Over Scheduled...Under Rested

You need more sleep. Really. But you already know that, don't you. You know that as a nation, we are sleep deprived and we're basically OK with it. But studies show that we would think deeper and work more efficiently if we were more rested. So how do we do it? We have to get more hours into the day. We multitask which helps in some ways and hurts in others. But if we put that aside as a "given", there are a couple of things I've learned from the smart companies I work with. Here's the hardest one first...turning off technology during your highest energy time. For most of us, that means not responding to email when we get into the office. But it may be another time for you. No matter when your high energy time is, do whatever you can to avoid email during this time. If you do this, studies show that you can save an hour to an hour and a half a day. Use your freshest time for problem solving, deep thinking or interacting with people. However, don't be surprised if breaking the habit of email is really tough. The biggest objection I hear to this practice is, "But what about the important emails that came in overnight that I need to respond to?" Come on. If you check email at the end of the day when you're winding down, what are the chances of there really be something vital coming in overnight? Slim to none. Trust me...email in the morning is a waste of time, unless you're lucky enough to commute into work and then it's a great time saver! If you, and more importantly, if you can train your staff/team to stay out of email first thing in the morning, it's a huge benefit.

The other time saver is a non-technical one. Write things down. Get them out of your head. And don't just type them. There's a cognitive advantage to writing things down on paper. Getting them out of your head is the most important. It's not a virtue to remember everything inside your brain. Quite the opposite. Write it down, organize it in terms of priority and give your "thinking" brain the space it needs. I have a marvelous assistant who is really good at this. Not only does she never speak with anyone in the office without a pad in her hand, she tells me she writes on her shower wall in the morning if something comes to her. It takes keeping a pad of paper next to your bed to a whole new level doesn't it? I never asked her what she writes with...I'll have to do that and let you know.

So let's say you get good at saving time during the day. Here's the really hard part; converting the time into sleep time. An extra 45 minutes of sleep should be your first goal. Yes, it will be hard to do. You'll try to use the extra time to "do" something. Don't do it. Try to sleep a little more. You won't see immediate results...like taking vitamins. The benefit comes over time. You're creating a baseline. Try it for at least 3 months and don't feel lazy. You are adding energy that will fuel you and those around you!

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