Sleeping our way to Success
Yes, it’s a corny heading, but hopefully it got your attention.
We need more sleep to achieve success
Have you noticed that lately there’s been umpteen studies done on the importance of sleep and how the deprivation of it adds to our stress levels and affects our long term health.
Once upon a time, I was in the ‘sleep is for wimps’ camp as I worked hard in business to achieve the success I was seeking. I wasn’t alone. We all did it… it was the one dimensional success model of last century. Defined by money, power and status, we worked and played hard.
If there’s one thing that I’m now certain of, it’s that we can have all the money and success in the world, but if we don’t have our health, what’s the point?
Health and wellbeing have to be a priority
In her fabulous book, Thrive, Arianna Huffington makes an excellent case for more sleep based on her personal experience. Over the years Arianna worked herself so hard that she fell unconscious at her desk one night and seriously hit her head in the fall. She could have lost her life….for what? Yet another achievement!
Academics around the world are finding that sleep deprivation is a ‘ticking time bomb’ for our health. But are we heeding the lessons from all the research? Probably not.
Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust in London has demonstrated that increasing numbers of people are suffering from disorders that are linked to sleep deprivation: diabetes, obesity and heart disease (to name but a few). Scary stuff, don’t you think?
Surrey University has recently published research demonstrating that 700 genes are altered when we don’t get enough sleep – less than six hours per night. Perhaps it’s hardly surprising that we suffer due to lack of sleep.
I don’t know about you, but when I don’t get enough sleep, I feel grumpy, less energetic, less alive, and less ready to hit the day. My mental acuity is reduced… my temper can be sharp. All and all, it’s a lose/lose for everyone – me and those around me.
How can we get more sleep?
There are lots of reasons why we don’t get enough sleep. Our lifestyles are a huge contributor. Commuting to work, family demands, business and career stresses and pressure, our obsession with technology in all its forms – TV, social media, on demand – you know what I’m talking about.
How about starting with a couple of simple ways to get more sleep? As they say, ‘less is more’. Here are four of the tactics I use to help me get around seven hours sleep per night. I hope they help you too.
1. Stop eating and drinking at least three hours earlier. I try to ensure dinner is done and dusted by 7pm so I have a clear three hours of digestion occurring before bed. Unlike babies, I can’t sleep properly on a full tummy. I don’t drink alcohol, so this is not an issue for me, but for others it is… over to you as to when you stop drinking each night before bed.
2. Log out of your social media world at least one hour before bed. As much as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Snapchat are fun to ‘play’ in, updating our lives or catching up on those of others, doing this just before bed ignites our brain. It stimulates us so that we’re still wired when it’s time to ‘hit the sack’. Instead, make a promise to yourself to ‘turn off the tech’ one hour before bed and start winding down with a book, music, quiet time or even better, have some family time.
3. Go to bed half an hour earlier than you want to fall asleep. My sleep patterns are 10.30pm to 5.30am, so I try to be in bed most nights by 10pm. In that time, I relax in the quiet of our bedroom. It helps me to unwind. I routinely fall asleep by 10.30, which is great!
4. Phone turned off or at least on silent – better still, leave it in another room. The sound of our phones ‘pinging’ each time another email comes through or Facebook newsfeed is updated by someone connected to us is likely to wake us – it certainly wakes me. At that time, the worst thing we can do is look at our phones, as that will awaken us more and we’ll be wired for the rest of the night (I know this from bitter experience). Resort to old technology instead – invest in an old fashioned alarm clock to wake you in the morning.
There are lots of other techniques available to get more sleep. The key is to get more if you’re having six hours or less per night. Start slowly, add an extra 30 minutes of sleep a day, and see how you feel. Eventually your body will want more and will thank you for honouring it with more. Plus, you’ll be happier, friendlier, and more mentally alert in business and life. Perhaps most importantly, you’ll be healthier. That for me is the biggest reason to get more sleep.
ACTION: How about sharing your own ideas for getting more sleep at night? I’d love to know what you’re doing.
Could some guidance from me be helpful to you? If so, please arrange a free 30 mins Skype strategy meeting with me. Here’s my calendar to book a meeting. I’d love to support you in some way to gain ‘seductive clarity’ in any aspect of your business or life.
