Inc.com: Arianna Huffington talks often about how the key to her productivity is sleep.
It's a smart suggestion, not least because so many of us still imagine that the more we work, the more productive we are. For over a hundred years or more, this has been deemed nonsense.
6 comments:
This article explains a lot about First Semester Pia's actions. I spent a lof of last semester pulling all-nighters on weeknights to finish projects. There may or may not have been one incident in which I actually stayed up for two nights in a row. So, I can confirm from my own personal "research studies" (also known as poor time management) that really bad decisions happen when you're sleep deprived. Hearing the science behind exactly how sleep deprivation turns your brain into mush is confirming everything I found out myself last semester. However, last semester I couldn't accept any of this. As this article puts it, "It seems so logical that two units of work will produce twice the output." How wrong that is...
One of my biggest goals this semester is to stick to a specific sleep schedule every night, including weekends. The plan is to go to bed at midnight, regardless of whether I could get away with going to bed earlier or if I think that staying up for 2 more hours would be more productive. Every morning, I get up at 7:30, even if I don't have class until noon. I figure that midnight is a realistic bedtime expectation, considering the School of Drama workload, and 7:30 gives me just enough time to shower and grab a bagel. Also, 7 and a half hours is (theoretically) a multiple of one sleep cycle. I've slipped up a bit lately while readjusting to college, but this schedule has already made my life so much better. It's easier to get up, I feel consistently rested, and I haven't fallen asleep in class. I'm also finding that its much easier to be productive if I don't ever question when I'll be going to bed.
This is so true, and something CMU students especially should take into account. I've been reading about and following various sleep studies for years, and it seems kind of unfair that this sort of proven information isn't yet mainstream knowledge. Last semester, I had a friend who was sick, and behind in work, and she thought it would be a good idea to stay up most of the night and work because she had so much to do. I made up some math (because that's how I do math) and told her that whatever work she gained while being tired, sick, and not very productive would end up being negative after she made herself MORE sick and was less productive for even longer.
I can't even begin to say how many times I have made the mistake of not sleeping in order to get work done. I agree with the article that not sleeping all night is a serious problem that dampens your ability to think, but I believe there are times when you need the extra time, even at the cost of impaired thinking ability. I think many of us at CMU have reached a point where a project is due imminently, and failure to complete it is not an option. When this happens to me now, I try to make sure that I take short (~20 min) naps throughout the day. This seems to be an effective strategy when push comes to shove, though it certainly doesn't have the same effect as getting a full night's sleep. I hope more students will learn the value of sleep before they start staying pulling marathon all-nighters.
It seems that this information should be announced at college orientations to incoming freshman. Just think about how the "all-nighter" is portrayed in society and the media. It is almost thought of as a right of passage and a marker of hard work. I think many students' perceptions of sleep deprivation are so far from the reality. Reading about the physical causes and effects of sleep deprivation, really hits it home; it's dangerous and an inefficient tactic. I personally hate staying up late because it always makes me feel sick and I know that I work best when I first wake up. I just wish that schools made a point to get this information across to students and dispel the myth of the productive "all-nighter."
This is something that I should be taken into account when making the syllabus. We know that it is very bad for you to not sleep or get very little sleep but when deadlines are coming and you are not done saying up all if not most of the night seems the only option. We all know how terrible to stay up all night and yet we still do it. It is so ingrained into us to finish at any cost.
This article really hit home for me. I totally understand and agree with everything the article said, but I just don't have enough time in the day to get everything done. If I had a solution, I would gladly try it as I am in a constant state of sleep deprivation. After reading this, I feel compelled to try something different. Freshman year has been a big transition and from what I hear, it only gets more difficult. I am here for the long haul so I may just have to begin making some changes. I think this is an article that every freshman should have to read.
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