Get out of bed. That’s great advice for people of all ages but especially for those of a younger generation.
Des Moines entrepreneur John Ruan, Sr., who died in 2010 at age 96, said his business success wasn’t because he was so much smarter than other people, but rather that he simply got out of bed earlier and, as a result, accomplished more each day. Great point.
Cyd Koehn, owner of Cyd’s Catering, told me that some of the most important decisions made in this city are hammered out over early breakfasts that she caters while the majority of people are sleeping. She’s correct.
Michael Gartner once suggested that I sleep in as much as I could while I was young because the older I would get, the more I would be staring at the ceiling at 5 a.m. Bingo.
Getting out of bed earlier does seem to get easier the older I get, and it was certainly a challenge when I was younger. Regardless, it is a good habit that we can all form if we put our minds to it.
In a 2014 article in the Huffington Post, Mike Fishbein wrote 11 ways to get out of bed faster and have more energy in the morning. Some are wonderful ideas, like opening your blinds before going to sleep so you wake up with the sun, placing your alarm clock away from your bed so you can’t hit the snooze button, exercising when you wake up, and simply being accountable to others. Others are just awful ideas, like drinking water before going to sleep, eating before bedtime, and setting the alarm clock to play your favorite music.
Some people claim to be the most productive at night. It’s possible, but research says that less than 1% of the population are actually genetically programmed to work best later in the day. The rest of us need to simply get out of bed.
There is another motivator to get out of bed and have more energy in the morning that most of you already do: grab a cup of coffee and read The Daily Umbrella. And I am glad you do.
Have a wonderful Wednesday, and thanks for reading.
Shane Goodman
President and Publisher
Big Green Umbrella Media
shane@dmcityview.com
515-953-4822, ext. 305 | 
