Sunrise: Not just for those who stayed up all night anymore…
Ask my parents - my father, specifically… I was not an easy child to wake. My dad would resort to a host of tricks when his basic "get up or you’re gonna be late" didn’t work. Tickling, turning up the AM radio loud, even one time, dumping an entire pot of cold water on me (my bed was damp for a week.) I simply didn’t like mornings.
In fact, up until probably 2002 or so, I was the ultimate night person. I’d get to bed around two am at the earliest, I preferred lights to sunlight, and slept in.
I don’t know when the switch actually took place, but I’m now the ultimate morning person. Drives most people I know crazy, but I’m all about getting up at 4:30, 4:45am, and getting a jump on the day.
Insane, I know. To be honest, I couldn’t tell you why I switched, or how it happened… But I love it. I really do.
Let alone the early morning exercising thing - that’s a given - and I won’t preach on that this morning.
But to be up and working this early has so many advantages.
On mornings when I train, my trainer shows up promptly at 5:45am. Which means I get up around 4:45am to have a cup of coffee, get dressed, and get a little bit of work done before he shows up.
I get to my computer this morning, and notice that the few reporters who are up are buzzing about Owen Wilson’s attempted suicide. Very sad news, indeed.
But… I happen to be friends with one of the top Suicideology experts in NYC. In fact, we used to date. Occasionally, I’ll help her out with some media, since we share joint custody of a dog. (Doing it for the children, you know…) But seriously, we’re still good friends.
So I sent a quick note to my entertainment reporter database, letting them know that if they needed someone to talk about the psychology behind something like this, I got someone for them. The email was four lines, if that, and sent to about 150 reporters, all before 5:30am.
What’s the first email they’re going to see this morning when they walk in and are looking for sources? Yup.
So yeah - I’m a believer in early mornings now. Lets you get your day started right - no one else is up, no IMs coming in, no emails, no phone calls… Just me, my coffee, perhaps a cat (you know you’re up early when the cats are still sleeping) and a little bit of time to get myself organized.
A quick scan of the headlines tells me if I should be pitching anything on an emergency basis (like the Owen Wilson story) or if it’s going to be a relatively normal day. By the time I come back from my workout, it’s about 7:30, and a little more "normal," time wise. And while the day is just beginning for the majority of people out there, I’ve already got a sizable lead.
Amazing. I never thought I’d do mornings. Ever. EVER. But things change. And it’s good.
Happy Monday!
3 Responses to “Sunrise: Not just for those who stayed up all night anymore…”
Thanks for the pitch! Sad indeed….let’s see what happens next….
Waking up that early is impressive (to a late riser), but what time do you go to bed at?
Peter, You’re an inspiration! My wife Shannon and I are always talking about wanting to get up early and beat the day. Like your previous self, neither of us are morning people.
Even though I’m not a morning person I get how it puts you ahead of the day. Since I’m a runner like you and I live in SoFla it sure beats the hot weather to run at night and in the early morning as well.
I had a similar ‘getting a head start’ feeling moving back east after being in California for 14 years. I had a three hour jump on my west coast boss, employees and many customers. I could get in early beat the east coast crowd, and also beat the west coast crowd by 6 hours. Then again, I don’t seem to be able to stay up late and there’s a lot going on in our business at night.
Cheers