How to Make Great Sleep a Habit

1: Sleeping as long as you want?

Waking up without an alarm clock?

This may sound like being on vacation, Tynan writes in his book Superhuman by Habit.

By making good sleep a habit, however, it can become an important part of your everyday life.

The benefits of good sleep are immense:

• Higher energy levels
• Less stress
• Improved focus
• Improved mental abilities
• Less susceptibility to depression

“Being alert and working at your peak when others are dragging and relying on coffee makes you feel invincible,” he observes.

What is required?

A long-term perspective. Because in any given week, “you can sacrifice your sleep,” Tynan notes, “for more time spent working, and possibly even more high-quality output.

“But over the long term, you’ll find that the quantity of quality output you are able to produce will be directly correlated to how closely you are able to follow your body’s natural sleep patterns.”

How do you know if you’re winning?

Tynan’s ultimate goal is simple: Give your body the sleep it wants, “probably around 8 hours on average.”

2: The mindset shift is to stop treating sleep as whatever time is left over after everything else gets done. Instead, make it something you deliberately plan for.

Start with the basics.

“Rather than regulate your wake-up time, regulate your bedtime.” he suggests, “This will give your body the consistency to build a sleep schedule that is optimal for you.”

Chances are you need to wake up at a set time. Tynan suggests setting your alarm for that time and planning to go to bed nine hours before it rings.

Next, make your sleep environment as dark, quiet, and cool as possible.

“If you can completely darken your bedroom, this is the best option,” he explains. “You can get heavy-duty blackout curtains, turn off the lights outside your door, cover every LED on your electronics, and remove any nightlights.”

Option two is to buy a sleep mask.

This may be required depending on your circumstances, especially if you share your bedroom with someone who does not share your zeal for habit-building.

Tynan suggests wearing your sleep mask every night. You might take it off in your sleep at first, but stay with it.

The second key to a great sleep environment is silence.

If your home is already quiet, that’s perfect. If not, try using earplugs. There are plenty of affordable options out there.

“Although it’s best to not use an alarm clock long-term,” Tynan notes, “you’ll be able to hear it through the earplugs.”

The third important factor is temperature. Tynan recommends keeping your bedroom cool, about 65 degrees.

3: Getting better at getting better is what RiseWithDrew is all about.  Monday through Thursday, we explore ideas from authors, thought leaders, and exemplary organizations.  At the end of each week, we’re exploring Tynan’s book Superhuman by Habit and how to install specific, positive habits into our lives.

The last thing to watch for is blue light in the hours before you go to bed.

“If you have trouble falling asleep, as I used to,” Tynan writes, “it may be because you’re exposing yourself to screens up until the time you try to go to sleep.”

The problem? “Light, particularly the blue light from screens, tells the pineal gland in our brains that it’s still daytime.”

He recommends setting a strict “screens-off time” one to two hours before bedtime.

Another plus of turning off screens at night is that it “becomes great time to do some daily reading,” he says.

As with any new habit, it will take some time to adjust.

“Good sleep feels like a luxury and a superpower at the same time,” Tynan writes.

But once good sleep becomes a habit, “you’ll soon feel better than you ever have, and be totally unwilling to switch back to your old schedule,” he predicts.

The goal isn’t simply to sleep more. It’s to build a life where getting enough sleep becomes automatic.

More next week!

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Reflection: Is sleep something you deliberately plan for, or is it whatever time is left over at the end of your day?

Action: Pick one change to improve your sleep this week: Establish a consistent bedtime, make your bedroom darker or quieter, lower the temperature, or set a screens-off time before bed.