Have you ever struggled to wake up early, exended a lot of willpower, and eventually failed?The thought of waking up early, especially on a cold winter day, immediately conjures up with shivering scenes: walking to the toilet with arms clenched, or curling up under the covers, unwilling to leave the warm sleep of sleep. The cold of winter has made many people reluctant to get out of bed, let alone take the initiative to get up early to study or exercise.
In fact, waking up early does not require self-discipline, willpower, and struggle. It is a habit of behavior that can be cultivated. With a few tips, we can easily get into the habit of waking up early, making the early waking behavior that is beneficial to us more natural and relaxed.
I have prepared a total of two articles on this topic. In today's article, I will start from the principle of behavioral habit formation and explore the mystery of waking up early. In the next article, I will take my own personal experience as an example and share in detail how to wake up early easily.
Willpower: Limited resources
Did you know?Many psychological experiments have verified that a person's willpower is limited, just like our muscular strength, it is not "inexhaustible". Moreover, willpower is an important part of a person's energy, and the better a person's energy, the more efficient they are usually in doing things.
Imagine if we woke up every morning and struggled to get out of the warm bed, such a struggle would undoubtedly be a huge drain on our willpower. The more painful this struggle becomes, the less productive and motivated we will be when we wake up, because our limited energy is used to cope with these painful emotions.
So, do those who insist on getting up early for a long time really rely on superhuman willpower?Not really. The secret of their success is that they have established an effective system of early riser habits.
To make better use of our limited energy, we need to have a deep understanding of the principles behind habit formation. The formation of a habit usually consists of four key elements: beliefs, triggers, habitual behaviors, and rewards.
Faith: the source of motivation to wake up early
In the process of forming the habit of waking up early, the first factor we need to pay attention to is faith. Belief is at the heart of habit formation, and it determines why we wake up early.
In order to strengthen our belief in waking up early, we need to be clear about the benefits of waking up early for ourselves and believe that these benefits are indispensable. Only in this way can we get positive feedback on our early riser beliefs.
While everyone's reasons for choosing to wake up early vary, here are a few common drivers:
1. Improve production efficiency: Waking up early can give us more time to complete tasks and plans, and it is the best time period at the beginning of the day, so that we can better concentrate and deal with important matters without being disturbed by other distractions, thereby improving the efficiency of work and study.
2. Enhance concentration: The brain is usually more awake and focused in the morning, which means that we can concentrate better and do complex thinking and creative work.
3. Develop healthy habits: Waking up early can help develop healthy lifestyle habits. We can use our morning time to exercise, yoga, or meditation to improve our physical and mental health.
4. Improve self-management skills: Waking up early requires overcoming the tendency of procrastination and inertia, which can help us develop self-discipline and self-management skills. Staying up early can give us more control over our time and life.
5. Enjoy moments of tranquility: Mornings are usually the most peaceful time of the day. During this time, we can enjoy personal time to meditate, read, or engage in self-reflection to prepare for the challenges of the day.
When these benefits are clear, we can be more convinced of the importance of waking up early and more motivated to make it a habit of waking up early. However, many people lack a deep understanding of the importance of going to bed early and waking up early, which makes it difficult for them to develop this habit. When they have the option to sleep in, they often choose to go back to the warm bed. Therefore, establishing the right beliefs is essential for developing an early wake up habit.
Touch: Morning signals and triggers
In the process of developing the habit of waking up early, contact is a factor that cannot be ignored. TouchIt refers to the scene, behavior, and time node that trigger the start of the behavioral habit process. As soon as a touch occurs, our behavioral habits are initiated.
In most people's perception, actions such as getting up, lifting the quilt, and getting dressed may be seen as early awakening triggers. However, in order to develop the habit of waking up early for a long time, we need to think more deeply about what it really means to wake up early.
In fact, waking up early is much earlier than getting up, lifting the quilt, dressing, and other actions. In order to be able to wake up early for a long time, we need to get enough sleep every day, and we must go to bed early. Therefore, the real trigger that triggers waking up early should be the act that prompts us to go to bed early.
For example, to make sure you can fall asleep before 11 p.m., we can set an alarm clock at 10 p.m. to remind you to wash up, and as soon as the alarm goes off, start washing up and getting ready for bed. This 10 o'clock alarm clock becomes a trigger for early waking behavior.
By adjusting the touch, we can develop the habit of going to bed early more effectively. On the basis of establishing an early bedtime, we can set a series of alarms to remind us of the time to wake up the next morning. Over time, our early wake-up habit will gradually develop without relying too much on willpower.
To sum up, in order to develop the habit of waking up early, we need to pay attention to the role of the trigger, and start with going to bed early, and gradually adjust the alarm clock time to cultivate the habit of waking up early.
Inertial behavior: the power in the unconscious
Inertial behaviors are those unconscious behaviors that can be done naturally without thinking. In the course of human evolution, we have gradually developed the instinct to conserve energy. When we perform a certain behavior frequently, the brain will gradually transform it into an unconscious habitual behavior in order to conserve energy. This means that we don't need to think to do these actions with precision.
In our daily lives, many habits are based on habitual behavior. For example, when we wake up in the morning, we naturally walk to the sink, grab a cup and toothbrush, catch water, squeeze toothpaste, and start brushing our teeth. The whole process requires no thinking, and it is done precisely and almost effortlessly.
Therefore, if a person feels that waking up early is a painful thing, it is most likely because they have previously developed a series of habitual behaviors about waking up early that are incorrect. These undesirable habitual behaviors have led to waking up early as a willpower-draining and struggling thing to do.
In order to change our habitual behavior, we first need to be aware of which behaviors have become unconscious habitual behaviors. Then, we can identify behaviors that need to be adjusted and build new, effective inertial behaviors through deliberate practice.
However, in the process of building new habits, we often need to expend a lot of energy and time. We will constantly struggle with old behaviors until new habitual behaviors are established. Over time, these new behaviors will gradually become subconscious actions.
In summary, habitual behavior plays an important role in habit formation. By being aware of our unconscious behaviors, adjusting bad habits, and deliberately practicing new ones, we can more easily develop good habits such as waking up early.
Bonus: Early motivation and positive feedback
Rewards are positive feedback on our behavior, which can give us instant gratification, which motivates us to continue with a certain behavior. In order to better develop the habit of waking up early, we need to pay attention to the role of rewards.
In order to develop the habit of waking up early, we should allow positive feedback and rewards for early waking behavior. For example, waking up early may make us feel refreshed or have more time to accomplish important things of the day, and when we get those things done more efficiently, we are able to generate greater satisfaction. These positive effects can serve as a reward for the early wake habit and motivate us to keep getting up early.
Conversely, if we wake up early with pain and struggle, wake up drowsy, and make frequent mistakes when doing things due to lack of sleep, then the brain will define waking up early as a matter that requires willpower and pain, resulting in resistance.
To overcome this resistance, we can try to adjust the reward mechanism for waking up early. For example, you can get yourself a delicious breakfast after waking up early, do a morning workout or do enjoyable activities like reading. These rewards can help us establish a connection between waking up early and feeling happy, making it easier to get into the habit of waking up early.
In summary, rewards play an important role in the development of the habit of waking up early. By giving ourselves positive feedback and rewards, we can overcome resistance and better develop the habit of waking up early.
In general
Through the analysis of this article, we have an in-depth understanding of the principles of early habit formation, including beliefs, triggers, habitual behaviors, and rewards. We've found that waking up early is a good habit that is good for health, productivity, and focus.
It's important to note that persistence and patience are crucial in developing the habit of waking up early. Don't expect to get into the habit of waking up early overnight, but be patient and gradually adjust and adapt. At the same time, giving yourself some rewards is also a great way to motivate yourself to keep waking up early.
In the next article, I will take my own personal experience as an example and share in detail how to wake up early easily. By mastering the right methods and techniques, we will no longer have to struggle with waking up early, but will be able to enjoy the benefits of waking up early, including more time, better mental state, and greater efficiency.
All of the above is done through the card note writing method. If you're interested in using card notes for reading and writing, you can add my friends. In the future, I will share more valuable dry goods about reading and writing.
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Author: Lei Mo
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