Get More Done Before the Heaviness of Day
There are two schools of thought out there when it comes to working. Some people say, “I’m not a morning person, I do better work in the afternoon or evening!” And other people say, “I do my best work first thing in the morning, productivity drops off as the day goes on.” Over the years I have found that it doesn’t matter what you say; mornings are better for productivity.
The reasons are numerous, but one shines above the rest. Mornings are different than the rest of the day. Not just because it’s early, or because the world is asleep; there are certain biological and natural instances that happen that create a change for the morning hours.
Seek First the Lord
As a believer, every morning has to start with some time spent with God. While a fuller, lengthier, meditation may occur at any time, I have found that a day started without at least 10 minutes in communion with the Lord doesn’t go as well as the others.
Much of that stems from a Christian song I heard over 20 years ago. The Waiting was the first concert I ever went to. Their Blue Belly Sky CD was the first CD I ever purchased. And I listened to it non-stop. I still remember every lyric. One track, call “Your Face”, starts out with these simple lyrics.
“I’ll see Your face in the morning/ While the shadows are long/ I’ll come to You in the morning/ Before the heaviness of day devours/ The stillness of dawn.”
At age 14 I first heard the lyrics, and over the next couple of decades they keep popping into my mind. I especially notice them when I am up and moving about in the early part of the day. And it’s such as concise description of what each day looks like; I can’t help but realize that when I don’t see (or seek) His face in the morning, then the whole day is thrown off as I struggle to embrace the heaviness of day.
Just like spending time with our Savior in the morning is important and productive, so is working first thing in the morning.
Your Most Productive Time
During the stillness of dawn, when the world is still rousing itself, is the time when you will get the most done. It is the time you will be thinking the clearest. It is the time when you will be at your peak. And it is the time when you will be the most tired if you have created a lifestyle that stays up late; at least until you are able to wean off the late-night hours.
The reason is biological. Think of the night like a reset button. Throughout the day things are piling up and weighing on your mind, often without you realizing it. You’re thinking about traffic, what to have for dinner, what the kids are doing, that red Mustang convertible you saw earlier, the sunshine, the lack of sunshine, the kitchen that needs cleaned, and so on and so forth. Just like your phone and computer store up temporary memory files, your brain does too. Just like your phone needs to be powered down to help clear those out, your brain does too.
During the night, your brain “resets” and washes out the temporary clutter. In the morning, you have a fresh perspective that isn’t bogged down with the heaviness of day. Precisely why before making a big decision you want to “sleep on it.” You have to see things (or think things) with a clear mind.
Become a Morning Person
Mornings mean different things to different people. And depending on how your life is shaped, a morning may be a little earlier, or a little later than others’. But the fact is that you’ll get more done it the morning than in the evening. You will be more productive, and you will do better work. For some that’s at 5am, others it is at 7am, but most will already be filling their minds with temporary memory files by 9am.
Become a morning person, get more done, and learn to meditate during the stillness of dawn.