Should You Make Yourself a Morning Person?

Perhaps Benjamin Franklin was on to something when he spoke of the early bird getting the worm. As this article notes, smart use of the early morning is a practice most highly successful people share. What makes these hours different from the rest of the day, especially when many of us feel like we’d be better off leaving important matters until we’ve had the chance to wake up (or at least down another cup of coffee)? The basic answer is that life doesn’t have the opportunity to get in the way.

Think about exercise. While you may have the greatest intention to hit the gym after work, all sorts of things can come up that foil the plan – from having to put in overtime to deciding that a catnap before dinner sounds more appealing than the treadmill. Working out first thing in the morning reduces the possibility that the activity will be sidelined.

The same strategy can be applied to the workday. Focusing first on the tasks that you really want to accomplish that day increases the odds that they will actually get done. Save them until later and they may remain unfinished because a colleague interrupts your schedule, the boss pulls you for an unexpected project, or a meeting runs longer than usual.

The morning also may be a great time to complete something that you aren’t thrilled about doing. Instead of dreading the task all day or building it up in your mind to be worse than it actually is, think of the sense of relief you’ll experience to know that it is over. A feeling of accomplishment can set the tone for the rest of the day.

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