Many people are trying to find out how to sleep less. In recent years, the figure of the energetic and charismatic entrepreneur has become popular, a force of nature able to meet any challenge without ruffling or blinking. Among the qualities that define him, there is a very particular one which, surely, will have caught the attention of most mere mortals: they barely sleep, go to bed late and get up quickly, and claim to have no problem concentrating on complex documents at four in the morning or being ready to attend a meeting at eight in the morning.
C'est le cas de <br><br>Donald Trump , who told the Daily News he only slept three to four hours a day; from The Tonight Show host Jay Leno , who, for his particular schedules, devotes only five hours to sleep; or of Marissa Mayer , CEO of Yahoo, who has always boasted of sleeping between five and six hours a day . Maybe this last example isn't the best example, since last June she was forced to apologize after falling asleep and being late for dinner. Michael Roth, CEO of the Interpublic group.
Time and time again, science has contraindicated these heroes' recommendation to sleep as little as possible in order to fully exploit the day. Little sleep means we lose focus more easily, we are more susceptible to illness, that our sexual desire is reduced , that our reflexes slow down and, in the long term, that we are more likely to suffer from depression or cognitive degeneration.
An anonymous entry posted to Quora and attributed to someone who has worked as a CEO warned of the dangers of linking sleep deprivation to career success or superhuman abilities. Although we think we are the exception, it is because we are the worst judges of ourselves and, above all, of our abilities. In his own experience, he says, sleeping less than seven hours is the worst thing you can do, because even if we don't realize it on a daily basis, we're melting our neurons in the long run.
“If you think you have a gift because you only get four hours of sleep, I encourage you to at least consider that maybe you don't,” the entry concluded. "And you don't know for sure the outcome in 10 or 15 years , when your cognitive abilities have suffered enough to make you realize it."
How to sleep less: 6 tips
The quora post generated some interesting responses. The most eloquent of all is surely that of Alexandra Damsker , entrepreneur, lawyer and mother who explained her method of sleeping only between three and five hours. No drugs or stimulants: the six strategies offered are completely to know how to sleep less without being tired.
Reduce your television consumption
The CEO explains how television has become an addiction for her daughter and her husband, a distraction that sours their character and seems to put an end to their will to get off the couch. If you turn off the television, you will rest better when you are in bed and, moreover, your mood will improve, because you will care more about what you eat, drink, and can relax with your loved ones.
Eat fewer carbs
Damsker says carbs make you sleepy, and there's no shortage of evidence for this. As with sugar, carbohydrates found in products like bread or potato chips release a lot of insulin and cause the brain to absorb an amino acid called tryptophan, a drowsiness inducer.
Fewer meetings
We have already pointed out in several articles the problems that uncontrolled meetings can cause in our daily organization. Damsker recommends not not hold unnecessary meetings. This is a little-known method for how to sleep less.
Always sleep at the same time
Damsker points out that, since childhood, the key to his rest was found in keeping to the same schedule with little variation. In her case, it means sleeping between one and four in the morning and between five and six-thirty, although she prefers to do it between four and eight o'clock if possible.
When you run out of energy, reorganize yourself
Sleeping four hours a day, it is normal that there are times when we are not at our maximum. Damsker recommends focusing on the things we like best and therefore find it easier to do, to walk around, to engage in more automatic activity such as responding to pending emails, throwing a look at the magazines, or play a game solo. And, if none of that works, maybe it's time to give up and take a nap.
How to sleep less while doing what you love
Motivation is the best essence to continue sleeping even a little. If what we are doing does not demand our attention or our enthusiasm, it is easier for us to end up falling into the arms of Morpheus . Only in this way can one get up at half past six to attend a videoconference and examine a document at four in the morning, almost 24 hours later.
