Apple CEO Tim Cook is not the only one who is convinced that getting up early increases productivity and thus makes you more successful. But what is really true about the five o’clock in the morning philosophy?
Sleeping late is a luxury! But if you want to experience real luxury and be as successful as Tim Cook and Richard Branson, you have to stick to a certain credo, says book author Robin Sharma. And that says: Sleep is over at five o’clock in the morning. Only then would you be able to get the maximum productivity out of yourself.
Successful like Tim Cook and Richard Branson: Early risers have something ahead of late sleepers
Apple CEO Tim Cook, entrepreneur Richard Branson and Twitter founder Jack Dorsey – they all have two things in common: They are among the most successful people in the world and their alarm clock rings at five in the morning! With the latter, they fulfill the main criterion for the mantra of Canadian author and motivational coach Robin Sharma. For he advises: “If you want to be among the five percent of the most successful people, you have to do things that only five percent do.”
For most people, the idea of struggling out of bed at five in the morning every day sounds like torture. But according to Sharma’s guidebook, “The 5 a.m. Club: Shape Your Morning and Anything in Your Life Becomes Possible” (2019), it’s the perfect exercise to regain one’s inner balance and take full advantage of each day until the last minute. In concrete terms, one would optimize many of one’s areas of life with this tactic.
More self-control
The discipline that one displays in the new morning routine helps one to respect oneself more. If you start the day with this strict rule, you will be stricter with yourself in many other areas of life as well, Sharma says. Plus, no one can then complain about not having enough time to do all the tasks in their free time and at work – including the gym.
More productivity
Sharma elaborates on the latter point in his book: According to the author, the big secret to increasing productivity – besides getting up early – is to follow a precise work schedule, the 60/10 technique. This means 60 minutes of intensive work, followed by a 10-minute break to have a coffee, answer messages on WhatsApp or make a phone call. He said that getting up early, combined with this method, leads to having more time not only for work, but also for oneself.
Allow yourself more rest
Many people find it difficult to create islands of tranquility in their daily lives – let alone to focus their entire lives on deceleration. But those who wake up at five in the morning usually have at least three hours of absolute peace and quiet from the flood of emails and messages. This extra time can help rediscover the desire to do what you want without being constantly interrupted.
Here’s how joining the “5 o’clock club” works.
Of course, it takes some effort to force yourself to get up at five in the morning. But the change doesn’t have to happen overnight – such a change can take three to seven nights. But to make it happen, it’s essential to move the “go-to-bed time” forward as well and go to bed no later than 10 p.m.