The Story of Fuelling a Change: How I Began Getting Up At 4:00 am

How to Get Up Early?

Getting up early is the best gift my life has given to me.

To me, it means being awake during that part of the time when there are no distractions. It means starting my day well in advance from the Rest who are still snuggling under the covers to dream. And in the evening, use the same time to foster hobbies rather than working late – or to get to sleep early while others are eating out, partying or watching TV.

From Apple's Tim Cook to Cisco's Padmasree Warrior, Starbucks' Howard Schultz and Pepsi's Indra Nooyi, this is habit is common to tons of famous leaders. Whether they were born early risers or learned good sleep habits, they know how to seize the day.

My story

The year 2005-2006 marked a drastic change in my life. I had lived pretty casually before, and my lifestyle was kind-of irregular one like anyone of my age. I had a good-paying job, a vibrant social circle and the zeal to do big, but something was missing. It kept me awake during nights and made me worry about the possible “Whats, Whys & Whos” – What if I keep on living like this with no clear path of life (though the job was good and I had a thriving career laid in front, but I wanted more from life). The questions did not stop there. I thought about life, death and more. I wanted to know why do we live? Who’s God? What's there that we can’t see but is right in front? What happens after one becomes completely contented?

The change process

And then it was the time for the “Change Process” to begin. It was the time when I got introduced to meditation, the subtle art of experiencing deep silence and attaining peace & happiness. To be honest, it was a very slow process, but I am glad that I became a part of it. When I began practicing it, I wasn’t sure whether I’ll continue because like the other youngsters of my age, it wasn't possible for anything to remain interesting enough for me to continue. But the meditation practice surprised me. I just got hooked to it. Such was the effect that I began getting up early at 4 (& sometimes even before that), just to get enough time to experience it in solidarity with the nature.

And that’s when I learnt three golden habits to wake up early.

The three habits

1. Fueling the excitement: I began thinking about one thing I’d do after getting up the next morning, and it thrilled me. The thought to sit in meditation and attain an elevated stage of soul while everyone else slept was exciting enough to keep me on my toes. The benefit didn’t stop there. I began taking out time for my other dearest hobby – writing. Getting up early gave me more time to write, and fire up the new projects that I had taken.
2. Bed jumping:  Yes, I literally jump out of bed. With enthusiasm. I jump, stretch my body and welcome the day. It pumps me, makes me ready to tackle the day with open arms and the passion of a driven maniac. It works. Every time.
3. Kept the alarm clock on a distance where I had to get up to put it off: Sometimes I had that moment of weak will-power when I'd hit the snooze button & and go off to sleep again. So, I began to adopt this technique, and needless to say – it worked. So now at that point when the alarm buzzes off, I remind myself about my exciting thing. If I don’t jump out of bed due to laziness on a day, I at least stretch my arms wide and greet the day. It pumps me up and puts me back on the routine.

Seven years have passed, and till now I enjoy every moment of getting up early and being in peace. I’ve changed my career, settled at a different (and a very lovely) place and altered my lifestyle but what has remained same is the urge to gain more out of the mornings that others simply waste!