Sleep & Getting up early

One of the things that are commonly said is that those famous people who achieve great things are usually early risers. I have always found that when I can get up at a reasonable time in the am the day has more in terms of achievement. I also feel better. When working away I have got into the habit of arriving at the venue 90 mins or more early, even on days when I do not need the set up time. This lets me get some work done and frankly I feel much better and sleep much better.

There are many reasons why this is a better plan however I have with some thought, 20 or 30 years too late, worked out about rationalising this in my own head.

We all need to have resources in life, and one of mine would be that at the end of every day I watch an episode of a box set or a film. This is actually a future resource that assists me to cope with more stress in the day. I will have other posts about how resources work [add a link here when done].

The cycle that I have fallen into over a long number of years and with the interactions with other members of the household was not assisting my productivity. I would sit with others and have dinner, at the time that suited them, ending up in front of the TV watching some drivel that meant I was spending time with them, which was positive for them but not productive for me.

Later when various members of the household were snoring or off in their own rooms, I used to get stuck into code or a course I was (am) taking. This meant I was productive late at night and frankly feeling horrible about getting up in the mornings. I would work late into the night and sometimes, at one point in my life, several times a year just miss out on sleep completely.

We have to couple this with my historic inability to sleep. Several members of this household are able to hit the pillow and drop to sleep instantly, something my wife has always had a skill set for, but this is not my experience. Throughout my teens, through till I quit being employed and started my own company, I had major sleep issues.

When I wrote the first draft of this I was up early at 3.20 am feeling good and productive. Working this way round seems to end up with me achieving more. One reason I may be able to achieve this is I am on holiday from some of the normal daily tasks I have. However, as I return to this draft I have flipped life on its head as again I could not sleep so I am now working on this post at nearly 3.05 am because I have not been able to sleep and not because I slept well enough to feel great as I did 2 days ago.

One of the guys I am working on a project with gets up at 4.30 am every morning. He is senior in an education establishment and he feels it works for him to get several hours head start on the rest of the staff and pupils.

Bx

The routine of sleeping well has a positive effect on all aspects of my life - I need to do some behavioural work on this to achieve more in line with my values in life. Watching a film or sharing a glass of wine with my wife is a great positive when they actually act as a Resource. However, when the routine becomes simply a drain on time, more needs doing. It is a predictable problem - so we need a plan. Perhaps the 21 days may come into play :-) However, I did do more than 21 days early before the xmas break as I was working away so much. I need to plan this within the family home and change my behaviour here.

Step 1 - going to bed now...

www

The dog was still unsettled however when my wife got up - I slept :-)