I have seen this simple, practical strategy help many people discover a more peaceful, even a more meaningful life.
So many people wake up, rush to get ready, grab a cup of coffee, and charge out the door to work. After working all day, they return home, tired. The same is usually true for men and women who stay home with their children: They get up just in time to start doing things for the kids. There is virtually no time for anything else. Whether you work, raise a family, or both, for the most part you are too tired to enjoy any time left for you. As a solution to the tiredness, the assumption is often made, “I’d better get as much sleep as I can.” So, your free time is spent sleeping. For many people this creates a deep longing in the heart. Surely there must be more to life than work, children, and sleep!
Another way of looking at your fatigue is to consider that a lack of fulfillment and a sense of being overwhelmed both contribute to your tiredness. And, contrary to popular logic, a little less sleep and a little more time for you might be just what you need to combat your sense of fatigue.
An hour or two that is reserved just for you—before your day begins—is an incredible way to improve your life. I usually get up between 3 and 4 in the morning. After a quiet cup of coffee, I usually spend some time doing yoga and a few minutes of meditation. After that, I will usually go upstairs and write for a while, but I also have time to read a chapter or two in whatever book I’m enjoying. Sometimes I’ll just sit for a few minutes and do nothing. Virtually every day, I stop whatever I’m doing to enjoy the sunrise as it comes up over the mountain. The phone never rings, no one is asking me to do anything for them, and there is nothing I absolutely have to do. It’s by far the most quiet time of the day.
By the time my wife and children wake up, I feel as though I’ve had a full day of enjoyment. No matter how busy I am that day or whatever demands there are on my time, I know I’ve had “my time.” I never feel ripped off (as so many people unfortunately do), as if my life isn’t my own. I believe this makes me more available for my wife and children, as well as my clients at work and other people who depend on me.
Many people have told me that this one shift in their routine was the single most important change they have ever made in their lives. For the first time ever, they are able to participate in those quiet activities they never found the time to do. All of a sudden, the books are getting read, the meditation gets done, the sunrise is appreciated. The fulfillment you experience more than makes up for any sleep you miss out on. If you must, turn off the television at night and get to sleep an hour or two earlier.