The thought crossed my mind this weekend that I should write a quick post about the goals I’m setting in place for myself to start getting more sleep as an entrepreneur.
Running a business has it’s ups and downs and if you’re working a day job to support yourself/family while attempting to start/grow a business, you’re likely working your face off each week. 50-80 hours is common for those who commit to the hustle lifestyle.
Whatever your schedule, you need to ensure that it makes sense for you. Don’t listen to the experts that say you need to hustle into the early AM to get shit done if it’s going to affect your health or your ability to be with your family. You should do you.
Health Benefits of 8 Hours of Sleep
First, let me just bombard you with a few reasons why you need to get your sleep:
Studies published in the journal Sleep showed that researchers found people who slept less than 6 hours per night were 12% more likely to experience premature death.
Poor sleep habits can affect your body’s ability to control hunger. A study in the journal The Lancet found that adults who slept less that 6 hours per night had a higher risk for type 2 diabetes.
A study in 2013 determined that sleep restrictions increase the amount of inflammatory compounds in a person’s body and their immune systems are negatively affected.
Research has shown that sleeping after learning can help with memory retention. The research found the importance of receiving all the different sleep phases contributing to: creative thinking, memory, and memory processing.
Finally, getting more sleep makes you less of a pain in the ass (that’s my own personal observation).
I’m a big proponent of Your Health is Your Wealth, so it’s pretty obvious the ROI for putting the time into rest and recovery vs. working on a content marketing strategy at 3-f’ing-am.
About Balance
If you’ve never heard of the Yin and Yang, it’s an ancient Chinese principle that all things exist as inseparable and contradictory opposites; however they are equal and balancing complimentary opposites.
Just like the Yin and Yang, you must exist in both realms of your business life and your personal life. Your balance may ebb and flow from one realm to the other from time to time, but it’s imperative that you have one foot in each realm and find balance. Without balance your life will be in turmoil.
Steps To Get More Sleep
The first step is to take an accounting of how much sleep you’re getting.
I would highly recommend a device that can measure your sleep cycles and time length such as the Fitbit Charge watch. That’s right, it’s not just for counting steps and taking your pulse. This device can sync with your mobile phone to log your sleep cycles and track whether you’re reaching your nightly goal of 7-8 hours of sleep.
Once you determine the exact number of hours you deprive yourself, take action to adjust your lifestyle and schedule to allow yourself to reach your sleep goal.
If you’re getting only 6 hours of sleep, that is: you’re going to bed at 12am, actually falling asleep at 1am, and waking up at 7am, then adjust your schedule for the additional two hours of sleep and go to bed at 10pm.
If that takes two hours of time away from your business work, so be it. I’d rather lose 2 hours of hustle than 2 years of my life.
Work the rest of your life around your sleep schedule. It needs to be a keystone to your overall daily schedule and doesn’t budge unless you’re traveling through different time zones.
You can always make up the 2 hours for your business somewhere else in the 16 remaining hours you’re awake. For example, you can take time in the morning before your drive to work to strategize marketing for your business, or instead of heading to the local burger joint for lunch, read your book or write your social media strategy over a salad you brought into the office from home.
The key take away here is to start doing this today. Right now. Just start. Put away the mobile phone and get some rest.
I hope this article was informative and motivational for you and I appreciate your attention.
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