SIESTA TIME
Get ready for the perfect nap.
Here's how to have the perfect snooze session:
Take your nap after lunch or very early in the afternoon – sleep expert Linda Baumgartner says that if you nap too late in the day, you risk falling into a deep sleep, which will interfere with your nighttime ZZZs .
Before your nap, tell yourself you're doing it to be productive later, says Baumgartner. This will make you feel less guilty about napping while still making you alert and ready to work when you wake up.
Make sure the environment is cool, dark, and quiet.
DROP THE COFFEE
Stop drinking caffeine sooner than you think.
Researchers from the Henry Ford Hospital Sleep Disorders and Research Center, Wayne State College of Medicine in Detroit and Zeo Inc., found that drinking coffee even six hours before bed led to poorer quality sleep. If you absolutely must have an afternoon pick-me-up and don't have time for exercise or a nap, researchers recommend drinking your last cup of joe before 2 p.m.
DON'T ENDLESS SURFING
Try these apps to avoid mindless surfing.
Most of us are guilty of heading to Reddit, Facebook, or Twitter around 3 or 4 p.m. in our working days when our motivation wanes. And before we know it, we've been clicking the web for hours. Try these apps to avoid a surf session that lasts for hours.
Moment
(Free; iOS only)
This app lets you see how much time you spend on your phone and set daily usage limits. If you feel particularly ready to reduce addiction to your device, you can walk away from it once you've used it long enough.
Flipd
(Free)
This app is for those who are committed to using their phone less. With Flipd, you can set your phone to lock for a while, say an hour before you start a project, and nothing you do – even restarting your phone – will bring it back to life.
This article originally appeared in the September 2017 issue of SUCCESS magazine.
