experience, your credit can go up, too. So, try to not max out your credit. You could even open a new credit card and not touch it, just to help lower that credit utilization even more.

Missing payments can obviously really lower your credit rating. It's a mistake you don't want to make. So, sign up for an autopay option. This might not the be quickest way to improve your credit, but over time, it can really help, especially if you find yourself missing payments once in a while.

Before your really improve your credit, you have to see where you are the weakest. So, check your credit history, and study it. Find a copy of your credit report from each of the three major national credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. Then, look the reports over to see what's bringing down your score or helping it. Improve on those negative areas.

When you open a line of credit or apply for a variety of other things, such as a loan or apartment rental, you have have to get a hard inquiry done on your account. But, each hard inquiry can bring down your credit scores a little bit. Over time, that can build up. So, try not to open too many accounts at once. These hard inquires are a minor factor, but they still count.

We usually pay off debts, such as a house payment or credit card payment, once a month. Instead, try splitting that payment into every two weeks. That could help you save on interest. But, it could also help lower your account balances and credit utilization ratio. That, in turn, could raise your scores.

This is among the biggest ways to improve your credit score. If you have a relative or even friend with a credit card account and high limit, plus a good history of paying on time, ask them if they would consider adding you as an authorized user. If they're uncomfortable and you using their card, they actually don't even have to let you use the card of give you their account number. Just the act of adding you to the account will improve your credit. It could improve it a lot.

I have personally found credit records to be pretty accurate. But, today, there are so many fraud cases out there, that you really have to be vigilant. If you have a mistake on one of your credit reports, it could really hurt your credit. So, dispute that error. If you win, that can quickly improve your credit.

While these tips could help raise your credit score, and hopefully quickly, getting stellar credit doesn't happen overnight. There's no magic bullet to wake up with an 850 credit score. So, try these tips and do your best to keep your credit perfect, or at least near perfect. Over time, it will all add up. You'll hopefully see a meaningful, and long-lasting change.