How to achieve more by doing this one habit

Day 3 of my writing challenge. Prompt - Get up early. 

We were taught that we all need at least 7 to 8 hours of sleep a day or depending on the person’s age more than that are required. 

 

Getting enough sleep is one of the elements needed to have a healthy lifestyle.

But how do we get enough sleep?  Does it only depends on going to bed early? Or is it more of having a a quality sleep whether it is the right amount or shorter than that? 

I guess the answer lies on our choice. Some people prefer going to bed early so they can wake up early too. Some sleep late and  shorter than the required sleeping hours but they feel it’s enough for them.

For me, sleeping at the right time to get the maximum amount of sleep is the best way to function at our best during the day.  

Today the challengers are asked to wake up early. 

Early to rise has more advantages than the opposite. But in order to wake up early, we have to go to bed early so we can have enough sleep. And having enough sleep spells the difference between getting a lot of things done.

Some people even if they sleep late still manage to wake up on time for work or do something important but in reality not having enough sleep will more or less affect our performance.

My waking hours varies.  Most of the times though I wake up early because I have to take care of my daughter Isabel during school days  (from Monday to Friday). And that’s before or around 6 am in the morning.

After she left usually around 8am, I try to go back to bed and it’s either falling asleep again or not at all (which is always the case anyway) leaving me no choice but to stand up and proceed on the things I need to do.

When I am working a morning shift then it’s also waking up before or at 6 in the morning.

During weekends, most of the people here prefer to stay late in bed savoring the time they can really get a good rest. I do too except when I have to work which is usually every other weekend.

There were stages in my life that waking up early was in my system.

It was like a habit that was hard to break. I and my siblings were used to that.

It was an example given to us by our grandmother and our parents.

We were kind of forced to do it because we needed to be on time for school. During weekends though, we were rejoicing since we were allowed to stay a bit later in bed.

That went on in the entire years we were in school. A good habit established out of discipline instilled by the people who also did that almost all their lives.

I have acquired that habit for a long time although there was a time in my life that I deviated from that when I found myself unemployed during the early years after a year of hospital training right after my graduation. And it wasn’t the most productive years of my life.

The advantage of going to bed early and rising early is that you get enough sleep which results to feeling good and energetic and ready to face the day’s challenge, accomplishing more of the things that needs to be done.  

Do I need to say the opposite? I bet  you know the answer. It can either be waking up late or early and feeling grumpy, weak and not having enough time to do both the most important and not so important things.

We are all unique. For some of the most successful people the saying above which was popularized by no other than one of the most influential people in the world Benjamin Franklin is something that worked for them and made them successful.

Jeff Goins who organized this writing challenge said “ writing first thing in the morning allows you to get the “ writer’s high” all day long”. It is because our minds are more relaxed and  receptive after waking up from a good sleep. We tend to be more creative and ideas kept flowing continuously. 

We are so motivated to do the things we are supposed to do whether working on a special project or just doing the everyday routines i.e household chores.

One of the most important advantages of waking up early is the feeling that you have accomplished more than what you can when you do the opposite.

Have I emphasized enough? Why don’t we try this tested habits of successful people?

Let’s contemplate on it and see what happens.

Although the answer is obvious, it will change the way we do things and unveils a new perspective in whatever we want to accomplish in life.

Are you an early riser? If you are, tell me in the comments below how it helps you feel good and accomplish better things.