How to stay productive at night.

Most teenagers, young adults, and sometimes, even elderly people, find themselves more active at night. They find it difficult to go to bed early, either because of their natural circadian rhythms or because they have an unstable sleep schedule. Sometimes, it could also be overthinking keeping them up at night. It is easier for them to stay up late at night than get up early in the morning. Their most active hours are usually 9 pm till about 3 am. Most times, it's has nothing to do with irresponsibility or laziness, and everything to do with their natural circadian rhythm or an unintentionally messed up sleep schedule, courtesy of jobs, school work, or career paths. If you are one of those with the nighttime circadian rhythm, firstly, you are not alone, neither are you irresponsible. Secondly, this post is dedicated to you, so share it with all your friends in the same shoes.

Being more active at night gives an added advantage. The night is usually quiet, everyone is asleep, there are no interruptions or disturbances so you get quality quiet time with yourself and God. Also, there is no pressure from work or school at night so you have enough space to stay focused. It is also easier to complete more tasks at night because there are no incoming tasks to increase the workload. Focus is increased at night because of the quietness, hence it is easier to reply to more emails, get done with assignments, and even see a movie or pray before going to bed. If you find yourself more active at night, here are a few practical tips to make the most out of your night hours and stay productive at night:

1. Make a to-do list of things to get done. Having a to-do list helps you stay more productive by keeping your tasks right under your nose. You don't want to forget to do anything while you are most disposed to do that. It is easier to keep track of the things you have to do when you have a to-do list of all that you want to accomplish. A pro-tip for making a practical to-do list: arrange your tasks first in order of priorities. Then rearrange your priority list in order of which task requires more time to get done. You want to do them while you're most active, just before you start feeling sleepy or getting tired. It is easier to delegate the easier task from the night to the morning time before your most active day hours than it is with the demanding tasks. Also, you don't want to start your day thinking about the bulky work you couldn't complete at night but have to get done.

2. Have dinner on time: A lot of night owls are on this table (I am too, lol). Eating late at night is not only unhealthy, but it reduces your productivity. No matter how active you are at night, when you eat later than dinner time, there is a tendency to feel sleepy. You tell yourself, "well, let me sleep for a few minutes, I'll set an alarm" and there you go, waking up later than you planned. Have a balanced diet plan, and stick to it. A pro-tip to help you on this: Plan your dinner ahead of time. Have what you want to eat in your fridge. If you decide to eat before 11 pm, don't start at 9 pm to think of what to have for dinner. Plan and prepare ahead. This also helps reduce distractions as you won't be going around looking for what to eat when you should be working.

3. Turn off devices and stay away from social media: Unless you are a social media manager, digital marketer, or content creator, you want to stay off the grid to maximize focus. Social media can be a big distraction especially when you have nothing to do with it at work. You find yourself scrolling through feeds that ain't feeding your mind or your bank account and soon, all your time is far spent. Turn on your airplane mode if you have to, or turn on your wind down (for android) and downtime (for iPhones). Stay off till you're done with your tasks, and try not to go back on social media before you sleep unless you have something important or urgent you have to do there. Again, a pro-tip: If you have to use your phone to work and you don't want to get distracted but you still need your internet connection and normal phone functionality, turn on focus mode on your phone. This has helped me a lot because it blocks out every other app I don't have to use till I turn it off. Your productivity and focus will be maximized and there are completely no regrets.

4. Set timed goals for each task you have to complete: After making a rundown of your to-do list, have a set time to accomplish it. Apps like Pomodoro help you keep track of time by means of a countdown timer while allowing in-between breaks for stretching or going for a glass of water. Accord time according to the bulkiness of certain tasks. Some tasks would take you less than an hour to get done, while some might need an hour or more. Give time allocations for each and try to not spend a long time doing one thing.

5. Get to work: Once you are done preparing and planning your nighttime activities, get to work. Give no spaces for excuses or procrastination. Start ticking off your to-do list. You also want to do all the planning and preparation at least an hour or more before you get to work. It could be an 'evening routine' for you, something that you do while preparing dinner. Also, doing all the preparations and planning before you start work helps you remember all you have to get done. Your brain is freshly recollecting ideas and memories, hence a good way to pen down all you have to get done. Get to work, and give room for little or no distractions till you have completed at least 75-80% of the work.

You don't have to be a morning person to be a successful person in life. I know the media and internet have filled everyone with tales of how morning people are always the happiest and most successful. Contrary to that, however, people who work between 1 am to 5 am are more successful because they have enough time to focus and get more work done. The night is calm, the environment is friendly hence, their focus and productivity are maximized. Don't pressure yourself trying to fit into everyone's shoes to keep failing yourself time and time again. Find what works for you, stick to it, and be disciplined about it.