There has been a lot of discussion on the internet about whether or not to wake up at 5 AM. I have arguments on both sides as a person who has woken up early and avoided it. I have come to the conclusion that it is not necessary for being productive.
If it isn’t helpful for you, you shouldn’t force yourself to wake up early. Business Insider, Inc. Magazine and Fast Company have recently published articles about how waking up early can be harmful to your productivity. It has been helpful, but it isn’t necessary and isn’t the key.
Most people start waking up early because they heard that one successful person did it and wanted to do it again. You resent yourself for following the 5 am crowd.
You deprive yourself of sunlight. When you follow the crowd, you will start to resent yourself and the activity of waking up early every day, rain or shine. It is not easy to wake up early on a consistent basis. If you don’t get in touch with a solid why for waking up early, you will wake up lost, tired, confused, and resentful of this obscure habit you’re trying to establish.
Women who don’t sunbathe are twice as likely to die as women who do. This isn’t an argument for not waking up at 5 AM, but it does provide an interesting point. Our physical and emotional health are improved by being around sunlight. In the mornings, this is important. I didn’t realize until weeks into my 5 AM habit that waking up early when the sun doesn’t rise until 6:30 AM meant that I was awake for an hour and a half alone. As a social person and a human who requires sunlight to maintain a high quality of life, this was pretty harmful to my psyche.
It isn’t bad to wake up in the morning. When you value waking up early, there will be problems. Most people need between 7 and 9 hours of sleep, and some can wake up and operate with less than 4 hours of sleep. You don’t consider the importance of high-quality sleep.
You are losing your social life. If you don’t get enough sleep, setting your alarm for 5 AM isn’t helpful. You would be reinforcing a false idea in your mind that sleep isn’t important if you deprive yourself of sleep. My story, 10 Ways To Guarantee Better Sleep, can give you some ideas on how to sleep better, and how to develop a mindset that knows the importance of sleep.
You can’t invite people to hang out with you because you have to stick to your schedule. It can be difficult to say no to things you don’t want to do in the morning if you wake up at 5 AM. Is this worth it? It’s better to prioritize your favorite people over your morning routine most of the time.
Alright, okay. I know this one is a bit extreme, but it is. If you want to value sleep, have a solid routine, and also want to be active late at night with party people, you are not going to be able to have that much of a social life.
There are actual genes in your body that can be related to when you are a morning person or a night owl. If you happen to be someone who is more naturally a night owl, rejecting the trend of waking up at 5 AM in the morning could actually be the best choice you make in terms of being more productive in the long run. You can experience a different kind of productivity at night.
I’ve never felt more inclined to wake up early in the morning or stay up late at night. I enjoy both and try and enjoy different parts of my life. When the sun goes down and my brain slows down, I am more willing to be creative and less inhibited.
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