I’ve got loads of friends and other people in my life who are the early-birds, up at 5:30am (or before) who absolutely LOVE to extol the values of waking up at that hour and all the things they enjoy about it…the silence, the feeling of “me-time,” the list (oh, the list) of things they get accomplished before the rest of the world gets out of bed, etc. As a bona-fide night owl, I shake my head and giggle inwardly with the knowledge that, honestly, we’re both going to be awake at the same hour. The difference is that I’m still going to be up from the night before and they are just rolling out of bed to do whatever it is that early birds do (not being one of them, I’m not quite sure what they do but it seems to involve a lot of coffee, which I don’t drink. More of tea girl, myself, but whatever floats your boat, or, in this case, your day, so be it.). So, as a tried and true night owl, I offer up the following reasons you may want to give it a go:
- You are more creative. Yup, that’s right. According to this article in The Insider, night owls tend to be more creative. Writing from experience, I can attest to that 100%. All my best ideas come to me in the wee hours of the morning and that’s when I do my best writing and otherwise creative activities.
- 5:30am is 5:30am no matter what. Whether you’re rolling out of bed for that morning jog or still awake from the night before, kicking around ideas that have been fueled by the night before, it’s still the same time. And, if you’re like me and have had the great fortune to travel and make friends in different time zones, it’s awesome if you’re in a chatty mood and want to give someone a ring in Seoul or Munich or Alaska (hilarity usually ensues on those calls. Trust me.)
- Silence is golden. There is nothing like the middle of the night, or morning, that can give you the silence you need/want to create. At 3:30am, there’s rarely someone blowing up your phone (not counting that ex who’s hoping for a late-night rendezvous) or people stopping by or pets wanting food or whatever. The night is truly yours and the quiet that it gives you is the perfect time to create, to write, to craft, or whatever it is you do.
- According to studies, being a night owl may mean you’re more intelligent. Again, to cite this article, being a night owl may, in fact, indicate that you are more intelligent and, while it is a blessing and a curse all rolled into one, who doesn’t want to at least consider themselves as more intelligent than the average bear?
- It just feels good. As a chronic insomniac (hence lifelong night owl), I lay down to sleep at what I consider a reasonable hour (think 11:00pm-ish), and my mind just reels with ideas and things to say and do the next day but, by the time the next day comes, even if I make the list, jot it down in my little bedside journal, the inspiration for it is lost. If I don’t strike while the creative iron is hot, it’s gone and there’s nothing I can do to get it back. So, for me, at least, it feels good to roll my bones out of bed, fight off the idea that I’ll do it in the morning (I won’t), and get it done. So, instead of chastising myself in the morning for NOT doing something, I can wake up and celebrate what I did the night before, at whatever hour that may have happened.
With that being said, I’ll proudly wear the t-shirt (to bed, of course) that says “Night Owls Unite!). As I sit here writing this, the sun is coming up and I’m looking forward to going to bed. I’ve seen many a lovely sunrise this way and, what’s even cooler than that, I’ve seen the sunsets that proceeded them the day before.