I like adventures & aspire to run several small businesses, but I’ve found that 11 pm-8am is my perfect sleep window. That means I need to be home brushing my teeth by 10:30 to feel my best. I live in a big city & am in my late 20s so I’m missing out on a lot of networking & just plain fun stuff, both by missing events or by going to early ones and then dashing home as soon as they end. People scoff…but by 10 I’m tired & genuinely want to leave! How do I get both sleep & the most out of life?
You’re on a perfect sleep schedule for consorting with older professionals, so why not network with them and try to sell them things? It’s actually a common complaint of executives (especially women) with children that networking events take place in the evening at all — there are plenty of high-flyers doing 7am breakfast meetings. (There are also lunches, which you are actually awake for.)
Also, there’s nothing wrong with leaving when the party’s still going. It makes your time and company seem more valuable!
Maybe just don’t tell people you’re going home to sleep. It does make you seem a bit stodgy. Do you sometimes do a little yoga or some stretching before bed? Try, “Hey, so nice to catch up — I’m going to go get a workout in.” Or, “I’ve got some work to do before bed.”
Also try taking control of your social sphere. Instead of always going to other people’s events, hold your own events. If you hold an event in someone else’s space, you can say, truthfully, “I’ve got the space from 6-8 only, so don’t be late!” Or skip some weeknight events and corral everyone for brunch.
You may enjoy How to Host a Conference – With No Money on DailyWorth, in which I talk about hosting your own events (not just big conferences) and How to Hold a Ladies’ Working Brunch.
