I went to bed early last night.
About an hour earlier than usual.
And what never ceases to amaze me is how much more productive I feel, how much better my self-control is, and how much clearer my mindset presents—all from just a one hour investment.
Which is exactly what we should be looking at going to bed earlier as.
As discussed in yesterday’s piece, more awake hours ≠ more productivity / more joy / more living—per se. It’s more quality hours (not quantity) that leads to that.
And what I’m noticing in my own life, today particularly, is that the move from 7 hours of sleep to 8 hours causes more good in awareness, clarity, and productivity than the move from 8 hours of sleep to 7 hours causes good in extending length to “do more stuff.“
In other words, let’s say an hour less of sleep causes a 12.5% dip in general functionality across the board (if eight hours = 100% recharge, then one hour = 12.5% of that recharge).
That 12.5% dip then affects the rest of my 17 hours in the day that I’m awake.
And a 12.5% reduction (in awareness, clarity, and productivity) over 17 hours amounts to 2.125 hours in total lost time (17 x .125 = 2.125 hours)!
So, how do you get a 200%+ return on investment with your time…?
Go to bed an hour earlier.
P.s. I also published: A Wise Woman’s Advice To A Young Man Whose Life Was “Full Of Pain” [Excerpt]