8 Myths About Sleep And How To Make The Quick Fix
Listen up entrepreneur. Let’s talk about you, just you, for a moment. In addition to building your business, the most important thing you do every day is sleep. Without proper sleep your performance flounders. Without any sleep you become immobilized. Unfortunately, us entrepreneurs think there are easy work arounds and short cuts. We are innovators after all. But sleep is one thing you can skip over, or come up with a quick fix for. You just gotta do it. Here are the 8 big myths entrepreneurs have about sleep:
 8. One Hour Less Won’t Hurt
The Facts: Even slightly less sleep will leave you feeling less energetic, hinder your alertness, affect your ability to think properly, affect cardiovascular health and even weaken your immune system.
The Quick Cure: It’s not when you wake up as much as when you go to sleep. Go to bed an hour earlier, and don’t use the excuse “I can’t fall asleep.” Instead make it a routine, and soon your body will adjust. |
7. Your Body Adjusts Quickly To New Sleep Schedules
The Facts: It takes between one and two weeks for your body to fully adjust to a new sleep schedule when there is more than even a two hour time difference.
The Quick Cure: Jet lag when traveling to new time zones can be offset by changing your sleep schedule to be consistent with the destination’s clock a week before you head out. |
6. The Older You Get, The Less Sleep You Need
The Facts: Adults of any age need about 8 hours a night. Older people simply don’t sleep as deeply as younger folks, and are more easily awakened.
The Quick Cure: Get back to basics – don’t drink caffeine for at least three hours before bedtime; don’t watch TV for at least an hour before bed (read a book instead); and don’t forget to use the toilet right before the lights go out. |
5. More Sleep Means More Awake Time
The Facts: It doesn’t only matter that you sleep 8 hours, it also matters that you sleep soundly and deeply.
The Quick Cure: Get a “white noise” sound machine, for most people it is more effective than over-the-counter-drugs and supplements. |
4. You Can Make Up For Lost Sleep During The Weekends.
The Facts: It actually kinda works, but you can’t “store up” for next week or “make up” for lost productivity the prior week. The Quick Cure: Pursue balance – nothing is better than the good old 8 hours a day. |
3. Power Naps Are A Waste
The Facts: Nothing can replace a full nights sleep, but if you need some rest a power nap is the most effective. The Quick Cure: Keep the power naps to 45 minutes max. If you sleep more than an hour, you may find it difficult to get back up. |
2. Snoring Is Normal
The Facts: It’s common, especially as we get older, but that doesn’t make it normal (aka healthy). Evidence indicates snoring may be an indication of heart disease and type 2 diabetics. Loud snoring may be an indication of sleep apnea, and that can lead to high blood pressure, impotence, and memory problems. The Quick Cure: Go for a regular check-up with your doctor. Also try natural products to open breathing passageways while you sleep. |
1. A Reoccurring Inability To Sleep Is Usually Due To Stress
The Facts: Although stress can cause short periods of insomnia, a persistent inability to sleep can stem from a number of different issues including chemical/hormonal imbalances, depression, asthma, arthritis or other medical conditions. The Quick Cure: Review your diet and see a doctor. |
Summary
When it comes down to it, getting the sleep that you need is critically important to your company’s current and future success. To take care of your business, don’t forget to take care of yourself first!
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March 10th, 2009
I’m guilty of #3 & #4. Then again what college student/entrepreneur isn’t!? I keep the power naps to a minimum and I try to get a consistent amount of rest each day so as to avoid that crash that inevitably comes.
March 10th, 2009
@Ricardo – Typical college guy.
- Mike
March 10th, 2009
An addition to point number 1 that I am suffering from at the moment, and goes with the picture: 1. A Reoccurring Inability To Sleep Is Usually Due To Having Young Baby. 12 hours sleep in 3 nights it’s crippling.
March 10th, 2009
This article is very timely for me. Just this morning I started waking up at 5:00AM in order to be on the same schedule as a couple of my business partners, after having been going to sleep at almost that time for the past several months.
March 10th, 2009
@Everyone – I just read this post and I almost fell asleep. Is that good or bad? (And I wrote the darn thing)
- Mike
March 10th, 2009
I love when you talk directly to me the entrepreneur. The best thing about being an entrepreneur married to an entrepreneur is life integration.
Work, play, exercise and innovating daily is tiring. Unless I am getting a cold (rarely), I never ever tired in the afternoon. To busy being excited…which is exhausting. So when I cash-out every night, I cash out and usually sleep very well. My wife does not always sleep very well and is working on that, but she crashes too and we both hop up without alarm ready to rock.
Why? Hop out of bed Monday morning passion.
How? By being very busy, eating well and exercising. It is 4:15, time to get back on the horn for a client’s “personal brand check”.
Nice post!
March 10th, 2009
@David – What’s your trick to cashing-out at night. That, hand’s down, is my biggest challenge. I just want to keep going and going.
- Mike
March 10th, 2009
@mike – me too but you will die and that is not good for anyone. People wonder how we (Julie and me) get so much done…sleep. Seriously. Defragment. Dream.
March 11th, 2009
I’ve been stuggling with the late nights the last couple of months! When you work full time for the man and persuing a start up at the same time. I get so into my work that it’s 1am before I know it. I’m struggling to find my balance! I’ve gotta try the hour earlier…I know it will save me.
March 11th, 2009
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March 12th, 2009
[...] Pretty much everyone has some kind of sleep issue that they’re dealing with.
March 12th, 2009
I thought of skipping this blog post when it appears in my feed reader because it does not contain any business or entrepreneurship buzzword inside the title but I’m glad that I flagged it for further reading.
For me, I place my business towards the top of my daily priorities and I am always trying to allocate more hours to my business, which also means that I have to sacrifice my sleep like most entrepreneurs and small business owners that I know of.
Anyway, this is a good post that defeats a few myths about sleep that I had. Going to have a nice sleep tonight and hopefully I won’t dream business.
March 12th, 2009
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March 12th, 2009
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March 13th, 2009
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March 13th, 2009
This article is very timely for me. Just this morning I started waking up at 5:00AM in order to be on the same schedule as a couple of my business partners, after having been going to sleep at almost that time for the past several months..
March 16th, 2009
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March 18th, 2009
It’s ironic, I have a website on sleep and I lose sleep over it…
It kinda makes sense, but does it defeat the whole purpose??
March 19th, 2009
@g2sleep – Now THAT is funny! – Mike
March 20th, 2009
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March 21st, 2009
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April 10th, 2009
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May 2nd, 2010
Sleep plays a huge role in body repair. This is also the time when growth hormones are released. This is why it is important to have comfortable sleep all the time. But since we do not have the luxury of 8 hours of sleep, we should make the most of what little time we spend sleeping. Start by making sure that the mattress you are using is comfortable. Memory foam and latex foam mattresses are preferred nowadays because of their ability in reducing pressure points, correcting sleep posture and conforming to the contours of your body.
June 8th, 2010
i have tried this before and it does work
June 8th, 2010
@Carol – What specifically have you tried?