Become better organized instead; this will take you to places where waking up early can only dream of
One of the biggest mistruths you’ll likely ever come across as a writer — or have already come across — is the monumental lie that you need to sleep less and wake up earlier, if you’re interested in boosting your productivity.
Pioneered by startup folks and popularized by motivational speakers, anyone who dares to sleep for more than seven hours is guilt-tripped into believing their life is headed for destination nowhere.
Sleep, the universal consensus appears to go, is something for those who don’t know where they are going and generally, aren’t serious with their lives as a direct result.
This, fortunately, is a lie…from the very bottom of hell.
Sleep is crucial for the proper functioning of the human body, especially for those who engage in highly demanding mental tasks like writing.
When you’re tired, often, with nagging headaches (especially after penning down story after story), the easiest way to make things easy for you is usually to sleep, even if it is only but a nap.
Confused and tired of almost everything you should be passionate about, the result is likely a night of sleep deprivation.
Shouted on someone when all that was needed, in retrospect, was a simple correction, you likely had a challenge with sleep the previous night, was on caffeine to finish up a task, or thought that three hours are all you need to be up and great the next day.
On the other hand, sleeping well will usually mean you wake up with calmness and a sense of purpose, especially if you have a great bed to sleep in.
With this clarity and calmness, usually comes the ability to easily tackle your challenges, in a manner that leaves everyone you come across awed.
It’s usually magic, at its finest — for want of a better explanation.
When you deprive yourself of the numerous benefits of sleep, capping up with the reality of waking up early, not only do you mess up your internal clock, but you also fail to be gingered enough for the day to execute the tasks you woke up early on to achieve, in the first place.
It’s also a classic lose-lose scenario.
Here’s a better idea: instead of sleeping late, waking up early, and failing to achieve all day, try going to bed earlier (with a clear, alcohol-free brain) and waking up when you’ve had enough sleep (not when you have clocked three or four hours).
Damn the start-up folks and ignore the motivational speakers!
Don’t worry; no one truly knows your body as it does itself…and when it has had enough of the reality of sleep, it will prop up itself, even without an alarm.
With a clear head and a plan you have drawn up for the day before sleep the previous night, you’ll be ready to take on the world, with super high spirits.
Motivational speakers and the crazy ‘how many hours a day have you that you use eight for sleep’ folks can say or do whatever they like but in the end, it all boils down to you and how you structure your life.
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