I’ve been part of the “4:30AM Club” for nearly 10 years. Joining wasn’t very easy for this lifelong night-owl. The first 6 months absolutely sucked and I didn’t ease my way into it. I wanted nothing more than to keep sleeping when I heard the annoying sound of the alarm. But it was well worth it.

I believe the month of October is the best time to join the “4:30AM club” with little impact.  I’ve written blog articles about 4:30AM being the optimal wake-up time for those who report to work at 8AM.  (Adjust accordingly if you have different work hours).  This challenge is an excuse-free plan that can work for anyone.  If you take this challenge, your wake-up time will begin two hours earlier by November 7.  And if you add productivity to those hours, you might just become a lifetime member of the club.  

Early morning hours are without interruption and provide a perfect time for priorities to start your day.  I don’t advocate beginning your workday at this time or doing chores/tasks as this additional time should be YOUR time.  I use early morning hours for fitness, Bible reading, prayer and goal setting.  People use “lack of time” as the most frequent excuse for not getting to these priorities each day.  You might have other priorities—what would you do with 2 extra hours of free time?

Daylight saving time ends on November 7, unless you live in Indiana or Arizona.  You’ll get one extra hour of sleep when clocks fall forward, so technically you could begin waking up one-hour early on that day without any impact to your body.  You’re still waking up at the same time, despite the reading on your clock.  Don’t use the extra hour to sleep in; use it to gain an hour.

So what about the second hour?  Easy…here’s the challenge:

Set your alarm clock 10 minutes early on September 28.  You can wake up 10 minutes early, right?  You can go to bed 10 minutes earlier the night before, right?  This is very manageable and excuse proof.  Here’s the key—make the 10 minutes productive.  Decide how you are going to spend the time before you go to bed.  Maybe you plan to read a book, complete a quick exercise or perhaps something else that usually slips through the cracks.  Get up early and get it done.  Set your alarm clock 10 minutes earlier the following week for a total of 20 minutes.  Repeat this process each week between September 25 and October 30.  Combine this additional hour to the one gained when daylight savings time expires.

And there you go….your “I can’t get up early” excuse is no longer valid.

Go get it.