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Is it Better To be an Early Bird or a Night Owl?
Being an early bird rather than a night owl won’t naturally lead you to become more successful. There is no secret magic formula to success; this is something you must accept. Success is the result of a ‘simple’ list made up of four things: hard work, talent, passion, and a good dose of perseverance.
Having said that, fine-tuning your lifestyle can help you to pave an easier path to success, and being an early bird is one habit you should consider adopting.
Early Birds VS Night Owls
There are key differences between early birds and night owls and although there are well-known successful night owls, early birds are more often associated with success. Early birds are morning people — even if they wake up with a frown on their face. They are the ones who will hit the ground running very early in the day and use the early quiet time to cross off their list what they consider important. They are the ones fueled by a sense of urgency, the ones who need to see certain tasks completed before lunch.
On the other hand, night owls seem to have a more nonchalant attitude towards their tasks. It doesn’t mean they are lazy or that they slack off but they might not feel the same sense of panic that early birds do. Rather than the early morning, night owls are the ones who find solace and time to work in the dead of night. Both the early birds and the night owls use quiet time to their advantage, but for one group the sun is rising, and for the other, the moon is doing its job.
What Are The Benefits Of Being An Early Bird?
If you’re not used to waking up early, then you need several good reasons to turn into an early bird. Some of the benefits of being an early riser include the following:
No interruptions: The best part of waking up early is not having anyone disturb you. No emails from work to interrupt your train of thought, no group messages about meeting later for dinner, no random phone calls, no kids crying, no friends asking for a favor.
Having the upper hand: With no interruptions, comes more productivity. Being an early bird will make you feel like you have the upper hand. This is a great feeling to experience and you will be crossing things off your list while others are still sleeping.
No rush: When you feel like you have the upper hand on time, you will feel less rushed. This has a slew of advantages. Not feeling rushed creates the sense of ‘slow living’ first thing in the morning. You can eat your breakfast in peace, have a proper conversation, and choose how you want to look for the day.
More than that, when time feels like it has slowed down, you’re not panicking about your to-dos. Accordingly, you can use this time to work on your most important tasks. You can also pave the way for your mind to stop, wander, and tap into those nooks of creativity to spark new ideas that will only strengthen your work during the rest of the day.
Becoming more grateful: Being an early bird gives you a chance to witness the day come to life. It’s a time where you can stop and be grateful for what you have. It may not sound like much but gratefulness is a key component to everyone’s success story.
Be more prepared: In how you look, in what you eat, in how much your body gets to move, and in other ways too, such as being better-prepared for meetings.
Better able to handle pressure: Waking up early gives you time to shake off the drowsiness of the night and gain energy gradually, so by the time you’re at work and someone hits you with a load of pressure, you’ll be ready for it.
A time to set goals — Set goals for the day, the week, or the month. Early morning is also a good time to see how far you’ve come so you can keep your motivation fueled.
Start early to finish early — Early birds have more reason to finish early from work. This leads to more time to be spontaneous in the evening with family or friends and more time to do away with technology before bed so you can get better sleep.
Two Key Disadvantages Of Being A Night Owl
Lack of persistence — It seems that early birds are better at being persistent and are less likely to experience “fatigue, frustration, and difficulties.” This is according to a study conducted by researchers at the University of Barcelona. This may be a result of night owls being more prone to indulge in “extravagance, impulsiveness, and novelty-seeking.”
Less proactive — According to another study comparing early birds and night owls, results show that the latter are smarter. Nevertheless, intelligence does not necessarily lead to success. Early birds are the proactive ones, doing the bulk of their work during regular working hours. They’re the ones who are more present during regular hours allowing them to grab opportunity when it presents itself.
How To Become An Early Bird If You Are A Night Owl
It is possible to change your ways and the following are habits that will get you closer to becoming an early bird.
No drastic changes — As the master of mastering habits,Leo Babauta recommends against doing anything drastic. Start by waking up 15 minutes earlier than usual and gradually increase the time with each week so the change can become a permanent habit.
Sleep earlier — Give your body time to rest by heading to bed earlier so that you can leave it earlier.
Don’t snooze — Snoozing is bad for you because you’re giving your body a false start every time you hit that button for another five minutes. Do away with it by setting the alarm at the right time and getting up on the first go. .
Turn on the lights ¬– Unless you don’t want to wake up your partner, switch on the lights so you’ll make it harder for yourself to go back to sleep.
Place the alarm clock far away — This way, you’ll have to get out of bed to switch it off.
Give yourself a good reason to wake up early — Give yourself a good reason as to why you are doing this, something that will be worth getting out of bed early for, such as grabbing an early breakfast or catching a beautiful sunrise.
Much like success, there’s no magic formula to becoming an early bird. Everything you want to do can be done, it’s simply a matter of deciding that you will act upon what you wish for. It will be hard at first but like every other habit, you will get used to being an early bird, and then you will start to see the beauty of your decision.
This was originally published on BestSelf.co blog
1. Feel free to talk about pros and cons of night owl and early bird.
2. What tpye are you belong to? are you satisfied with your lifestyle? if don't, why?
3. Do you prefer being as a night owl? or early bird? and why?
4. Who do you think can be more successful of thier life?
Listening: It plays a very important part in learning any language. Effective listening ensures understanding and it helps improve accuracy when speaking , among other things. How can you improve your listening skills? By listening actively, i.e. paying attention not only on what is said, but also how it is said. So, listen:
1. To music –old or modern; the type you prefer, but pay attention to the lyrics. (sometimes reading the lyrics may help you understand the song)
2. To movies, TV shows, news, entertainments, the radio – try the classics. If you can watch DVD’s you can watch the movie several times. Watching with subtitles and then, when you feel more comfortable, without them. You can have English radio at home or on your mobile phone. Even if are not actually listening to it, your ears will be getting used to the sounds of the language.
3. Attend plays, exhibitions, talks, etc. in English organized by English speaking schools or communities.
Speaking: It is often the hardest of the four language skills, but as soon as you can speak a little English there are lots of ways to improve quickly and have tons of fun.
4. Join voiced chats. Technology has advanced a lot in terms of social networks so, wherever you live, you’ll find a chat-room to join.
5. Talk and record yourself. This may sound funny, but it will help you realize how you can improve by repeating the recording several times till you feel happy with the results.
6. Talk to your classmates in English when you are not in class. You can even make a group to play games, have a meal or just chat together.
It is a process of the brain and it takes time to develop: your mind has to attach meaning to the words, phrases and expressions represented by symbols, plus get to understand the grammar and structure of the language used in the passage to read. If you develop strong reading skills, it’ll be very helpful to your future. You can read:
7. Books in English and articles on the web. Maybe, books you have already read in your mother tongue or which have been turned into movies. Try to start with easy books, even children’s books and comics: The images will help you understand even if you don’t know all the words
8. Switch the operating system of your mobile phone, your PC or tablet into English. Associating a function with a certain word, will improve your vocabulary.
Writing:
Even though it may be intimidating to a lot of people, anyone can get used to writing with a little discipline and a willingness to learn.
9. Write down words or expressions you think useful with their meaning and examples. If you see them in sentences you will remember them better. You can use them if you keep a diary.
10. Write comments in English blogs. At present blogs are websites that resemble journals. Lots of people use them to expose their ideas on a certain topic or to explain things – from how to knit a scarf, to very complicated ones where technical or philosophical topics are dealt with. One common feature of all these blogs is that they are interactive: the readers can make comments or debate the ideas stated in the blog. Even if you are not a blog fan, you may find some that really encourage you to take part. So, just do it. You don’t need to be an expert to write a few sentences about what you think or feel about the content of the blog.
All the above mentioned tips can be reduced to just one: PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE!! Whatever learning style you have, whatever your native language is, the key to acquire and master a foreign language is PRACTICE it as much and as often as possible.
1. Have you ever spoken English on the phone?
2. How often do you practice your English?
3. What is your favorite way to practice your English? (UK spelling = favorite)
4. What is the most difficult thing about English?
5. Why are you learning English?
6. What do you think you will be able to do in English in the future?
7. Do you think that English will completely dominate all the other languages in the future? If yes, how will it affect the world?
8. How do you use the Internet to learn English?
9. What search engine do you use most often when you study? Why?
10. Do you think English is a difficult language to learn?
11. What is your favorite way to practice your English?
12. What do you think you will be able to do in English in the future?
13. How can English language help you advance in your career?
14. Which country is the best place to study English?
15. Are you willing to get a tutor just to further learn English?
16. What is the best way to teach vocabulary at the upper intermediate level EFL?
17. What kind of dormitory room would you like to stay in?
18. In your own teaching environment what forms of pronunciation of English are learners likely to encounter?
19. How can I listen to conversations and improve my pronounciation?
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