Are you an "early bird gets the worm" type of worker? You wake up from a restful night's sleep and have the energy and motivation to get things done right away. You can clear your head by checking off all of your to-do items first thing during the day.
Are you an "afternoon achiever" type worker? You take the time to begin your day leisurely and about midday you get a boost of energy and accomplish all your goals then. You enjoy completing your work at just the right time of day, not too early, but not too late.
Are you a "night owl" type worker? You spend your day with all of the normal doings, but when the sun goes down you get a second wind and get all the things done right then and there. You can't seem to rest in the later hours of the day, but instead have more energy at this time of day when most others are winding down.
Whenever I've been asked, "what type person are you?" I've always said that I'm an all day type person. :) I think that partially comes because I'm a mom, and quite frankly, we don't get much of a break throughout the day...or night sometimes. But I kind of think that I've always been a bit of workaholic all day long. It runs in my family...if you know my mom, and knew my grandmother, you would certainly agree. I suppose it was my destiny to end up being Queen Bee at the B Hive. The idea of me being a "busy bee" is pretty accurate.
I can see pros and cons to all of the "types" of workers really.
Doing all your work in the mornings is fantastic for getting your must-do items out of the way and opens up the rest of your day for anything really that comes up...expected or unexpected. But when you spend your mornings jumping right into all the things you have planned, you may lose focus on things that actually matter. I think it's important to spend some time first thing in the morning for reflection, meditation, praying, reading. That way you feel focused for the day and you've sort of made your game plan for how to get things done.
Waiting until the afternoon, or even evening time, to work on your to-do list can be good because it allows for the things I mentioned above like reflecting and praying. It gives your body a chance to acclimate to being awake and moving around. Consider your mornings a "warm up" to the "exercise" of the rest of the day. Be cautious though to put off your work for too long into the afternoon or evening because it may lead to an attitude of laziness. You may continue to put off your work until tomorrow, or the next day, or next month, and before you know it...the work never gets done at all.
Evening time can be great for working especially if you have kids, once they are settled in their beds you have all of this (usually uninterrupted) time that you won't be tending to them only. Children are a blessing it's true, but they can also throw a wrench in the best made plans when it comes to a to-do list. Even if you don't have kids, night time can be better for getting your items completed because you need the earlier parts of the day to go to work and focus on your job or maybe your in school and that is your priority. Like I said above though, waiting too long into the day can mean that things never get done at all. Also waiting until the evening time may leave you feeling too tired and drained from the day you've had, and you simply won't have the motivation to accomplish anything except brushing your teeth and crawling into bed.
I'm learning that for me, even though I consider myself an "all day" worker, it is most enjoyable for me to work early in the mornings. I like to spend my very first moments of the day reading and praying, but then I choose something that needs doing and I get it done. It helps me feel accomplished and clears my head. I certainly have days where I look around the house and read over my to-do list, and feel discouraged because nothing was achieved, but on those days I try and remember to give myself grace.
Do you have anything that works for you when it comes to motivating yourself to start marking things off your to-do list? What about any pros or cons that you'd like to add to these types of workers?
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