Mama im job. Work smart. Play smart

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Increase morning productivity?

Nightowls are people whose inner clocks are incompatible to "social clocks". We talk about school starting times, office work times, you name it. So nightowl-people like me usually are forced to get up earlier than our body is prepared to do this. Or do you go to bed early even though you're not tired, only for getting up early next morning?

Hier für die deutsche Version klicken: Kann ich Morgenstunden produktiver nutzen?

Photo: © Martina Friedl, pixelio.de

So we often get up at 6:00 a.m., acting like Zombies. And at 9:00 a.m. we did nothing more than taking a shower, sending the kids to school and going to work. That means, we arrive there, not, that we've already been starting to work.

Talking about homeworking moms, we can reduce morning activity to "sending kids to school". Oh, and "making coffee" to get our eyes open.

Assumption: Early birds are more productive

At this time, high octane people have already done a workout and / or meditation, before they prepared a healthy breakfast for their family, cleaned the house, did the laundry and ticked off three items on their business to-do-list.

My first reaction to this is: Wow! But then I think: Do I really want this for myself?

Meanwhile I even appreciate the "slow" morning hours. I sip at my coffee- or teapot, drifting along blogs and social networks. Very often I get an idea for a blogposting in a flash - no matter what's on my blogging schedule for that day. These posts are often written in one go, in spite of tiredness. That's the moment I get into gear, and I learned to accept that.

I read Laura Vanderkams book What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast: A Short Guide to Making Over Your Mornings--and Life. She talks very much about "self control", "discipline" and "decision making" - all of these things before drinking the first coffee in the morning! Reading tis, I ask myself, if "late birds" are happier. Unfortunately, nightowls are socially forced to live against their biological clock and prone to get sick. Lots of coffee and food with many calories for energy and concentration have side effects in the long run.

"Late birds" aren't less productive -
they only work later

If we weren't forced to start working at times defined by the minority of early birds (only 35 %), we would have less issues. Because we make our work late in the evening and at night - the same amount larks manage in the morning. But that only works, if we have the possibility to sleep until 9:00 a.m., or whatever a nightowl needs to start the day.

I'm a mother of four. Before I had children, I had the best workflow late in the evening. Unfortunately, my children weren't interested in mommys working times and woke up very early. Exactly till they went to school, but that's another story.

Perfect: Adjusting work schedule to your inner clock

If you have no kids (but if you hadn't you wouldn't read this magazine, would you?), it would be easier to choose the Lifestyle Business that makes you independent from working schedules and workplaces. But although you might not be able to quit your job at an office and work whenever you want, you might be interested in the experience of Conni from Planet Backpack who lives as a digital nomad completely independent of "normal" working times. If you're curious now and if you're able to read in german, you can read about an ordinary day in the life of a digital nomad.

Though I'm rather sleepy before 10:00 a.m., I learned that a morning workout gives me a boost of energy and increases my productivity before noon. Half an hour on a crosstrainer ist kinda magic ;-)

Always tired? Time for a check-up!

If you have the impression, you are tired all the time and you never seem to be powerful and wide awake, it would be a good idea to make an appointment with your doctor. You may have a deficiency syndrome or even a serious disease. Or it's just winter.

What about you? Are you an earlybird? Or are you fighting against social standard working times? What are you doing to change this for your life? Feel free to comment!

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