Not sure if the well-known phrase “early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise” stands true, but waking up early in the morning has its benefits. The most noticeable advantage is that most of the population is sleeping, thus making it the ideal time for distraction-free work while enjoying the sunrise. Energy levels are also filled up by starting the day early and when the time comes to go to work, it feels like a ton of caffeine was consumed. At first, it will be a horrible feeling, especially if the wake-up procedure is forced by an alarm clock. Thoughts of “what am I doing,” “why did I get into this” will be pondering around. A sense of dread will be waiting in the corner to make its appearance during the first days.
Early wake-up benefits
Waking up early has no benefits if nothing is done during these crucial hours. After waking up, eat your breakfast if you are accustomed to this ritual and immediately start doing something. The “something” can be whatever you like, exercise (preferably before breakfast), reading/sending e-mails, writing a book or a blog post, do what you think has to be done first and if you can’t decide what, choose randomly. Already you are one or two hours ahead in your day, with some tasks completed and energy levels pumped up, ready to take on the challenges of the rest of the day. While all these seem wondrous, it is not easy to get used to such a routine. People working late, people who need more hours of sleep can’t follow this routine, since they will be harming themselves more than doing good and being efficient. By no means do you sacrifice your sleep hours to get up early; just do it if there is enough time. Getting up early demands going to bed early too. Let your body wake up naturally, without an alarm clock, by adjusting your in-bed time to match your target wake up, fully rested feeling, time. Good sleep is vital in our lives, so do not neglect it, as most of the population does, because people care about not being hurt on their skin and have no scar, but they do not care about the invisible scars left from mistreating their brains.
A different world
The world is a different place when waking up early. It is a kind, peaceful place that few people get to discover. If you are one of those people, you already know what I am talking about, but if you are not, let’s dive together into a real-life story, among many other early morning stories. Since running is an integral part of my life, the morning routine consists of running every two days early in the morning and then starting my day. Every day I wake up early, meaning not later than 07:00 am local, while going to sleep at 12:00 pm sharp. The steady sleep time is key to the early morning wake-up success since the whole day revolves around a stable refresh point. In my case, I naturally wake up at 06:30 am – 07:00 am, with no alarm clocks or anything to interfere in the process. If you cannot do that, try to sleep earlier than 12:00 pm and see the results. During the first days of the early rise, the first thing that struck me was how kind and peaceful the people you meet in the streets are. People are smiling, they are full of energy, and willing to talk to anybody. The most striking thing is that they say “Good morning” to strangers! This might seem like an obvious thing for some, but keep in mind that after around 08:00 – 09:00 am, people appear more depressed, they are not smiling much, and not a single word comes out of their mouths. Getting just a “Good morning” or a “Hello” from strangers in the morning gives you a tremendous boost for the rest of the day. It also helps you during your workout, if you are out and exercising.
Final thoughts
The message I want to convey through this post is that getting into the early morning wake-up habit can be truly life-changing. From my personal experience, I have achieved more in the early hours than I did in the later hours because I was more productive, more focused, and more stubborn about the work I had to do. Just give it a try for a couple of weeks and see the benefits such a change brings, and I am sure you will not regret a single moment getting into that routine.
Quote
Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise
Benjamin Franklin
This Post Has 2 Comments
Amazing first post! Loved the metaphors. Keep it up, waiting for the next one 😀
Thank you!