Ha…I bet when you saw the title you were thinking I was drinking tequila didn’tcha? LOL… I got your attention didn’t I! So, silly, I’m talking about that other worm…
When I was in the throes of my frantic self-development phase a few years ago, one of the biggest things I tried to “fix” about myself was getting up early. You know, “early bird gets the worm” (aha! Now the title makes sense!) and all jazz.
Those of us who are night owls, whose natural biorthyms lean towards darkness and later hours are somehow made to feel guilty about not arising at the crack of dawn. Pick up any self development book and invariably the virtues of getting up early are touted as being a critical component to one’s success.
As I continue my journey/evolution into my best self, I have realized that I’m really not more successful whether I get up at 4 am or 7 am (indeed my good nature is more likely to be sorely tested at 4 am…you have been warned 😉 ).
I don’t mean to be particularly cranky early in the morning…it’s just that it takes me some time to adjust from being horizontal to being vertical. While I’m quite glad and grateful to wake up each morning, I don’t feel at my most productive…and is getting up an hour earlier really going to make me a better person?
How about if I (warning…radical idea here) make better use of the time during the hours I’m awake?
How about if I make the commitment to take 60 minutes at some point during my day to do whatever it was I’m supposed to do by getting up an hour earlier?
For some people, that hour may set the tone of the day and if that works for you, then that’s would you should do;
BUT make sure that you are doing it for deeper reasons than it’s what you’re “supposed” to do to be successful…that kinda sucks.
I would rather stay up an hour later thank you very much.
If you struggle with figuring out how to be more productive or you question whether or not you’re doing the things that are most beneficial for you, then maybe a Sweet Success Strategy Session is just what you’re looking for.
Hear, hear! I’ve been struggling with what I call the “earlier-than-thou” mentality lately (and my whole life), so this is very timely. I was also thinking, the work I do at 2am is technically earlier than the seemingly exemplary worker who shows up at 6:30am…just sayin’. I read an article in O magazine about the mayor of Newark, NJ, and although he sounds like a great powerhouse, I was a little peeved at his response to a jobless person who said he’d gotten up early, at 8am: the mayor countered with how HE’D gotten up at 5:30am to chase his dream. Good for him, but not better just because he has a different biorhythm.
Hi Jennifer,
LOL, I LOVE the “earlier-than-thouu” that’s awesome! Our society equates rising early with success, and to me that’s just so wrong. I’m often up until 2:00ish am myself, so birds of a feather;-) It’s more a matter of how you spend your “awake” time than getting up at 5 am!
So glad that it resonated with you…thanks so much for posting!
Warmly,
Danielle
So happy to have come across this! I’m one of those night owls. And I get so tired of people looking down on me because I sleep in until 9 or so. Hello? I didn’t go to bed until midnight or one. I’m still getting the same 7-8 hours sleep you are, just in a different time frame.
Thanks for sharing! I shared your post on Facebook. Maybe it will help me for some of my friends to see it. LOL
Hey Shannon,
Thanks so much for stopping by and sharing this post 🙂 I’ve always been more of a night owl myself (worse since fibromyalgia) and it makes me nutz that people have this perception that those of us who don’t get up at dark o’clock sleep anymore than those who do! It’s now midnight and I’ll probably be up for another 2 hours yet before I call it a night (or would that be day??) 😉
Glad it resonated with you!!
Warmly,
Danielle
I recently posted on facebook that I think it should be illegal to get up at 5:30 am, lol! I had to get up to take hubs to work when his truck broke down. I was a cranky mess for most of the morning, and pretty much unproductive. A little nap fixed me up, and I was good to go. I’m a somewhere between 8 and 9 riser, but my hubs is one of those “early birds”. I personally think I get my best sleep between 5 and 8 am because hubs and his snoring have left the building lol!
Ha! I totally know how you feel:-) Ben gets up every early for work (think 4:00am) and I often get my best sleep after he leaves too! You hit upon a key point there too with being unproductive. If you’re not in the right frame of mind to begin with, then it is so hard to be productive as well. Great point Dana!
Thanks for stopping by:-)
Warmly,
Danielle
Hooray Danielle! I, like the others, commend you on this oh-so-relevant post.
I think you’re on to something when you suggest perhaps it’s not about how early we are rising, but what we’re doing with the precious hours we’re awake. I love Jennifer’s “earlier-than-thou mentality” comment because it’s true. God made me a night owl and oftentimes, I just go with it. I’ve stopped fighting and given in to those precious hours when I’m not interrupted, I’m productive and my creativity is bustling.
Again, appreciate your post D. Please keep ‘em coming.
ROOOOOO!!!
Hey girlie girl,
Thank you so much for stopping by and adding your thoughts:-) I think we need to honor our energy and work with it instead of against it. I love that your creativity is bustling…just like you!!!
xoxo