Ø Introduction
A lot of people simply leap straight up from bed and go about their lives for all the world as if the whole planet is their oyster and they are its pearls.
Not that there is anything wrong with that old hackneyed cliché “Rise and Shine” but jumping straight up from a deep slumber does however create the risk of a massive heart attack. A few seconds of rest before the body adjusts from nocturnal to diurnal mode may be ideal. It does not matter how energetic you may be, and simply overflowing with the ‘get-up-and-go” spirit, it is still prudent to refrain from jumping right out of bed the moment you get up.
However, once you are out of bed, it is time to create a routine that will help you derive the very best from the rest of your day. Let us see how such a routine can help you overcame anything and everything from tardiness to procrastination. Let us study for ourselves some of the morning habits of the most energetic of people
o Waking up early
“Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise”
Ben Franklin
This hoary old chestnut of a proverb still has the same respect it did when these immortal words sun, yoga, e were first uttered by that venerable statesman.
In fact, there is no way this particular point can ever be stressed enough. Actually, so important is this simple advice that it is right at the top of all the suggestions and habits of truly effective people.
Let us see why:
o Watching the sun rise
There is something incredibly serene about watching the sun rise. It gives us hope for a better day ahead and infuses our soul with tranquility and optimism. Not to mention the raw beauty of a cloudy sunrise with its myriad colors bursting though the heavens, as if nature has gone on a wild painting spree.
o Increase in productivity
It is elementary really. A person who sleeps half the day away, is seldom going to be quite as productive as an individual who gets up at the crack of dawn, full of zest to take on the challenges of the coming day. Many research studies conducted over the years, have consistently shown that people who wake up early and are highly refreshed do not sleepwalk through the day, completing their tasks like so many automatons who seem to function like veritable somnambulists.
Apart from that, the added hours not only give you more time for additional work but you are also more alert, both physically and mentally.
Better mental fitness overall
And speaking of mental fitness, there is a very important (albeit oft understated advantage) of getting up really early in the morning. And that is a significant reduction in the stress levels of both the mind as well as the body. The key reason for which is the fact that, early risers do not need to rush to through the rest of their day, but take their time in getting to work or dropping the kids to school or any number of early morning activities. Without the fear of the dreaded clock ticking away in the backs of our minds, we can relax and take things easy. And once you commence doing that, it is only a matter of time before this habit becomes ingrained and the positivity it exudes will continue to reflect on the rest of your day.
o Better quality of sleep
When it comes to sleeping “quantity does matter” and it has a direct bearing on the quality of your sleep as well. If you go to sleep really late, the odds are you will wake up late as well and the lack of sleep will leave you both cranky and irritated and you will grow to look on the rest of the day as a tedious, never ending burden. You will wish to sleep earlier, but that might not be possible because the day would be crammed with working hours and you will need to finish and wrap up your work in a shorter time span than if you were to have woken up earlier. This will create a vicious cycle of getting up late and sleeping late.
The resultant broken sleep will end up leaving you more jaded than ever before, and you will feel as if you have to crawl into bed night after night, every night.
However, it does not always have to be this way since one of the best parts of waking up early is that it creates a whole new circadian rhythm and your internal biological clock sets itself to the new sleeping and waking patterns so as to ensure that this routine is followed indefinitely.
o Happiness galore
A well followed habit of waking up early, creates positivity in your life and makes you a happier and more well-rounded person overall. This happiness might just seep into all the other aspects of your life, thereby creating a naturally sunny disposition.
