By Anissa Deol
This is coming from a non-morning person, and it took me a while to get to where I could be productive in the mornings instead of drowsy and sleepy. I would like to thank my bed, my mind skills and the Academy for giving me insight into how to be cautious and be less wasteful with my time. (I know, I need to work on my speech).
Waking up in the mornings after not getting enough sleep is very hard for me to do. I know some people can get up and function for a few hours after about four or five hours of sleep, or even less. However, I am the complete opposite. I need six to seven hours of sleep if I am to get up at six or seven o’clock in the morning. If I don’t, I will not be able to concentrate without yawning over thirty times, or finish tasks whether it be schoolwork or sitting through a movie.
Sleep is important for any human being. It helps us with basic functions and complex actions that allow us to live as people and do our jobs. Without sleep, we are practically lost in both physical and mental abilities. The constant need for our body is like a baby without their mother’s milk or any milk at all. It is vital for any source of growth we may need as children or adults.
I don’t usually like to get up this early, but I cannot sleep in until past 10:00 AM. If I do, I feel as if my whole day has already been unproductive or there is no point is changing out of my pajamas. Others may have various likes and dislikes with this, but it is all subjective. However, if there is a necessity for me to get up this early it is either for studying, catching flights, or for any reasons concerning the beauty of nature as well. It is hard though, getting yourself out of bed after you have stayed up watching SNL till 1:30 in the morning, or finishing a book because you couldn’t put it down. But there are various and unique ways you can use your time and still get a lot out of your morning.
The one thing that will distract you the most will be your phone. In the early morning, where you don’t want to do anything because you are too tired to think or even take out your books, you will want to just mindlessly look at your screen and scroll through Instagram posts you have seen for the fourth time. I’ve done it before, and it’s a waste of time because I should’ve stayed asleep or I felt angry because I didn’t achieve my goals that morning.
There are a multitude of apps that can keep you off your phone. My favorite that I use is called Forest. Basically, it is an app that allows you to set a time for when you are trying to be productive, whether it be studying or working at a job, it allows you to stay off your phone. If you leave the app (you can turn off your phone), the tree you are planting will die and you will have to restart your time. In the end, when you have gotten a certain amount of coins from planting your trees, you can plant a real tree through the business that runs the app in a country that needs it for their community. Personally, I like seeing my tree grown at the end of my time when I’m done studying. It gives me a sense of completion and the fact that I can also buy an actual tree, and have it planted somewhere.
There are other ways that you can avoid being unproductive with your phone. You can put your phone away somewhere you know you wouldn’t take it with you or have someone else take it and keep it for a bit while you are trying to get something done.
If caffeine is a way you stay awake, I would advise you get a cup of tea or coffee before you sit down. If you get something light to eat before you sit down it will stop you from getting snacks that are unnecessary to have. It takes your mind off of studying and focuses on what you would rather want to eat.
It is hard to be productive when you are drowsy and not wanting to get anything done. However, there are ways to avoid being unproductive if you are to wake up this early. However, there are ways to keep yourself in check when doing it. Classical music, music that gets you pumped up or apps that will keep you off your phone. But at the end of the day, or the beginning of the morning I guess, it is a mindset and various ways to help yourself.