Sleep Like a Baby and Crush Your Goals
Have you ever wondered how some of your favorite mentors get so much done? You know those people who are widely successful and seems to have it all pulled together, all the time? Recently, I was listening to an interview of one of my mentors, when asked how she gets so much done, she replied she gets a lot of sleep.
What-the-What??
Isn’t the key to success sacrificing precious hours of sleep while you bang out your manifesto to take over the world in the wee hours of the night? I know sometimes I feel people, especially moms, who accomplish amazing things, must sustain themselves on very little sleep.
But this interview was not the first time I had heard wildly successful people say that getting enough sleep was key to accomplishing their goals (usually along with clean eating, exercises and goal setting).
I’ve always been a morning person, but I noticed lately my bedtime had been creeping later and later. I’d been staying up to finish up blog posts, do work for my volunteer job, plan my first product launch, catch up on Social Media or just stay up too late (Storage Wars, anyone?)!
My husband was about to head out of town last week, so I decided to try to go to bed early and set myself up for 8 hours of sleep a while he was gone. For me that was 10pm to 6am. I did it every night and well…I felt great.
The first thing I noticed was pretty obvious…I didn’t feel tired during the day! I could still function at 4pm, verses needing an iced coffee and a cartoon break for the kids. But that is the outcome I expected.
The surprising outcome? The gurus were right…I actually accomplished MORE! I found that rather than staying up late and slogging through a project while propping my eyes open with toothpicks, if I went to bed earlier, I could also wake up earlier. I could get up 30-45 minutes before my kids feeling refreshed and turn out higher quality work in less time.
I also LOVE the feeling of getting something crossed off my list first thing in the morning. I felt accomplished and it allowed to be go through the rest of my day more present with my kids, instead of trying to figure out when I would get time to get something done. And because I was more rested, I was better able to utilize those free moments I did have.
Now, I know that different people have different peak work times, and I strongly believe you have to honor that for yourself. But I know for me, my peak time is in the morning and I am more productive, happier and better at parenting if I turn out the lights earlier.
Want to start going to bed earlier? Here are my 3 tips to send you to dreamland sooner.
- Get Ready For Bed Earlier: I’ll admit that I have watched one more tv program because I am too tired to get up and get ready for bed. Completely backward thinking, I know. I’ve started getting ready for bed when my 4 year old gets ready. Then I can unwind and when the clock says it’s my bedtime…I just get in bed! (bonus…brush your teeth earlier and you are less likely to snack before bed!)
This also goes for packing and planning the next day too. I’ve started packing my bag and laying out my clothes for the next day earlier in the evening, so there is nothing between me and my bed when I’m ready to get in it!
- Set a Bedtime and Wind Down Projects 30 Minutes Before That Time: You’ve read it a million times about how working on the computer before bed, or even watching tv can actually stimulate you and make it harder to fall asleep. I also find I start to get wrapped up in finishing a project and then all of a sudden it is an hour or more past my bedtime and I am wired. Now, if I want to work on a project after the kids go to bed, I give myself an end time deadline of at least 30 minutes before my bedtime.
- Plan Your Day Time Hours Better and Be More Realistic:I noticed the nights I felt I needed to stay up late to finish work projects was when I felt I “didn’t do enough” during the day. Like many moms who are juggling working from home with kids, I have very finite blocks of time to work on any given day. I have recently started being really realistic, really specific and really ruthless with my ‘must dos’ for the day. I have been setting monthly goals, broken down into weekly goals, then setting my daily must-dos based on these goals AND on how much time I have free on any day.
I also recently, finally, started following every business gurus advice about not checking email and social media during my dedicated work time. You know what…it totally works. So, when I say I am being really ruthless, that’s what I mean. If I have 2 hours during naptime, I am working on my must-dos for the day. I am amazed at how much I get done when I am able to really focus. If I get my must-dos done during the day, then I can spend a little time in the evening checking social media or returning emails…then close up shop for the night and feel totally confident I’ve had a productive day.
What time do you hit the sack? Do you wish it was earlier? In the comments leave 1 way you can try to get in bed earlier tonight…just aim for 15 minutes earlier and build from there!
Now…its time for me to go to bed
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Mindy Crary - As someone who developed energy issues about ten years ago, sleep has been essential for my healing AND mental clarity . . . but i hated the first couple of years because i used to be such a night owl! I felt like I was missing out, but i love how you reframe this for me in terms of my productivity. I used to think that my need for lots of sleep hindered my productivity, but after reading this, I feel like I have an advantage I haven’t been acknowledging!
Heather Thorkelson - Great post once again! I find that the key for me is going to bed when I’m tired. Period. Meaning, if I’m tired at 8pm, I just go to bed. But if I’m not tired until 12:30, then I sometimes go to bed then. More often if I’m up late and not tired, I’ll choose to go to the bedroom at 10:30pm and allow myself the indulgence of reading before bed. (Oh the little things!) Though, I’m childless so I also have the bonus of being able to wake up when I feel rested. Haven’t used an alarm clock in a couple of years now…
Thanks for a great post! Love your writing style.
Sheila - Great tips, Megan! I definitely used to be sleep deprived and thought I didn’t really have a choice – just too much to do! Now, my kids are grown and I have thoroughly enjoyed the extra hours of sleep I get a night and know it makes a difference in my health, productivity and happiness. I wish I had known then what I know now – I applaud you for helping women everywhere be superwomen by getting more sleep!
Sarah Yost - It’s tempting to think of self-care as being in the way. Dammit. I don’t want to sleep. I have things to do!!!! I prefer to think of self-care as investing. Investing in my dreams. That said, I haven’t been getting enough sleep lately and I’ve been well aware. Last night I slept 9 hours to try to catch up. So I really appreciate reading this reminder today.
Liz - Love this post Megan! And as a first time expecting mom, I need to review some of your other articles. I am 100% a morning person but I fall into a lot of the traps you mention in here – staying up late, working on projects, being too tired to turn off the TV and take my dog to pee so putting it off (makes no sense!). I love waking up really early (like 5:30/6 AM) but I never do lately b/c of bad discipline. Will try to implement some of these tips to get better at it!
Anastasia Valentine - Truly enjoyed this post. As a parent of young children I especially like the idea of getting up early and taking advantage of that time to do things for me. Even if it means having a coffee or a shower uninterrupted (yeah I hear MUUUUUUMMMMM while I am in the shower too
) Great points on being more productive while still taking care of your body and your whole self. Great post (now I need to put it into action).
AV
Megan - HI liz,
First- Congratulations! Second, try to just implement one tiny thing at a time. Try just getting to bed 15 minutes earlier or get up 15 minutes earlier. Your not bad at discipline, you just have to shift your habits a bit!
Megan - Maybe there is a little bit of the placebo effect going on, but I TRULY have been more productive since getting to bed earlier over the last few weeks. Its also been so nice to give my self permission to have some down time in the evening!
Megan - I think this is so true, we all have our peak work times and we have to listen to our bodies and our natural sleep rhythms. I think the key is being able to tune it like you have! (oh…and I am jealous about the no alarm thing
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Megan - I think as moms, we just think being sleep deprived comes with the territory…and for a while it does…but I think you are right that it makes a different in our health and happiness too!
Megan - I think that is so true, self care in general seems to get in the way…exercise, sleep…even taking a shower often gets put off to get ‘other’ things done. I also know what you mean that sometimes we just get off our schedules a little bit and then realize we are staying up too late. That happens! Just time to press reset
Megan - I totally know what you mean about the shower! Recently, for my birthday, my husband asked what I wanted and I said a long uninterrupted shower! They are that precious! But even if I don’t get up much before the kids, I just like even 15 minutes to myself before it is game on!
Ashley Taylor - This is wonderful advice
I like all your tips about getting more done…I often get asked my secrets lol how do I handle so much . . . I’ll tell you Google Cal is my best friend and putting an early start to my day is so so important.
I just recently added an auto reply and limit to checking my emails twice a day and oddly enough I actually get more done in my inbox with this new rule than ever before.
This was great – thank you
Lena - Great post! I really need to sleep 8 hours each day to have energy and my goal is to go to bed at 10pm or 11pm but I almost never do this! I loved your tips specially plan my day better