Night
owl
or
lark
?
How
sleep
habits
affect
productivity
It
is
Monday
morning
and
your
weekend
has
officially
ended
.
Your
alarm
clock
sounds
.
It's
six
o'clock
.
You
crack
open
your
eyes
enough
to
see
that
outside
the
snow
is
falling
steadily
and
it
is
quickly
on
the
streets
.
Do
you
hit
snooze
,
roll
over
,
and
pray
for
a
snowy
day
so
you
can
stay
indoors
?
Or
do
you
spring
out
of
bed
,
excited
to
drive
through
the
storm
and
hit
the
gym
for
a
quick
workout
before
your
day
begins
?
Recent
research
conducted
has
linked
our
sleep
habits
to
our
genetic
makeup
.
What
could
the
implications
of
this
possibly
be
and
what
other
factors
influence
our
sleep
?
Many
tend
to
be
one
of
the
two
extremes
,
sometimes
getting
if
they
seem
to
prefer
sleeping
later
rather
than
popping
out
of
bed
at
the
start
of
the
day
.
Lucky
for
night
owls
,
there
is
now
solid
scientific
evidence
backing
up
late
sleeping
habits
,
pointing
to
genetic
makeup
as
the
main
cause
,
and
not
.
Known
as
a
,
a
person's
preference
for
lark
or
owl
like
behavior
can
be
linked
directly
to
over
80
different
genes
,
according
to
a
study
by
geneticists
from
the
University
of
Leicester
.
Distinct
variations
in
DNA
sequences
were
found
amongst
fruit
flies
preferring
to
rise
early
,
differing
from
those
found
in
the
flies
that
slept
later
?
fruit
flies
have
similar
'clock
genes'
and
are
by
nature
,
like
humans
,
so
they
proved
to
be
ideal
subjects
for
the
study
.
But
are
genes
the
primary
and
sole
regulator
for
our
sleep
habits
?
Additional
research
has
proven
that
there
are
indeed
other
factors
that
influence
sleep
patterns
.
Age
plays
a
big
role
in
determining
when
you
prefer
to
go
to
bed
and
wake
up
.
Young
children
tend
to
be
early
risers
,
while
teenagers
have
shown
to
be
just
the
opposite
.
The
data
supporting
lateness
in
teenagers
is
so
significant
,
that
some
?
such
as
Mary
Carskadon
,
a
professor
of
psychiatry
at
Brown
University
?
are
pushing
for
schools
to
start
later
,
claiming
that
it
enhances
the
overall
mood
of
teenagers
when
they
follow
their
natural
.
Other
factors
,
such
as
the
environment
or
our
job
can
alter
sleep
habits
,
as
well
.
Yet
,
age
and
genes
are
some
of
the
big
influencers
.
So
,
how
does
this
natural
affect
night
owls
working
9
-
5
jobs
in
today's
world
?
Are
they
really
less
productive
as
some
have
claimed
them
to
be
?
Based
on
a
study
done
at
the
University
of
Alberta
in
Canada
,
it
was
found
that
night
owls
performed
best
during
the
evening
hours
,
while
early
birds
were
steadily
productive
throughout
the
day
.
So
,
owls
aren't
necessarily
less
productive
,
they
are
just
more
productive
at
different
times
.
Another
study
conducted
in
Belgium
found
that
owls
performed
equally
as
well
as
larks
in
reaction
and
attention
time
tests
,
when
given
the
tasks
in
the
morning
.
However
,
ten
hours
later
?
when
given
the
same
tasks
again
?
owls
outperformed
their
lark
counterparts
.
This
makes
sense
,
as
larks
tend
to
wind
down
at
the
end
of
the
day
,
whereas
owls
are
just
starting
to
peak
as
they
move
into
the
evening
hours
.
One
disconcerting
finding
from
another
recent
sleep
study
was
that
night
owls
could
possibly
develop
Seasonal
Affective
Disorder
or
depression
if
forced
to
follow
the
same
sleep
schedule
as
early
birds
.
These
for
late
rising
employees
are
serious
.
So
,
what
are
they
to
do
in
a
business
world
that
favors
early
risers
?
Their
productivity
is
equivalent
to
that
of
the
larks
,
but
the
timing
isn't
quite
right
for
their
performance
to
reach
its
full
potential
.
Researchers
have
encouraged
night
owls
to
try
finding
ways
of
getting
exposure
to
natural
light
throughout
the
day
by
eating
lunch
outside
,
or
taking
a
bike
to
work
instead
of
commuting
in
a
covered
vehicle
.
Others
have
recommended
cutting
down
on
electronics
into
the
evening
hours
as
blue
light
has
been
known
to
disrupt
circadian
rhythms
.
Another
perhaps
less
option
many
companies
have
been
adopting
is
allowing
employees
to
choose
their
work
hours
.
They
reason
that
as
long
as
the
work
gets
done
on
time
,
the
hours
spent
at
the
office
are
not
important
.
Unfortunately
,
a
flexible
work
schedule
isn't
always
an
option
,
but
knowing
your
chronotype
definitely
is
a
great
way
to
start
planning
strategies
for
tapping
into
your
peak
productivity
times
effectively
.
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