Why Losing Sleep To Get Work Done Almost Never Pays Off
Channel: Alex Zorach
Date: 09/10/2018

People often claim they "don't have enough time to sleep", which ignores the obvious ways a sleep deficit negatively affects people's ability to get things done. Here I talk about focus, creativity, and health effects, including weakening of the immune system which can cause people to lose far more time than they stayed up in the first place.

Staying up late to get work done during a prologed period of stress almost always results in a downward spiral where your work productivity suffers, either in school or employment, leading to you having even less time because you are able to get less done in the same amount of time.

You can (and often NEED to) break this cycle by either "half-assing" specific types of work, or just putting your foot down and asserting yourself with a supervisor or boss, telling them that you can't do something. In a work environment, emphasizing the importance of your long-run productivity is a powerful selling point. In school, asking for extensions for work, or sometimes settling for a lower grade than you would usually want, is often a best choice.