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Chronotype Clock
Why it matters?
Being in a clear state of mind with adequate energy are directly correlated to making better decisions throughout your day.
And it could be said, the culmination of smart decisions over time creates our best lives. So much of this has to do with timing AND how that timing relates to your internal clock: aka circadian rhythm. Our bodies fluctuate on different time tables for hormone production, neurochemical release, and metabolic function as we transform food into energy and energy into focused effort.
These automated aspects of us are influenced by light, physical activity, meal timing and time of day and season – our circadian clocks get all of them running on smooth timetables like different trains coming into a central station.
Though our specific rhythms are individual, researchers have clustered them into four general “types” — representing the time of day when you’re most mentally alert, agile, and running on sufficient energy (unless otherwise affected). Knowing your chronotype can align you to your peak cognitive performance windows so that you can harness your most productive hours of the day with decision making, hard tasks and/or creative spurts.
How it works?
- Think of your natural state of alertness and tiredness throughout the day when your schedule is NOT dictated by others.
- Take a Chronotypes Test online (see suggestions below) to calculate your most likely type.
Lion’s tend to be early risers before sunrise and are the most productive before noon.
Bears rise with the sun and are most productive before noon, then dip between 2-4pm.
Wolves rise later and are most productive between noon and 4pm, with a second wind after 6pm.
Dolphins tend to be most productive between 10-2pm. - Knowing your type, start to plan your most productive blocks during the day to maximize your alertness.
- Schedule activities that are more repetitive, relational (ie. meetings) or transactional during off-prime hours.
- Let your family and co-workers know what your chronotype is and know theirs to create shared timetables that support each other’s rhythm.
Examples
Make your most important decisions at the time of day when you are most alert, awake and able to handle complex information.
Sources:
chronobiology.com: Origin of Chronotypes
The Sleep Doctor: Chronotypes Test