As an artist, your talent is all in how you mould your imagination into the real world. But if you don’t get enough sleep, you will hit a mental block, productivity suffers and profoundly impacts your business?
Think about how many hours you sleep, what time you go to sleep and your general routine. I’m a night owl but accept I have to go to bed early simply to give my brain a rest and awake inspired, rather than wasted and depressed.
Firstly, acknowledge it is late. For most who go to bed late, it’s mostly a problem of mentality. You notice it is 2am and still think there’s plenty of time! No, you don’t.
If you make it a habit to go to bed way past midnight, your idea of late is an increasingly later hour. So, the next time you see it’s past 11.30pm, give up and go to bed. Redefine your idea of early and late.
If your mind tells you that all, you will be doing is lying awake, then block the thought out. Give yourself positive reasons for getting to bed earlier, such as the time when your lateness led to disastrous results.
Work out what time you need to get up. Your wake-up time needs to be the same every day except for rare occasions.
Minus 8 hours from the time you get up. Work out how long it takes you to fall asleep. Think whether you lie in bed for what seems hours or does your head hit the pillow? If the first one is the case, subtract one hour from the time you have. If your head barely hits the pillow, you only need five minutes in bed before your -8 hours. If you’re somewhere in between, 30 minutes is a safe bet to be in bed before you fall asleep.
Do something relaxing before bedtime. The computer may be calming, but your brain makes you sleepy when it is dark. By staring at a screen, you are keeping yourself alert and wide-awake for longer than you should.
Go to bed when you feel tired. Be strict about your bedtime. Force yourself to turn off the computer and TV before bed.
After following a bedtime routine, still feel tired or unwilling to get up in the morning? You may need a few more hours. Let yourself sleep in on the weekend. Do this a few times, and you’ll probably no longer feel that need eventually.
If you keep wanting to get up earlier than your wake-up time then go to bed a little later. Some people need less sleep than others, and you may no longer have to go to bed an hour early anymore because of your routine.
Reward yourself for your commitment, such as treating yourself to a movie every fortnight.
Notice how much better you feel. If you’re getting around 8 hours’ sleep, you’ll probably notice a dramatic increase in your physical and mental well-being.
