The Real Trick to Waking Up Early
Thursday, January 12, 2012Earlier this week I spoke a little bit about early mornings, how much I hated them, and offered a few suggestions on how to make them a little easier.
Well, the few tips I offered weren't quite doing it for me. Mornings were still positively brutal. So I looked into it a little more, and experimented in the last few days and think that I finally cracked it:
Do the hard part of waking up in bed. Stick your laptop, iPad, or iPhone on your nightstand when you go to sleep (if they aren't already) and set your alarm clock for a good 15-30 minutes earlier than usual. Now, when you wake up, roll over, grab whatever screen you choose to use, and use it. Go through emails. Catch up on RSS and Twitter. I know some people may not like the idea of literally starting your day by looking at a screen, but you'll be surprised at how well this works. You're not looking at the screen because you have to check email. You're looking at the screen to wake up. So, if you'd like, don't check email. Do something else. Write. Read. Whatever.
The trick here is the amount of time you're looking at the screen for. Your eyes are awakening, as is the rest of your body. Your brain is thinking and processing -- all while you're still in bed. So that by the time you step out of bed, you'll be almost totally awake.
About 15-20 minutes usually does the trick for me, but, as mentioned above, some people like closer to 30 minutes. Then, wake up, and go on with your morning routine -- and you should definitely create an actual routine.
Mornings are really not so hard anymore. Seriously. This is it. This is the trick. Try it. I'm almost sure you'll love waking up in bed as much as I do.
Reader Comments (3)
"There was a child went forth every day;
And the first object he look'd upon, that object he became." -- Walt Wittman
Haha! Touché.
But I bet, had I not brought up the issue in the post, you wouldn't have written that. There are actually a surprising number of people that spend their first 30 minutes in bed with a laptop.
If not a laptop, it would be my toilet.
Better of two evils.
I've been doing this trick since the New Year and it works a treat. Not only am I becoming more alert, I also feel better instead of leaving the house on a cold morning half asleep. In all honesty, I usually skip breakfast because I didn't have time to sit down and have one but now I can finally manage a coffee and some toast.
Thanks for the tip, Devir!
Jonny