Introduction
Richard Branson , Founder of Virgin Group
Napoleon ,French Conqueror
Howard Schultz , CEO of Starbucks
Dalai Lama , Religious Leader
Michelle Obama , First Lady of the United States
Th e seare just a few of the many, many successful people who point theiraccomplishments to them being early risers, but how the heck do they do it? Aquick Google search will turn up hundreds of articles on the benefits of wakingup early and some tips on how to get out of bed. Some of them are helpful, but manyrepeat the same things. Theyll say things like find something to be excitedabout in the morning, which is inspiring and somewhat helpful, but only worksuntil it doesnt. One day the motivation is zapped and you go back to what you always did.Ultimately, there has yet to be asystematic approach on how to become a morning person.
Ifyoure reading this book , it means something has drawn you to the earlyhours of the morning. For some it may be about having time to enjoy a favorite hobby . For others it may be about being moreproductive. Still others may want to get healthier. No matter the reason,this book will help you get there.
So what qualifies me to write this book?
Manypeople have an earnest desire to wake up earlier but simply dont know how tomanage it. They invest their time reading through blogs but nothing can providewhat theyre looking for. I want to offer something that will actually get youthere, one mans authentic journey to becoming an early riser. I know what itslike not being able to get up in the morning. Ive had dayswhere I tried and failed to get up early (a lot of them), and Ive had dayswhere I hated getting out of bed so much I made myself late for work. Somepeople have never had that problem . Theyve never had a hard time getting upwhenever they want and their friends dont know how they do it. I was never oneof those people. Ive made the extra effort to go to bed extremely early and still not want to get up in the morning.
Incollege I became obsessed with the idea of mastering wakingup. I spent the better part of two years self-disciplining myself to get up at 5:00am or 6:00am (in college!), continuously struggling along the way . Not to mention how I would overindulge onweekends (much like people who diet are with food). But then something insideof me shifted, and getting up early was no longer a battle to be waged eachmorning. It became something that happened naturally. This change intrigued those who know me and I gotenough questions to inspire me to write this book. My goal is to teach othershow to make the shift from struggling to get up in the morning to waking upearly being natural.
What this book is not:
Frankly,the easy answer to waking up e arly is going to bed earlier. But thats not newsand definitely not worth buying a book about. Its also not enough to make adifference for most people. One of the most doctor-recommended New Yearsresolutions for Americans is to get more sleep* . People have beenhearing they need to go to bed earlier for years, but somehow arent able tomanage it. And for those that do figure it out, getting up in the early hoursis still a struggle, even with enough sleep.
Thisbook is not a list of things that would be nice to do in the morning. Its notsomething I read somewhere and copied into a book. Its not a fly-by list oftips like think positive or get at least 8 hours of sleep. There are plentyof blogs out there with great lists of things to do in the morning or how youcan drag yourself out of bed.
*UMD Baltimore Washington Medical Center
What this book is:
Thisis the approach I used to learn to absolutely love waking up early inthe morning. An early rise has become something Ive come to love and cantimagine living without. Thats what I want to provide for you.
Who this book is for:
Thisbook is for those who want to fall in love with getting up early and being ableto have time to do things that are important to them. Its for those that wantto make early mornings a natural part of their daily life, but have struggledwith it for as long as they can remember. And lastly, this book is for thosewho are willing to make a few lifestyle adjustments in order to make those desiresa reality. This is about being easy and sustainable, but its not a free ride.
What you get with this book:
Thepromise of this book is that you walk away with a clear method for how to getout of bed with ease and love being up early in the morning.
Tofulfill on that promise what youll get is a guide outlining exactly how I wentfrom pulling myself out of bed like many people to waking up early being myfavorite part of the day. This includes links to useful videos and blog posts,apps I found useful, and organizational tools I created to help me along theway.
Whatsimportant is what works for you, Ill make them all available and you can pickand choose what you like.
Note: whilethis book is targeted specifically for people wanting to enjoy waking up earlyin the morning, much of what well cover works for people who struggle gettingout of bed no matter the time.
Chapter One: Setting the Stage
Aquick look on Google will show that people who wake up early are more:
Productive
Healthy
Optimistic
Creative
Thoseare some of the benefits of waking up earlier, but whats the real juice tocreating a lifestyle around being an early riser? Why would it be something Imso passionate about? Not only does it allow you time for things you oftenneglect, but waking up before you need to get up is representative of taking control of your life. Be in school by 8:30. Be at work by9:00. These are times that completely dictate how we live our lives, down todetermining when we decide to wake up every morning. Choosing to go the extramile is taking a stand. It say s , Im in charge. Its a small step that has ahuge impact on your sense of self-direction and satisfaction in life.
Iwanted waking up early to become a natural part of my life, and I didnt wantthere to be a dramatic struggle every time the alarm went off. I couldnt findanything that offered that, so devised my own system. After research andexperimentation this is the method I found that works.
Chapter Two:The Habit Loop
Thefirst thing to explore is why getting up is so hard to begin with. Itssomewhat of a running joke, you can read hundreds of blogs on peoplesstruggles in the morning; weve created an entire culture around the morningcoffee routine.
garfield.com
Note:There are a lot of medical explanations for whypeople have a hard time getting up. Most of them can be checked with a simpleblood test:
Anemia (irondeficiency)
PotassiumDeficiency
Under/Over ActiveThyroid
Diabetes
Most things beyond those would require checking with a Sleep Lab.Sleep Apnea is another possibility, but unlikely if you dont already know youhave it.
Any of these would carry their own challenges with waking up that wewont get into. This book is based on the assumption that youre capable ofgetting up if you really wanted to(airplaneto catch, early start on a beach trip), you just have a really hard time withit.