OK, so you already know that it’s good to get up early, we all know it, and it’s no secret. So why don’t we all do it?
The truth is that not all of us are wired to be early-risers—in fact, some of us are decidedly more functional or creative at night—but if you are a professional in any field, there’s no question that you should be an early riser. Here’s why:
You will be happier and more productive.
As stated in an article published by Psychology Today, “Early risers are happier, healthier, and more productive than night owls.”
People who get up earlier generally report being in a better mood, due in large part to the social convention of the 9-5 workday that has been established in our society.
What apparently happens is that there is a feeling of “finding your place”, in a sense, in addition to the fact that the majority of work gets done during the first part of the day, which leads to the next point.
Everybody else is awake.
If you have a business to run, or you’re a professional of any kind, for that matter, then you really have no choice—you’ve got to be up in the AM.
The fact is that all of your partners, colleagues, and clients are most likely up, too, so it wouldn’t make sense to be snoozing when everybody else is up and getting stuff done.
That’s not to mention the fact that any vendors, suppliers, and what-have-you’s without whom your business cannot function will typically do business with you earlier in the day.
You’ll have more time to achieve tasks.
It’s not the fact that it’s a better time to be awake (even though it really is), but the point is that you’re gaining more time. There’s no law that says you have to get 8 hours of sleep per night.
It feels good to sleep the day away every once in awhile, but what’s the use in throwing extra hours down the drain, when you could be living more of your life!
When you win the first battle, you keep on winning.
The “winner’s mindset” is a phenomenon described by Ciara Conlon from Lifehack, in her article, This is Why Productive People Always Wake Up So Early.
Conlon speaks of a “sense of control acquired from beating the inner voice,” which is essentially defeating that little voice that tells you to go back to sleep when you hear the first sound of your alarm clock.
This voice is not a helpful one, and she encourages us to fight this first, important battle of our day by ignoring the little voice and getting our sorry butts out of bed.
The idea is that if you win this fight and put yourself “in charge” of the inner voice, it sets the tone for the entire day and enables you to keep on winning.
When you get up ULTRA early, and you’ll be ahead of the game—get a head start.
Anybody can get up at 8am, but the ones who drag themselves, kicking and screaming, out of bed and into the cold dawn light are the ones who are the survivors.
These are the true professionals who have already been plugging away for house, before everybody else has even had their breakfast. The advantage you can gain from rising with the sun can’t be exaggerated.
It feels like you’re going against nature when at first, but you’ll do yourself a favor if you can manage to start your day at the crack of dawn.
Stephanie
Stephanie is the Marketing Director at Talkroute and has been featured in Forbes, Inc, and Entrepreneur as a leading authority on business and telecommunications.
Stephanie is also the chief editor and contributing author for the Talkroute blog helping more than 100k entrepreneurs to start, run, and grow their businesses.