3 Great Reasons to Wake Up Earlier

"Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise." - Ben Franklin

While the start time to each day of the most successful may vary a bit, it has become quite well understood that those who reach the highest levels of achievement, tend to be early risers.

Does this mean you have to get up with some of us at 4:30am each morning? Does this mean that waking early has to come naturally to you or you're doomed? Does this mean you can't succeed if you are not up before the sun? Absolutely not!

However, there are many great reasons to get a move on before the masses.

Relax You Night Owls...

Let's go ahead and get this out of the way right now. If you are a self-proclaimed "night owl" and you have no desire to change your ways...great! Don't! In fact, the truth is, you need to do you, in a way that makes you the most productive and successful you can be. Inevitably, whatever you want to do with your life, and how you want to do it, simply has to be done in a way that you enjoy and thrive within.

This does not mean, however, that you cannot and should not give the below reasons some thought. Nor is it an ok to use being a "night owl" as an excuse to not give rising early a try.

Remember, your Decisions Determine your Destinations. What you DECIDE to make happen, without fail, without quit...is what shall happen. Including waking earlier...if you so choose.

With that said, here are some of our favorite reasons to rise and shine before the roosters

Reason #1: Me Time

If you are like most, you simply cannot imagine actually putting yourself first, much less doing so immediately upon waking. This is the sad state of affairs most live in. Even worse, it is actually counterproductive to what most want or need to accomplish.

Highly productive and successful people seem to know, waking even just a bit earlier, gives them a chance to set aside much needed personal time. This is time that if not accomplished first thing in the morning, before the world begins to turn upside down...will most likely never happen.

Now, before you go inventing a feeling of guilt for even reading those words...stop! It is NOT selfish! In fact, quite the contrary. Everyone needs ME TIME! Time that, if you can keep from making the mistake of checking your email, picking up your cell phone, perusing social media, can start your day in a completely different way.

It is honestly quite a simple concept...the better you take care of yourself, the better you can take care of your loved ones and your responsibilities.

Does this sound familiar?

In the case of an emergency, oxygen masks will fall from the ceiling. Please be sure to put YOUR mask on before attempting to help others, including children.

If you have ever flown, you've heard these very words, almost verbatim. Why? Because they are utterly important in the case of an air travel emergency for sure. But, they are also essential to everyday life as well.

Now, if you are a parent, we can almost guarantee, your first instinct will be quite the opposite. Just like it is most likely is in your everyday life as well. Kids, spouse, parents, loved ones, friends, etc. Then YOU!

Like it or not, WRONG APPROACH!

In fact, if in your heart, you truly have a desire to help others, you best be damn sure, you are taking care of you first. The better you take care of you, the better, the longer, you will be able to care for those you love. Anything less is, in fact, SELFISH!

Reason #2: Proactive vs Reactive

If you wake like most people, one of just a couple of things happens when that alarm clock goes off. You are either reaching for your phone to ceremoniously check email and social media, or your feet hit the floor like a bat out of hell because you slept or snoozed as long and late as you possibly could...and now you need to rush.

Either way...not a good start, mentally, physically, or emotionally to any day, much less every day. So STOP IT!

While you may think there is nothing wrong with checking the phone immediately upon waking, you are wrong, wrong, wrong.

Media, in any form, causes a reactionary response. And whether you want to hear it or not, you are not so important that your messages, the news, the whole rest of the world cannot wait another 30 minutes or so before they get your attention.

Let's be honest, unless your bedroom is bugged, no one else even knows your up yet...so make the most of the time before you sound the alarms and the world knows you have risen.

As for sleeping in or snoozing until the very last minute...ENOUGH! Seriously! Right here, right now! No more BS excuses or stories as to why it is acceptable.

Go to sleep 15-30 minutes earlier. You don't need to watch more TV or scroll endlessly through more crap on the internet. Absolutely no real value in either. But imagine if you had that extra time in the am, simply by decision, to wake with ease, not rush, and start your day proactively instead of reactively!

Wait...an even better idea! Don't imagine it...just try it tomorrow and see! Better yet, make a deal with yourself, seven days straight, just 15 minutes earlier to start. Let's see what happens.

Reason #3: Preparation

Let's be honest...it sucks waking up to madness and mayhem. It sucks starting your day reactively and not really having a plan in place as to what your priorities are, what you must get done, what can be put off, etc.

One of the main reasons we love having a planned wake time, at least 30 minutes before necessary, is the ability to actually PREPARE for the day ahead.

Sure, we still think it is a great idea to look at and think about tomorrow, tonight, before going lights out, but there is something powerful in having the time, first thing in the morning, without pressure and rush, to look at the day ahead and actually PREPARE for it, mentally and physically.

Do you have goals? Do you know what you absolutely want, or need to accomplish TODAY, in order to make progress towards said goals?

The morning, prior to all hell breaking loose, is a great time to prepare for what you want to get done, your priorities. Don't kid yourself, without a little preparation, your entire day will almost certainly take on a reactionary view. This is not in any way, conducive, to living the life you want to live.

In fact, if you fail to properly prepare for your day ahead, there is almost no question that your time, most if not all, will be spent on other people's priorities. This is a surefire way to create anxiety, unhappiness, stress...all the little a few minutes of preparation can stave off.

"PLANNING is half the battle." - G.I. Joe

We are well aware, as of this moment, you may not very well agree that these are great reasons to wake up earlier, but we dare you to give yourself a fighting chance, starting tomorrow, and see what happens.

Always Remember...

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Until next time...PROGRESS, not PERFECTION!

Don't forget, always consult your physician before making any changes to your diet or exercise regimen.

Live a 3D Life...Decisions Determine Destinations!