Comments on: Why You Should NOT Wake Up Early Tomorrow

By: Psion

Psion — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 06:07:22 +0000

I am going to leave a comment here defending both this article, and myself (as I too am a night owl, so is my girlfriend). If you are going to state that, biologically, the body functions better when you maintain a typical morning riser schedule, I will be the first to inform you that this is not true. I’ve done extensive amounts of research on the matter, one thing I have found to hold true (this is backed by numerous studies mind you), is that we all operate on a unique schedule. Punch the words chronotype into Google, it will change your mind in a heart beat.

Certain types of people simply function better at night, these are their preprogrammed hours. No amount of bickering will ever change that, you can’t fight genetics. You can try, however it’s a loosing battle not worth waging.

I am a late chronotype. Most of the work I do is completed during the night (my servers, programming, and web-development, all of my scientific proofs, and conversations), for that is when I am at my best. During the day, I can barely function, concentrating on any given task becomes increasingly difficult. For those late chronotypes out there, waking up early can lead to health problems down the road.

It gets even more irritating when you’re forced to deal with some pompous early bird calling you a dead beat, simply because you are biologically geared to wake up at a different hour. You are no more productive for waking up at ungodly hours, hell, there are even a handful of studies proving that day persons crash while we night owls build up stamina the longer we are awake.

More accurate, and public research needs to be done on this subject… I am sick of being forced into hours I cannot accommodate.

By: Matt

Matt — Sun, 17 Apr 2011 11:07:16 +0000

Except you are fighting against the body’s natural rhythm by staying up so late… you can always make a note of your idea, sleep on it, and have more energy to flesh it out the next day? and most of the people on Twitter at 3am are making their way home from drunken benders.. yeah, I’d really hate to miss out on that conversation.. lol… I simply think, that especially from a biological standpoint, it is more beneficial to be in-tune with nature.. sleep when the sun goes down (or thereabouts) and rise when the sun rises…

By: Elise

Elise — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 17:16:43 +0000

I’ve always been a night owl. Now I’m an arts presenter in addition to my lifelong profession of musician. Going to bed at 2 am and up around 10 has always felt just about right to me.

It’s so nice to FINALLY see an article defending productivity for nightowls! When early birds say that they get more done before 9 am then some people get done all day, I usually think “…and you’ve crashed in a heap at 3 pm and are useless for the rest of the day”. Meanwhile, my energy seems to ramp upwards throughout the day. We’re all different, and that’s fine; just because early birds are occasionally self-congratulatory about their habits doesn’t make them better!

By: The_DMV

The_DMV — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 04:32:32 +0000

Just go to an online Washington DMV Guide and you can scratch that chore off the list without leaving the house. I'd have thought an efficiency expert would have found this jewel out already :p. Also, have to disagree with you a little ... or a lot. As a business owner I need to be able to be in person-to-person contact my employees to effectively manage them. This is especially true for the ones that aren't self starters so I really don't think your going to break the world out of the day/work vs. night/sleep paradigm

By: Vern at Aim for Awesome

Vern at Aim for Awesome — Sun, 18 Nov 2007 10:11:43 +0000

I’m asleep by 9:30 am most nights. During times in my life where I’ve been working all night shifts at the mental health facility or going out all night I never really felt very keen and able to be at my peak anytime after 11pm or midnight. I can’t, after having just been awake for 12 hours suddenly discard all the junk that went on and kick into high gear productivity. It just doesn’t work for me. I’m not creative at the end of the day, I’m creative at the beginning. I’m not relaxed and able to concentrate on only one thing – or remain focused at the end of the day – it’s impossible for me. Might have something to do with ADHD. I want to run at the end of the day when I’m almost wiped out mentally and physically and go to sleep.

I’m amazed by people that are on opposite sides of the spectrum… could never be one of you though!

Great post, I saw a comment of yours at Lawrence’s blog. Best of life! Vern

By: DCortesi . blog » In Case You HAVE to Wake Up Early Tomorrow

DCortesi . blog » In Case You HAVE to Wake Up Early Tomorrow — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 16:42:52 +0000

[...] As somebody that’s always on the go but gets motivated at odd hours, the post about why I shouldn’t wake up early tomorrow peaked my interest. As somebody that gets motivated right around 11pm and keeps kicking until 3am [...]

By: Tina Su

Tina Su — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 15:08:03 +0000

Hmmm.. I love this article and can relate completely.
For the past several months, my sleeping has been 2-4am to 9-11am. Sometimes, I get into such state of flow with what I’m working on that I’d be up until 6am. I don’t feel tired and I do not drink coffee. I’m a highly productive person and have felt that I work more efficiently and effectively on this schedule.

Great post!

Tina
Think Simple. Be Decisive.

By: Bernard Farrell

Bernard Farrell — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 01:16:12 +0000

Unfortunately some of us don’t have these choices. When our children started back at school I went from a leisurely wake-up to a MUCH earlier morning (and corresponding early night). I’m still getting used to it. I can’t decide whether I still feel so tired because I’m not adjusted yet, or I just need a new mattress.

The good news is that I get to spend the commute in the AM with my children in the car. Good time to share with them or just sing along to SpongeBob SquarePants “Best Day Ever”!

By: What you get when you DONT get up Early | rafiq - I'm Feeling Lucky

What you get when you DONT get up Early | rafiq - I'm Feeling Lucky — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 21:24:06 +0000

[...] latest post, Why You Should NOT Wake Up Early Tomorrow hit the spot and I suggest you read it. I fully agree with almost every [...]

By: Justin Kownacki

Justin Kownacki — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 20:44:11 +0000

As a fellow night owl, I completely agree. People should worry less about fitting into someone else’s pre-designed notion of when “appropriate” work times are, and instead find their own rhythm. I guarantee you, everyone’s is different, but we’re never encouraged to find them because the banks and post office are only open from 9-5.