Discomfort Academy #90
Proven Tips to Wake Up Early, Get Your Attention Span Back, Tips on Saving Money
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Hey there! In the previous issue I’ve talked about the changes I made to start waking up early. I know some of you are die-hard night owls, and the whole idea might seem like it’s not for you. However I thought I was a night owl for many many years, and now have retrained myself to wake up early (5:30am both weekdays and weekend). I’m still not really a morning person, but I recognize that to me as a busy working adult and a father, if I don’t use the time in the morning I won’t have time for myself and my pursuits.
I tried making this change many times in my life but I wasn’t able to stick to it. What finally made the idea click for me was reading a post on Reddit, in a “daddit” subreddit for fathers, where lots of people shared that after becoming a father they had switched to waking up early to get some time back and to get back the control of their day. A lot of fathers there shared that they also used to be night owls but were able to switch, so I thought - wow that means I can also do it!
Today I’m going to share with you some tips that have worked for me:
Limit caffeine intake as much as you can, especially in the afternoon and evening. For me this change wasn’t motivated by choice, but by necessity. When I drink coffee, over time I become very addicted to it and I would constantly drink coffee throughout the day. I even sometimes would take my coffee cup to the bedroom where I’d sit and watch something at 11pm-1am and then go to sleep right after. No wonder I couldn’t wake up early! My sleep quality was just not there. I quit it cold turkey in December and, though I miss it sometimes, it’s become easier. If you can’t or don’t want to quit coffee or caffeine-rich teas entirely, try to limit them and only allow yourself to drink these in the morning.
Go to sleep early. Again, this advice sounds so basic and common sense that I feel silly typing it out. However, if you really want to wake up early consistently, you need to go to sleep early consistently. This tip works in tandem with Tip #1: I used to never feel sleepy at 10-11pm, but now I do.
Have personal time in the morning, not evening. Another thing I used to do after a long day filled with work and other responsibilities (child, home errands, etc) is to sit in the bedroom and watch some videos or play video games (using PlayStation Portal so I can do it from the bedroom) from 11pm or so till I couldn’t do it anymore and was falling asleep right there in the armchair. I realized that even though it felt like I was getting some time back for myself, it wasn’t a good quality time, my body was already shutting down to go to sleep. Another issue was that there was no cap on going to sleep late - the night time felt stretchable, sometimes to 1am or 2am.
Have a clearly defined morning routine. This doesn’t have to be a military-like schedule, but a short list of activities you want to do in the morning. Some ideas: brushing your teeth, meditation, prayer, light breakfast, reading, video games, watching something that’s been on your list for a while but you couldn’t find the time for. Make sure you time box these activities, otherwise one of them might take a major chunk from your morning.
Plan something you’re looking forward to. For a long time I thought this was bad, not allowed and weak on my part to try and have some fun in the morning. I thought if I’m doing this I must only do “beneficial and good” activities, like meditation or reading. Ben from DevDuck YouTube channel helped me realize that it’s ok to have a fun activity you’re looking forward to in the morning, like playing a video game for 30 minutes. This tip might be the one that makes or breaks this habit for you, especially in the first month or two. Don’t be afraid to add this fun activity to your morning routine, whatever it might be for you.
Prepare clothes/essentials in advance. This makes your morning smoother, and is especially important if you live with someone else and/or have kids as you won’t wake them up trying to find your clothes, phone, glasses (if applicable), etc in the dark. Remember that you’re making this change and not them, don’t force them into it. Also, when they are asleep it will be easier for you to have control over your own time.
Try to get a silent, vibration only alarm if you live with others. This goes back to the previous point. I actually sleep in 2 watches (one on each wrist), and both have silent alarms that go off at 5:30 and repeat within 1 minute of each other, because I’m a heavy sleeper and sometimes the first alarm doesn’t get me. This ensures my wife continues to sleep and I don’t wake her up at this early hour.
Be consistent with your wake up time. This one is big because our body gets used to waking up at a specific time. It will get confused if you keep setting your alarm for different times in the morning and it will be harder to keep consistent at this habit. This is why I also wake up at the same time on Saturdays and Sundays.
OK, that was the list of my main tips. I’m happy to report benefits:
my stomach is healing without all the acidity of coffee and sweets (related to my first tip above)
I’m consistently meditating every morning
I’ve been reading more than I have in recent memory
My mornings are no longer full of stress of figuring out what time it is I woke up at, and hurriedly walking the dog, getting dressed, getting my daughter ready for daycare with my wife. That stress is gone.
I’ve finally started exercising on my own, though I still have to work on doing more in this area.
I’m happy to go to sleep at around 10:30pm; I’m tired by that time and it feels good to be in bed at a specific time and not at the time I was already half-asleep and tired from watching YT videos and playing games at night.
I feel healthier than before and more in control of my life
So, if you’re interested, try it out! Please report back how it goes (you can just reply to this email)!
Videos
Our attention span is getting shorter and shorter, based on the types of new content that we’re consuming. I think apps like TikTok and the clones of its functionality by other apps (YouTube Shorts, Instagram Reels & Stories) are the worst of it, training our brains to the shortest possible snippets of content, that’s also edited to remove pauses between sentences and sometimes speeding up speech itself. Jared shares why it’s not a good thing for our brains and what we can do to start getting our attention span back.
Hope and Larry’s channel is my favourite frugality channel on YouTube. They always have the best tips and know each area of expenses so well that they can do a long video just about savings on laundry, for example. This below is a well rounded video with a lot of great tips on how to save money. I know each person’s situation is different but I’m sure there are some good savings ideas in here for everyone!
A big milestone for Bren, who’s been homeless for sometime (due to problems with alcohol prior) and now, after a lot of work, is finally able to move into an apartment after living in his car for 3 years. Inspiring story of perseverance and change.
Quotes
“Do something today that your future self will thank you for.”
— Sean Patrick Flanery
“It's hard to fight an enemy who has outposts in your head.”
— Sally Kempton
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Stay discomfy,
Alex Kallaway
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