Highlights
- Your productivity depends on recognising your natural prime time and capitalising on it
- Use your peak hours to do the important tasks and leave mundane tasks for your less alert times
- Adding more hours to your day doesn’t equal greater efficiency.
It’s been proven that everyone has different peak hours. That’s why morning people and night owls exist – those who start the day full steam ahead and those who prefer starting their day later and ending it the same way.
In his book, The 20-Minute Break, Ernest Rossi explains ultradian rhythms, natural energy shifts that repeat in a cycle in peaks and valleys multiple times during a 24-hour day.
When it comes to productivity and forming habits that help you reach your goals, it’s best to identify your most alert and efficient time.
The big idea: Capitalise on your internal prime time
Multiple business experts back the idea of an early morning routine as the most effective foundation for a successful day. While habits are vital for developing the self-discipline required to achieve success, science has concluded that the emphasis on morning is often misplaced.
“Your internal prime time is the time of day, according to your body clock, when you are the most alert and productive,” says author and speaker Brian Tracy. “Leveraging those prime hours can supercharge your focus and derail procrastination.”
What’s in it for you: You’ll be sharpest during crucial tasks
Depending on your natural rhythms, you may be more alert at 6am or only when the sun sets. The key is to invest some time into tracking your rhythms and identifying your prime peak period. In today’s highly competitive market, your prime time is your greatest asset.
“Every day is different, but tackling the most important, strategic work during my best hours helps me stay motivated and avoid feeling overwhelmed,” says Aytekin Tank, Founder and CEO of JotForm. “Most important, when I use those peak hours, I’m excited to arrive at work each day.”
Make it happen
3 Ways to work in synch with your natural peaks and valleys:
- Protect your peak hours. Realise that your prime time is valuable and create fixed boundaries to protect it at all costs
- Use that time for brain-intensive work. This isn’t the ideal time to be checking email, social media or other distractions, because you’re letting those precious hours slip away with mundane activities while your brain power is at its best
- Don’t schedule meetings. Yes, meetings count as distractions too. If you’re a morning person, schedule meetings later on in your diary, so that you don’t have interruptions during your first few prime hours.