As Ben Franklin once said, 

“Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise.” Ben was pretty spot on.

What was true back then is still true today. In fact, it’s probably truer than ever considering our fast-paced lives and the way technology connects everything causing so many more distractions.

Waking up early might just be the best kept secret of highly effective people. Pretty much every story you read about a successful person refers to this as one of their best habits.

So why should you get up early?
The earlier you get up each day, the more time you have to get things done before the rest of the noisy world creeps into your day. Mornings are a peaceful time, free from buzzing phones, text messages, social media, and email notifications. Nighttime can be good too, but you don’t get the benefit of natural sunlight which is when humans are their most mentally alert and effective.

You can also just start your big tasks of the day before everyone else wakes up. What a great way to start your day!

But It’s Not That Easy
Personally, when I try to go to bed earlier I end up staring at the ceiling for hours and hours, unable to fall asleep! Then I’m very tired and I DEFINITELY can’t get up early!

Then whenever my alarm goes off in the morning, I just hit the snooze button. I can’t win! Some experts say that you should “listen to what your body’s needs”. Which means you should sleep when you’re sleepy and get up when you wake up. Makes sense. But in the morning, my body never tells me to get up!

However, I finally found a solution that works for me. It’s simple and I’ve read many biographies of successful entrepreneurs who have applied this method to their own lives. I bet they do this without even thinking about it.

The Solution
The answer is a combination of the two parts above. Firstly, go to bed when you’re sleepy (when your body tells you to), but wake up early at the same time every day. Your body doesn’t know what the weekend means. If you keep doing this, then you’ll eventually become too sleepy to stay up late.

I’ve made a habit of getting up at 6AM every day, even though I might go to bed at any time from 10PM to 1AM. And I go to bed when I’m too sleepy to stay up. I know I’m ready for bed when the pages of my book start to get blurry.

Also make sure you hop off the computer and TV in the hour before you want to sleep. The unnatural lights from these devices keep you well awake. Reading a book before but is a much better alternative.

This technique won’t be easy the first couple of days, but soon after you’ll see that you become naturally tired as time goes on. You don’t have to force yourself to try and sleep when you’re not tired. Try being an early riser this week and see if you get more done!

For more great tips on how to Stop Procrastinating, check out the Free Productivity Guide. It’s full of tips just like this!