Is waking up early the key to success? Our EA Sakura puts it to the test
Some of my most peaceful memories are of mornings. Slowly waking up to what feels like a scene pulled straight from a Disney movie. The mornings where I’m nestled between blankets and listening to the trills of birds that have been arguing outside my window since the sunrise ease me awake in a way that the jolt of an alarm clock never could.
For me, the sacredness of mornings has never been confined to routine, but the older I grow, the heavier the expectation of productivity only gets heavier, and it seems that a strict morning routine has become a hallmark for success. A quick search on virtually any major social media platform of “morning routine” will take you to thousands of suggestions from influencers who wake up at the crack of dawn. Although I’ve always found the videos of people showing their mornings interesting and even aspirational, I could never seriously imagine myself partaking in such a rigorous routine. One routine in particular, however, has always caught my eye: The Billionaire Morning Routine. It’s a routine that manifests success in the name, by staking claim on the early hours of the morning that are normally slept through and rebranding them as missed opportunities for productivity.
I’ve always been a little sceptical of morning routines jam-packed with a list of things to get done. In my eyes, the early “rise-and-grind” mindset is a byproduct of hustle culture telling us that, once again, we should be doing more and more with our time. However, these routines many of the world’s most wealthy say it is integral to their day to day lives. CEO of Apple, Tim Cook, supposedly likes to wake up at 3:45 am to check his emails before his colleagues. Starbucks founder Howard Shultz apparently wakes up at 4:30 in the morning. This knowledge then raises the question: Do these routines work for normal people? And more importantly, is there something I’m missing about the greatness of waking up that early?
Researchers and health professionals also seem to be divided on the topic. A study published in 2021 by JAMA Psychiatry found that people of European ancestry who are genetically predisposed to waking up earlier than the average person are at less risk for depression. A smaller study then found that people who shifted their wake up times to be earlier had improvements in their depression, but noted that a larger study would need to be done to determine if the results were significant. Associate professor of neurology and sleep studies at John Hopkins University, Rachel Salas, told BBC that waking up early would not be beneficial if it sacrificed sleep to do so. Salas emphasised the importance of consistent routine and amount of sleep, and that the positives of waking up early are diminished if you are not getting enough. It also seems that much of what controls our circadian rhythms is genetic, with 351 genetic factors affecting how we sleep. However, those factors shift over time with more people becoming earlier risers the older they grow.
For the sake of research, I decided to fight my night-owl genetics and get up around 6:30 am for several days. To avoid my roommate hating me for life (and for the sake of my own sanity), I decided to not awaken any earlier. The best method I found to stay awake was to shower straight away, then read or do homework. I wanted to go to the gym but the freezing morning air was far too demotivating for me—but I’d find myself going later in the day. I would then journal or read the news like several billionaire routines recommended, and make a list of things to get done that day. Once, I tried to meditate, but to be honest, I immediately fell back asleep.
The results of this routine weren’t that surprising to me at all. Even though I got a lot more done in the mornings, I got a lot less done later at night. In the end, I was still doing the same number of things, just at different times. I do feel that maybe some more consistency in doing this routine over the course of several months could alter my perspective. I think this routine would be a lot more effective for me in the summertime when I could witness the sunrise or blue skies. Waking up early this time of year felt like getting up in the middle of the night to just watch the sky slowly turn from black to a bleak grey. For the time being, I think I’ll continue my unproductive mornings and accept that maybe, I’m simply just not meant to be a billionaire.
