Jul 28, 2021
3:00 AM !?
Is it possible to be productive by waking up consistently at 3:00 am?
Yes and no…
Author Dan Brown woke up at 3:00 am for almost a year straight.
I wake up around 3:00 AM several times a week.
In fact, I am working on this article at 2:48 AM.
Dan had a baby that woke up at 6:00 am, I had an early morning client to personal train.
We both stayed on this schedule, not because of some magical force that drew us to 3:00 am but because we both found that our productivity increased in the early morning before the world’s day began.
Dan and I aren’t the only ones to discover this productivity boost.
Medium author Isra Garcia woke up at 3:00 am for 31 days as an experiment. Garcia contributes the extra time he gained to playing a vital role in finishing an online master's degree.
Author Ralph Jean-Paul, another 3:00 am experimenter, believes that he was also more productive during his experimentation period. Jean-Paul felt the adjustment period took some time, as did Garcia, but by planning his morning the night before, not allowing the snooze button to be hit (ever), and forcing the routine into his life, he found success with waking up at 3:00 am.
However, there are countless sources to be found on a google search of 3:00 am wakeups that point to insomnia, restlessness, and a poor night’s sleep. In fact, insomnia tends to be the top sleep complaint that leads to a decrease in productivity.
To be fair, I don’t work a 9–5.
If I did, 3:00 am wakeups would be a curse, not a blessing.
I instead work part-time, volunteer as a coach, and am a full-time student at Liberty University. If I want to take a nap at 1:00 pm, for two hours, usually I can.
I also practice bi-phasic and occasionally tri-phasic sleeping.
However, I do all of this on a different schedule than the ones outlined in those links. I sleep as much or as little as I need to, in order to maximize my creative output.
I also sleep when I want to when my schedule allows for it.
I follow the commandment to rest on the Sabbath day, which allows for any sleep deprivation gained from 3:00 am wakeups to be at least partially compensated.
This is a recommendation that has helped the most in regards to my creative output and productivity.
Whenever you wake up, the important thing is to work at whatever you are doing with all your heart.
