Stop Hitting Snooze On Your Success

By Amy Weiner

As the hours of daylight lengthen and the public cautiously reopens, it has never been so easy to pursue the habit that most prospering entrepreneurs credit as a contributor to their success: waking up early. What’s special about making this small change is that it actually is a one-size-fits-all adjustment. All of our individualized efforts to reach our personal definition of success, whatever form that may take, can be impacted tremendously from rising earlier.

The impact it has on productivity can be attributed to maximizing the time available as well as taking advantage of our most physically alert time of day. Several notable entrepreneurs in various fields--Apple CEO, Tim Cook, to name one-- are known for citing time as the single most valuable resource, which further justifies their earlier wake-up times. Finally being able to check things off of the to-do list pushes you towards the unmatched feeling that you are reaching your goals, one check mark at a time.

Waking up early also encourages the establishment of routine, which has been repeatedly proven to promote small daily successes on tasks. More importantly, it helps with sleep schedules. Most of us are guilty of not sticking to a sleep schedule, staying up late with eyes glued to a screen, or sleeping late into the afternoon. The small adjustments needed to fix this and begin a routine would lessen the mid-work yawns and fatigue that inhibit motivation and success.

Granted, this is all much easier said than done. Setting your alarm for a certain time is one thing, but waking up for it is a different, much more difficult challenge. Think of daily motivation to get up, and keep in mind that incremental changes accumulate to big ones; your future self will thank you. Quite literally, don’t sleep on yourself--invest in your potential to accomplish more each day.