How to start the day off right without waking up at 5 AM
By: Kai Wong
Tags: Morning Routines, Sleep, Online, Technology, Productivity

How to start the day off right without waking up at 5 AM

The power of being offline

Photo by Jake Givens on Unsplash

By now, you’ve heard the benefits of waking up at 5 AM a million different times but just can’t seem to drag yourself out of bed that early.

What if you could get similar benefits by doing something else?

You can wake up at your normal time: just be offline for the first hour of the day.

The paradox of convenience

You know, on some fundamental level, that you shouldn’t reach for your phone first thing in the morning.

But there’s some science behind that: experts say that you shouldn’t touch your phone for the first hour of the day. Doing so means your time and attention get hijacked, you have increased stress and anxiety.

Most importantly, doing so can mess with your productivity for the entire rest of the day.

But 48% of people use a cell phone as an alarm, which means it’s likely the first thing they see in the morning. And even if they don’t, cell phones can vibrate or ring, bringing the temptation to check it.

You might be thinking, well why don’t those people just buy an alarm clock. But how many people would willingly pay for a highly niche piece of technology that is going to limit a dopamine fix?

If it were that easy, wouldn’t more people buy outlet timers, so that their TV and internet automatically shut off when it’s time for bed?

But people still stay up way too late watching shows, just as people still reach for their phones.

So how can you spark change, without a drastic shift?

The power of being offline

David Levy, in his book “Mindful Technology”, talks about a measured approach to be attentive, aware, and relaxed while being online. Rather than cutting yourself off entirely, he posits that by being aware of your technology use, and occasionally unplugging from it, you can learn how to moderate and fix issues you currently have with technology.

And that’s something you can implement by being offline for the first hour of the day. What do I mean by being offline? It’s exactly how it sounds.

Go into airplane mode. Turn off wifi. Have an outlet timer. Whatever it takes, don’t be online when you first wake up.

And this can extend beyond your phone: your tablet, your computer, your TV. Remain offline for the first hour of the day, and you can benefit.

The benefits of being bored

Levy says that “the three main benefits people describe have to do with increased productivity and focus, better use of their time, and greater relaxation (reduction in stress).”

One of the reasons why this occurs is, surprisingly, because of boredom. The simple fact of the matter is that many of us don’t have enough time to be bored.

If you’re among the majority of Americans that wake up by 6:30 or 7 AM, you might be hurried to avoid a long morning commute.

In your commute, you might have stop and go traffic, meaning you can’t fully zone out.

Once you get to work, you often come in around the same time as others, which means that you have to communicate with them and get roped into work mode without a break.

Then the only time you might have a chance to not react to stimuli might be after work and dinner, around 6–7 PM when you’re winding down from a long day.

Waking up at 5 AM is supposed to give you a long uninterrupted period to do whatever you need before work. Whether it’s doing extra work or just simply having a moment of introspection.

Photo by M_K Photography on Unsplash

But that’s not the only way: the other option is to simply fill your morning with nothing.

During that morning routine, you might be filling it with different technological devices. You wake up to an alarm, then check your phone messages. You listen to podcasts on your commute. You watch TV while eating breakfast.

But what happens if you don’t do that? Well, I imagine you might get bored, especially if you’re used to all these distractions. But then you’d probably do something with that time. And that process will likely mitigate stress and mental health burdens that you might face for the rest of the day.

Removing the noise

Think back to mornings where you were alerted by your phone or e-mail. How many times, when you went to check, did it turn out to be an advertisement or other junk?

There’s an inherent Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO) associated with not paying attention to an alert. There have been countless movies, songs, or other media about missed calls, texts, or voicemails leading to a broken relationship, missed jobs, or tragedies.

But when the world thinks you’re asleep, most people won’t try to contact you. Most businesses don’t even open before 8 AM, and if there’s an emergency, people will call you, usually more than once.

So don’t let your fear of missing out disrupt you from starting the day off right, and being your most productive self.