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Why wake up at 4 am may not work for you?

Daniel Maurer on August 10, 2019

Why do you think getting up early might be good for you? Why do some executives wake up at 4 am? Some people cite the benefits below waking up befo...
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Jason C. McDonald • • Edited

So if you believe that things are not happening don't think you need to wake up early but think about how to optimize your time.

Actually, it's both. Having a slower, more controlled start to the day lowers stress, which helps you make the most of the rest of your day.

I'm up at 5 a.m. every day, and I find it provides me three benefits:

  • Lower stress (as I mentioned). I can have my devotional time, enjoy a cup of coffee, watch the sunrise, read a few comics. As an introvert, having that "me time" is invaluable.

  • After the above, I usually wind up knocking out some task I needed to take care of, like reading up on a new technology, or taking care of my DEV tag moderation duties. That's one less thing to try and fit into my day.

  • Because I got up earlier, I'm sleepy earlier, so I get to bed more regularly. Being a "morning person" helps me keep a natural schedule rhythm with time for work, projects, family, chores, and hobbies.

Getting up earlier isn't a replacement for scheduling by any means, but it is a healthy life habit that certainly helps maximize what time you have.

Don't throw out one or the other.

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Daniel Maurer •

Thank you very much for your comment, it was certainly very constructive for my opinion.

Having a slower, more controlled start to the day lowers stress, which helps you make the most of the rest of your day.

I agree with that but I don't believe that the big value is in the time we raise but in the attitude we have and what we do to create a great day.

But I agree that people who wake up before most do have more facility to organize the initial moment of their day and start in the best possible way.

I don't throw away early waking, but I also don't believe that this is the secret of productive days.

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Jason C. McDonald • • Edited

I don't throw away early waking, but I also don't believe that this is the secret of productive days.

Maybe not the secret for everyone, but it's certainly a necessary component of productive days for people like me. :) Positive attitude is another component, but it doesn't replace it. They work together.

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Daniel Maurer •

I fully agree that it makes a big difference to the people who have this practice.
Yes, positive attitude is also very important and transformative, we can see this in the movie The Lion King.
I believe that if we unite positive attitude, good practices and a lot of effort we can achieve many goals.

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Jamie Richardson •

This actually makes a lot of sense.

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Antonio Radovcic •

I guess the bigger problem is how to manage going to sleep at 8. The waking-up-part seems trivial in comparison.

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Rafael Ahrons • • Edited

Here in Brazil, an average student has class in the night that may end up at 11 PM and have to work more or less 9h/day to pay the class and finaly you have to wake up at 4:30 AM to be "productive" in the day. In the best scenario you will sleep at least 4h per day. It's impossible.

Doing this routine of waking up at 4:30 AM, you have to sleep at 8:30 PM, but if you work all day and have family, then you won't sleep at 8:30 PM you gonna go enjoy the rest of the day with your family, am I wrong??

I wonder what people do for living to keep this routine.

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Antonio Radovcic •

I guess it's a feasible sleep-routine for a single person with more than average flexibility job-wise.

With family you need to match your sleep to the kids' schedule. For me that's 11-7 Sleep, 7-9 Kindergarden-Run and Commute, 9-6 Work & Commute, 6-11 family & personal-time.

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Daniel Maurer •

Your comment is very important and really made me think about it.

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Rachel Soderberg •

I get up at 430 every morning, even on weekends. I love the early mornings and tend to spring out of bed and straight out the door. I hit the gym, then head to work.

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Daniel Maurer •

Cool, get up early for you allows you to have a special moment right at the start of your day and that's really good. I really can't do this but I find this attitude from people like you amazing.

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Daniel Maurer •

Yes, I believe that if we questioned why we do certain things and why we do things in this way we could actually improve many aspects of our lives.