Self-Care for Business Women: Power of Sleep Without Technology

Did you know that the quality of sleep you have each night has the power to affect your success and productivity?

I learned some valuable lessons the hard way this week.

So I wanted to raise the question, are you taking your work to bed and is it taking a toll on your productivity? Today we are going to talk about the power of sleep without technology, self-care tips for business women!

I hope my experience will help you avoid making the mistakes I made this week!

Power of Sleep

Best Advice: Do Not Work From Your Bed

I mean, I know it seems totally like a great idea when you work from home to want to work from your comfy warm bed. But that is exactly why you should never work from bed. It becomes too easy to get too comfortable and end up taking a nap instead. Then you wake up hours later realizing you got little to nothing done.

Power of Sleep Secret: Do Not Utilize Technology Before Bed

I think as entrepreneurs that work from home especially if you have children, the biggest struggle is finding a balance between work, kids, and personal time because they can easily get all blended together and then life becomes a mess when that happens. I am a single mother of 1 and my work time is when my daughter is at school and when she is asleep. It also just so happens that I work my best at night. But I also learned that bringing my cell phone and laptop to bed is the worse idea. Quality of sleep decreases dramatically.

Even when I finally went to sleep, I found my brain constantly listening for the sounds of my phone or thinking about how I should just open my laptop to complete more work because it was only an arm-stretch away, despite being completely exhausted. Sometimes the restlessness that settled in from having my technology on my bed would get to me and I would work over-time to 2am, resulting in a major impact in my productivity the next day.

The next day, I basically took a 3-hour nap which took away so much time from my productivity and also impacted my health—I got a major flu which came along with major fatigue. So I was super-mega-tired and basically dying.

Basically, if you want good sleep and good health, let your mind rest and stay off all technology at least a whole hour prior to sleeping, and do NOT take your technology with you to bed. Keep a separate space for work, that is preferably not even in your bedroom at all. Let your brain associate bed with sleep, peace and quiet, and your work with a designated workspace.

What happens if I do take my work to bed?

Your brain will start to associate work with bedtime, and basically, when it comes to sleeping, you’ll end up not having the restful sleep you need to effectively work. Your brain will be working overtime in bed, thinking all about work and this can become very stressful and decrease your sleep dramatically and ultimately affect your health! Which as you know, if you are not healthy, then you are not working at your best. Sleep is nourishment that our bodies so urgently need daily.

What Do You Recommend?

Power of Sleep– Self Care Tips: 

As I cannot stress this enough:

  1. No technology or work in bed
  2. No work or technology at least an hour before sleep
  3. Create a space specifically for doing work (preferably separate from your bedroom)
  4. Go to bed as early as possible and try to get at least 8 hours of sleep
  5. Set boundaries: Set a time or schedule that you will work and do not go beyond that time so that you can avoid sleep deprivation

I found this incredible Ted Talk by Arianna Huffington and in this short talk, Arianna Huffington shares a small idea that can awaken much bigger ones: the power of sleep, and not just sleep itself, but great quality sleep. Instead of bragging about our sleep deficits, she urges us to shut our eyes and see the big picture: We can sleep our way to increased productivity and happiness — and smarter decision-making.

Let me know in the comments, how many hours of sleep do you get and what do you to to ensure you have the most effective sleep?
I would also like to know what your workspace is like 🙂 Do you have an office, do you work from a coffee shop?

 

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4 Comments

  1. Ernest

    Reply

    Thank you for your article. The brain is very intuitive, so it builds associations freely. I used to have a TV in my bedroom, but my brain started to think that the bedroom was a place for entertainment. This makes it difficult to fall asleep.

    Replacing that TV with educational books has decreased the amount of time it takes to fall asleep. We really do have to segregate areas of our lives in order to achieve success. The office is for working; the bedroom is for sleeping.

    Your ideas to stop using technology before bed will be hard at first, but I’ll certainly give it a try.

    • Madelyn Galvez

      Reply

      You’re absolutely right, and that is a great idea and one that I do myself as well– replaced the tv with educational books. I agree that not using technology before bed can be difficult at first, but you soon learn to adapt and I’m sure that the results will be satisfying in the end. If you do try this out, I would like to know the effects it has on you and your quality of sleep. 

  2. Gomer Magtibay

    Reply

    I was a bit surprised to read your tips saying we should stay away from gadgets and technology before going to bed. It’s the opposite with me and I’d like to ask if this is okay or what suggestion can you give?

    My problem is, using cellular phone or laptop computer in bed helps me get to sleep. If I don’t have them, my mind stay awake and I can’t sleep. I think, it’s the glare from the gadget that tires my eyes leading to sleep. With that glare, my eyes won’t get tired, my mind won’t get tired, making it harder for me to get to sleep.

    What do you suggest to break this pattern?

    • Madelyn Galvez

      Reply

      Hello Gomer, 

      On the contrary, research has proven that the blue light that emits from your devices triggers the brain to be over stimulated decreasing the necessary melatonin for deep sleep. Additionally, let’s say that you do not even use your phone but keep it at your bedside, research also says that the radiation that emits from the device does have affects on sleep. I would recommend reading books, printed magazines, etc. before bed and keeping your devices in a separate room. This way you have something to focus your eyes on and tire out your eyes without the damage of the blue light from your devices. There are many benefits to reading before bed and do not have adverse affects. You get a healthy amount of stimulation that will increase your knowledge, creativity, and it is a relaxing activity that can reduce stress. There are many other benefits as well to reading. I would definitely recommend trying to incorporate that into your nighttime routine. 

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