Why More Sleep
Life's Quiet Upgrade
Dear Why Team member,
I hope this week’s message finds you well rested and full of energy.
We made it through the first week of daylight savings. I’m enjoying the extra sunlight, though in the past it has messed with my sleep schedule.
Are you getting enough sleep?
If not, why not?
As we continue exploring the tools for our Best Year Ever, nothing compares to the value of sleep.
No other activity in life is more important than sleep, because it is the primary powerhouse that fuels every other activity.
Our achieve-more culture often emphasizes less sleep rather than more, but the results are a decline in health, productivity, and overall life satisfaction.
If we do not become more conscious of the reasons why we undermine our own objectives, we will continue to be in our own way.
Pogo famously said,
“We have met the enemy, and he is us.”
Wordsworth said habits rule the unreflecting herd. Stopping to reflect on our habits—and why we live the way we do—is a powerful path to improvement.
Could the key to more be: more sleep?
Early in my career, I tried out our cultural formula of less sleep to achieve more, and it led to burn-out again and again. Fortunately, I woke up to the exhausting and limiting approach and for the past twelve years I have endeavored to keep more sleep at the top of my priority list. And as a result, I have absolutely experienced a life more abundant in every way.
If there was only one thing we could change in 2026 for our Best Year Ever—among our Better Picks in ‘26–it might simply be this: hit the sack earlier.
When you are lacking sleep, consider asking yourself these questions:
Why do I undervalue the importance of sleep?
Why do I not go to bed earlier?
Why do I make excuses for how late I go to bed?
For every minute of extra sleep, how much more enjoyable and productive will the minutes be when you are awake?
It’s more sleep, not less.
Some will say: more sleep means less productivity. But I’d encourage you to look no further than little children. When their body is stretched to the limit, it demands rest and the child simply falls asleep, sometimes in the strangest places, waking up invigorated and often with a lot more energy than we’re able to keep up with. I bet the expression “I slept like a baby” was borne from someone experiencing the ability to sleep for as long as necessary without the fear of loss or reduced productivity and waking up invigorated.
Why be awake more - running at less capacity?
If you want to look at the research, you’ll find in many studies that not suppressing your body’s need to rest with diet additives like coffee and energy drinks, leads to a more productive life. Check out Brian Johnson’s teaching videos- one of my favorite tools for learning and growing. He talks about how elite performers prioritize sleep. Tom Brady reportedly went to bed at 8:30 p.m., and athletes like Roger Federer and LeBron James aim for 12 hours of sleep per day so that they can show up at their absolute best. 12 hours is certainly standing out from the crowd, but has it not brought out-standing results?!
The importance of sleep cannot be overemphasized; a must read is Chapter 9: Sacred Sleep (and the Hormonal Helpers) in the outstanding book “Genius Foods” by Max Lugavere;
Consider reading or listening to The Sleep Revolution by Arianna Huffington and/or reading Brian Johnson’s Optimize posts on sleep.
Download an app to measure the quality of your sleep. I began leveraging the SLEEP CYCLE app eleven or twelve years ago, and it has served me significantly.
I am also a big fan of my Oura ring for even more detailed feedback on the quality of my sleep.
That which we measure we are more empowered to improve.
Could it be true that a new discipline of going to bed one hour earlier each night could have a profoundly positive impact on every aspect of our life?
For your absolute best year ever, consider one change at a time; first and foremost, re-organize your life to accommodate an earlier bedtime—even if for just 15 or 30 minutes. Do it for yourself and everyone you love. While you may have a little less time in the evening with yourself and/or your loved ones - your relationship with yourself and others will vastly improve when you are more present and awake from having more sleep.
Have fun and get it done!
It stands to reason that the quality of our life when awake depends greatly on the quality of our sleep. Be equally attentive to both, with a bias to sleep, or the lack of sleep will cause you to be less attentive to both.
Few people have accomplished more than Ben Franklin; and of course, he gave us his secret to success:
“Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.”
— Ben Franklin
For your Best Year Ever, strive to make each week a great sleep week,
Steve Luckenbach