Chapter Content
Okay, so, let's talk about rhythms. You know, the rhythms of the world. D.H. Lawrence, he had this great quote, something like, "Mankind's gotta get back to the rhythm of the cosmos." And, I think there's something to that.
Even if you tried to do, like, absolutely nothing for a whole week, your body, your internal systems, they just wouldn't cooperate. They'd be ticking along, rising and falling with the sun, you know? Up in the morning, peaking around noon, then a little dip, another climb, and then settling down in the evening.
See, the sun, that big ol' ball of fire, it basically dictates a couple of key rhythms in our bodies every single day. There's this twenty-four-hour cycle, and then a twelve-hour one. And, if you can kind of align yourself with these rhythms, use them, you know, like a surfer riding a wave, it can really help your body get in tune.
So, first, let's talk about that twenty-four-hour rhythm. Now, you might remember that your brain has this hub for a certain neurotransmitter, I think it's called norepinephrine? Back in the seventies, these researchers, they found this twenty-four-hour rhythm in the levels of norepinephrine in monkeys' brains. Levels were super low at night, then they'd rise through the morning, and then drop off again in the evening. And, to make sure it wasn't just a monkey thing, they did a similar study on humans, and guess what? Same deal. So, basically, your brain activity increases in the morning, and then it slows down as you wind down at night. Pretty cool, huh?
Then, there's this other rhythm, a twelve-hour one. Some research suggests it's kind of nested inside that twenty-four-hour cycle. This is the one that makes you want to sleep, roughly, every twelve hours, although that urge is way stronger at midnight than at noon. And around midday, it pulls you into what's called a "post-lunch dip." You know that feeling? Like, you're just a little sluggish, your energy kind of drops. And, you might think it's the food, right? But, get this, it happens even if you skip lunch. For most people, it fades away later in the afternoon, and you get your energy back.
So, what can you do about this midday slump? Well, one thing is, take a nap! Even a short nap around that time can actually boost your mental performance for, like, up to two hours afterwards. The best time for a nap is probably soon after noon. Or, you could even take a nap *before* the dip hits, at lunchtime. That can kind of prevent it from happening in the first place. Basically, a rejuvenating nap can help you keep your mental stamina going strong, even late into the evening.
But, there's a catch. Napping removes accumulated fatigue. And, because that fatigue is one of the things that makes you want to sleep, you have to make sure you build up *enough* fatigue between your nap and bedtime to avoid messing with your nighttime sleep. Funnily enough, if you're having trouble sleeping at night after napping too much, learning something right before bed—as long as it's not too exciting—can actually help you sleep better. I know, it's weird, right?
So, how do you put all this into practice? Well, generally, your energy levels seem to kind of follow the sun. You wake up feeling chill, then as the sun rises, you get more focused. Midday, that twelve-hour cycle kicks in, and you have a dip. But that fades, and your alertness comes back in the afternoon. Then, as the sun goes down, you wind down again. It's not exact, it varies, but that's the general trend.
This gives us some clues about the best times for different kinds of work. For focused work, the kind that needs lots of attention, your peak is usually in the late morning and lasts most of the day, just with a little dip around lunchtime. So, roughly, that's, like, 9:00 or 10:00 AM to around 1:00 or 2:00 PM, and then again from 3:00 or 4:00 PM to maybe 8:00 or 10:00 PM. But remember, this can totally vary from person to person, and it can shift with the seasons, the climate, even how tired you are.
Think about it, there was this study about bank workers who approve loans. They found that loans were way more likely to get approved in the morning, before 11:00 AM. Then the approval rate dropped, and then it went up a little in the late afternoon. Approving a loan takes a lot of mental energy, because you have to carefully analyze everything. So, loans were more likely to be approved when people were at their most focused. If all the decisions had been made in the morning, the bank would have made a whole lot more revenue!
Now, what about creative work? That's a little different. That kind of work is best when you're in a lower energy state. See, before your focused period in the morning, your mind is kind of waking up, and in the evening it's winding down. During those times, you're transitioning between being gently awake and brightly alert. Your attention can float around and look for ideas. That's when you can really get creative! So, that's usually from when you wake up until around 9:00 or 10:00 AM, and then from around 8:00 or 10:00 PM until bedtime. But, if you chug a ton of caffeine as soon as you wake up, or exercise like crazy, or get really excited in the evening, you're gonna shrink those creative windows.
And, of course, winding down. You need to be relaxed to wind down. If you're all wired up, it's super hard to fall asleep, which messes with your sleep, which then messes with your mental productivity the next day. That's why working late is usually a bad idea. Those extra hours might cost you even more hours of good work later.
Also, how you deal with being tired at work makes a difference. If you push yourself too hard when you're exhausted, your brain basically cranks itself up to maximum power, and it can get stuck there. That makes it hard to focus during the day, and it *really* makes it hard to wind down at night.
Now, here's another thing: your personal clock. We're not all exactly the same. Some people are "morning people," or "larks," and they like to wake up early and go to bed early. Others are "evening people," or "owls," and they feel better when they start and end their days later.
Your body temperature actually fluctuates with your twenty-four-hour rhythm. You cool down when you sleep and warm up when you wake up. So, the point when your body is coolest is kind of like a landmark for your personal rhythm. And that landmark is different for larks and owls. Studies say that about a quarter of people are either larks or owls. Most of us are somewhere in between. And, where you fall on that spectrum can actually change with age, your situation, and other stuff. There's still some debate about whether your "chronotype"—your natural sleep schedule—is hardwired, or not. Things like your social environment, too much blue light, or long work hours could all be responsible for your habit of staying up late. Some owls even become more lark-like as they get older.
In one experiment, they gave larks and owls some mental work to do at 8:00 AM and 8:30 PM. The larks did better in the morning, and the owls did better in the evening when the work required thought and precision. The larks also did well for longer in the morning. The creative windows happen later in owls and earlier in larks. And, even the post-lunch dip can vary. If you're an owl and wake up at 10:00 AM, your dip might be later in the afternoon. But if you're a lark and you've been up since 5:00 AM, your dip might happen sooner, maybe even before noon.
So, how do you figure out if you're a lark or an owl? Well, you can ask yourself some questions. Like, if you were on a desert island with nothing to do, when would you wake up and go to sleep? Do you always need an alarm clock? Do you feel good when you wake up? Could you exercise soon after waking up? If you had to take a tough exam, when would you schedule it? Would you struggle to fall asleep at 11:00 PM? If you had to wake up super early for a flight, would you go to bed early or just catch up on sleep later? If you could only work four hours a day, when would you work?
These kinds of questions can give you a sense of whether you're more of a "morning person" or an "evening person." It's not a perfect measure, but it can help.
The thing is, a standard workday, where everyone is expected to start at the same time, puts both owls and larks at a disadvantage. If you're a super early lark, your best focus time might be over before you even start work. And if you're a night owl, you might not be productive for the first few hours of the day. Owls keep being productive later into the evening, long after they leave work, while larks often stop being productive long before they leave work. Some researchers think that owls stay up even later because they need more caffeine to feel alert in the morning. Then, they don't sleep enough and need even *more* caffeine the next day. It's a vicious cycle!
So, whether you're an owl, a lark, or somewhere in between, it might be better to adjust your work hours to your natural rhythms, rather than the other way around.
Okay, let's switch gears for a sec and talk about signals from nature. Nature is always sending you sensory information to help you gauge the time of day. The colors of sunlight change from morning to night, and the sounds around you change, too. Light and sound can both affect your energy levels, probably because they're so connected to time in nature.
Think about light. I remember this one sunrise I saw in Cambodia, at Bayon temple. We got there at 4:00 AM and waited for the sun to hit the temple. It was pitch black and really quiet, except for these animal cries from the jungle. Then, this soft chanting started from a temple somewhere in the dark. As it got louder, a red glow appeared on the horizon. The jungle noises turned into birdsong. The sun's glow turned into this beautiful bouquet of red rays. And then the chanting stopped. It was amazing, the temple looked incredible!
That sunrise shows how dawn is a gradual process. It's not just flipping a switch. If you've ever slept outside, you know that you see a gentle red glow before you even open your eyes. If you turn on a bright blue light first thing in the morning, you miss that red-hued phase. And as the sun climbs higher, the red turns into bright white daylight. The evening is the same thing, but in reverse. Daylight doesn't instantly become darkness.
And we're learning that these colors affect our moods. Blue light makes you more alert, while warmer, red light helps you relax. Cool light can help you stay focused when you're tired, while warm light is better for creativity. By waking up to a red-orange sunrise, your brain gets to gently warm up before jumping into focused mode.
What about sound? Sound is weird. It defines a space without being visible. I noticed this at a train station late at night. It was empty and quiet, and then this soft melody started. It led you to this guy playing a piano, playing for nobody but himself. And people gathered around him, creating a room without walls with his music.
Music, and sounds in general, shapes your perception of reality by putting you in different states. That's why it's used in movies and plays, and to help people meditate. It's a great way to get focused, stay focused, and wind down.
Generally, higher frequencies, tempos, and volumes raise your gear. That's why morning shows have hosts who talk fast and loud. They're trying to wake you up! Lower, slower, and softer sounds lower your gear. Spas and hotel lobbies use this. In stressful situations, slow, rhythmic music can help you relax. In one study, dart players performed better after listening to relaxing music.
Sounds influence your brain through "entrainment," where your brain waves kind of latch onto and follow the rhythms in your environment. And also through your brain's interpretation of the sounds, including how they make you feel.
The effects of music and sounds on your focus depend on what you're listening to and what state you're already in. Fast music or loud noise can help if you're feeling sluggish, but it can hurt if you're already focused. If you're bored at your desk, going to a noisy cafe can help you work better. But if you're already in the zone, more noise will distract you. And background music with lyrics always interferes with focused work because the lyrics steal your attention.
If you have trouble focusing in a noisy office, white noise can help. White noise can drown out distractions and help you focus, or if it's too quiet, it can alert you just enough to stay focused. It's really helpful in open offices.
Basically, any sudden noise that's louder than the ambient noise around you will raise your gear. There's a limit to how much noise you can handle before it hurts your performance. And how sensitive you are to noise depends on your own gear personality. If you react strongly to noise, someone else might barely notice it.
So yeah, there's a lot to it, but paying attention to these rhythms and signals can really make a difference in how you work and how you feel.