Is your sleep supporting the next 30 years of your life?

Can you relate to one of these scenarios? For yourself? For the owners you serve?

1. A founder offered to meet at 4am this week.
2. A client prided himself on sleeping 3-4 hours per night and working up to 16 hours per day.
3. A founder sacrificed 2-3 hours of sleep per night for the last year during the business transaction process justifying this with the short-term nature of running the business by day and preparing for the transaction by night.

Sleep is that time when your body and your mind repair.

Most people need at least 7 hours per night.

The times when you sleep can shift over time. Many people go to bed earlier and arise earlier yet still get 7+ hours.

Founders nearing an exit are often in their 50’s, 60’s, 70’s. The more life you have lived, the less you should be taking chances and cutting yourself short.

Short nights of sleep increase risk of heart attacks, dementia, diabetes, weaker immune system, cancer, weight gain, risk of falls, and more.

Are you one of the 1/3 of adults robbing yourself of sleep?

Do you try to sleep but don’t know how to fall asleep, stay asleep, or get back to sleep if you get up during the night?

Here are five steps that you can use tonight then try various combinations through the rest of the month.

1. Avoid heavy foods, alcohol, and anything to drink a couple of hours before bed. This helps reduce the indigestion, acid reflux, and times up in the night to the bathroom.
2. Make a list of all you need to do tomorrow, things you don’t want to forget, and problems you hope will resolve with a fresh perspective later. This is to keep you from worrying all night you might forget them. (Good rest often lets the brain think of creative solutions a stressed brain can’t attain.)
3. Give yourself a bridge between awake and going to bed. Shut down your TV, your phone, your computer at least an hour before you plan to sleep.
4. Relax your body. This could be a warm bath, shower, or cloth to your face; gentle stretching; a hand or foot or head massage; slow head, shoulder, and ankle rolls; lavender scent in your bedroom; sex or cuddling.
5. Once in bed, gradually slow your breaths. Breath in slowly, gently, and fully through your nose. No rush, take your time breathing in and out. As you do, think of good things in your life. (No matter how many issues you’re juggling, what are three good things?). Name your good things while slowing your breathing.

Here are a few more:

• If your room is not completely dark, block light sources or try an eye mask.
• Avoid the temptation to look at a clock or your phone.
  • Remove your phone from your room if the temptation is too much!
• Are you aware of pain when you reach Stage 1? For knee pain, try a small pillow between your knees. If back pain, consider a firmer mattress.
• Choose a favorite verse or mantra then recite it in your mind while breathing slowly and deeply, completely unrushed.
• If you’re still struggling to fall asleep, try a progressive body relaxation technique. Squeeze your toes and hold then gradually relax. Next squeeze your feet, hold, relax. Then ankles followed by calves followed by thighs and work your way up your body. Breathe slowly and enjoy the relaxation after each squeeze.

Owners are limited in their ability to make good decisions when they are not getting adequate sleep.

And they are limiting their future health if they overlook the importance of this.

Please pass this along to the owners you serve!

(And try a few of these for yourself.)