Good habit #2 Get enough sleep

When is the last time you woke up by yourself, without the need of an alarm clock, feeling refreshed and bright. Imagine waking up without an alarm clock and without the need for a caffeine kick to get us into a functional state.

It is a luxury we think we cannot afford. Yet, sleep is the time when the body goes through the necessary steps to recover from whatever tasks we put it through. While we sleep, the sub conscious processes information and the brain sorts the information obtained in the day. When we are sick or hurt, sleep is the best medicine to give the body's natural system the chance it needs to heal itself.
Sleep is not a luxury, it is a necessity. When we get enough sleep, we wake up in a better state of mind. The body can function at its best and the mind can do amazing things.

So, how does one go about getting enough sleep?

The trick is time management, or to be blunt, to stop wasting time. how many hours do we mindlessly stare at the TV without seeing anything that is of interest. How often do we browse the Internet or fiddle with a smart phone, without getting any benefit from it.

It is part of life, of course, but if we cut down on the time wasters, we have lots of time for value adding things.

An easy way to change your sleep pattern, of to create a routine for sufficient sleep. The exact amount of hours every person needs differs, but 7 or 8 hours might be a good start.

Decide on the time you want to wake up at, and go to bed the set amount of hours before. It might feel crazy to go to bed 2 hours earlier than usual, but give it a go.

Plan what you need to do before going to bed, and try to get it done. Set your alarm clock for the time, and then switch your smartphone to silent, or off. Put it out of reach, and close your eyes.

Falling asleep earlier might be hard at first. Perhaps try some meditation and focus on your breathing. Clear your head of runaway thoughts. The benefit of getting the "have to" things dive early, if that you don't have to worry about it when you go to bed.