Jun 12, 2008
Should You Even Try To Wake Up Early?
This post is part of the Better Sleep series. Be sure to sign up for RSS or email updates to catch the entire series of articles.
Michael Martine of Remarkablogger raised an important point in a recent post about the benefits of waking up early:
I find the biggest difference in getting up early only happens if I don’t check my email, comments, and social media feeds. It only benefits me when I use that time to write blog posts for Remarkablogger or lessons for Gateway Blogging. Checking messages, etc, is a big waste of that early morning creative time.
That’s an important point: There’s no use in working at becoming an early riser if you’re not going to put it to good use. But what constitutes “good use?” Time spent on business? Reading a good book? Planning fun things to do with your family? Exercising? Praying? Studying for that big test?
To be sure, each person reading this can come up with their own answer for what’s meaningful to them. The question is, have you?
What Would You Do With An Extra Hour A Day?
For those of you working on waking up early, this is an important question to ask yourself (though it’s equally important for those who take the night owl route). If you suddenly had an extra hour a day, what would you do with it? What would be meaningful enough for you to consider it time well spent? What have you been putting off for weeks / months / years / forever that you just don’t want to put off any longer?
This is a big question. A potentially life-altering question. Take a good moment to think about it.
An hour a day = 7 hours a week= 365 hours a year … the equivalent of just over 2 months of 40-hour work weeks. That’s a lot of time, whether you tack it on the beginning or the end of your day. Hell, even a half-hour a day would give you 180 hours of so of dedicated time over the course of the year.
What could you do with that much time allotted to something that’s truly meaningful to you? Think long term here, people. Let your mind wander wherever it wants to. Think big. Or think really, really small, if what you’re considering is one of the “little things” that add so much to life.
Food for thought. Tell me what you’re thinking of in the comments.
Because, tomorrow, I have a challenge for you. Be ready.
I’ll see you in the comments.
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11 Responses to “Should You Even Try To Wake Up Early?”
That bonus hour would be for revisiting my gym/exercise routine. I felt great when I was doing it, and there are heaps of benefits, both long- and short-term.
Second to that would be learning French. Gym trips only take 45 minutes. If I invest the last bit of that hour in language, I’d get there eventually.
*smacks forehead* Duh. I could listen to my language audios on the short drive to/from the gym.
Wow. Looking forward to tomorrow’s challenge…
Crystal’s last blog post..More Fab Swag From Capella U. [Micropost]
Interestingly enough, a recent job change has actually given me exactly one extra hour per day, in the morning, even without waking up any earlier.
Monday, I used the time to do some blogging at one of my favorite coffeeshops on the way to work.
Tuesday through today, I used about a 1/2 hour of it to walk around the lake at my local park, and have a little prayer time at the coffee shop after changing clothes.
There’s also a couple other things I’d like to do with that time.
Instead of getting up earlier, the big thing for me is going to be continuing to get up at the time I have been, rather than starting to sleep later simply because I could…
Where does the extra hour come from? Are you advocating everyone to sleep one hour less? It seems most of the youth get less that 7h on an average night already.
@Crystal –
Oui, a little French lesson every day would add up. You could practice what you’ve learned while you work out
@KatFrench –
Keep reminding yourself why it’s so worth it to continue using it wisely, and you will.
Congrats on the magically appearing hour.
@Lynoure –
Excellent question. I”m not making the call to sleep an hour less, but to consider how your life could change with shift to an early riser routine. Many people fill the last hour of their day with things that don’t add much value to their lives long term, but if they shift that hour to the morning that time would be there “with a purpose,” more likely to be used in a fulfilling way. Hit the pillow one hour earlier if you want, or focus on getting a better night’s rest and trim a little off – it’s all up to you.
What would I do with an extra hour a day…
Twitter it away?
Joel Falconer’s last blog post..How to Prevent & Rectify Communication Breakdowns
Just two nights ago my hubby asked me the reason I was trying to get up early now. Did I even have one? Yup! I answered. I’m going to get a head start on my work so I can kick off at 4:30 and have the rest of the evening to do what I want!
Well, this morning I did laundry and all sorts of other things, so I’m still working on the discipline part. I’m getting more done in a day, but it’s not necessary what I should be doing!
Steph’s last blog post..eureka?
Just today I was thinking it would be better if I wrote my blog posts in the morning so that I don’t have to spend the day thinking about it. I’ve always been a night person but it’s pretty stressful when it’s 8:00 p.m. and I haven’t even thought up of the topic I’m going to be writing about. It kind of feels like when I was in college and by 8:00 p.m. I hadn’t even started studying for a test the next day (I’d always do really well, but I put myself through a lot of unnecessary stress). So with an extra hour every morning I would get a head-start on my blog posts.
Marelisa’s last blog post..Share the Love Friday on Marelisa-Online Abundance Blog: Week of June 9th, 2008
What I’m going to do with my extra 30 min.
Work on my fiction.
I’m working so much on breaking into freelance writing, I almost never write fiction anymore. I have a ton of half-finished stories. I want to revisit them.
P.S. I’m working on early rising again, slower this time, and it’s going better.
Kara’s last blog post..Free to Good Home – Mini Soft Fabric Colors Book
Yup, like you mentioned, I’d like an extra half hour just to write. As soon as I hit my feed reader, my writing productivity plummets. It takes a lot of dedication not to check stats and comments first thing, but it does wonders for me (when I can actually pull it off, of course!).
Sara’s last blog post..Seven Life-Tested Ways to Make Your Simple Life More Glamorous
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