Stanford Neurobiologist + Ayurveda
The ancient wisdom of Ayurveda has always advocated for early risers and suggests waking at or before sunrise each day. In fact, Ayurveda prescribes a method for conducting your daily routine to maximize productivity and enhance creativity-effectively optimizing your day’s “flow.” What’s interesting is that modern neuroscience research agrees with this recommendation. On his popular podcast Huberman Lab, Dr. Andrew Huberman, a Professor of Neuroscience and Ophthalmology at Stanford University, discusses the science of why waking early and ordering your day by natural light increases your productive and creative power.
In Episode #58, Dr. Huberman says, “…getting sunlight in your eyes first thing in the morning is absolutely vital.” When sunlight enters our eyes, it helps wake up our brain and increases our ability to focus on tasks, making us more productive. That productive drive is particularly useful in the early morning. As professor Huberman explains, it is “The time of day in which our neurochemistry is primed for getting the most amount of focused, challenging work done.” He calls it Phase 1, and says it lasts from when you get up in the morning until 6-9 hours later. As the sun moves across the sky, we transition into Phase 2. Dr. Huberman says this decrease in bright light is “…when the release of [chemicals] put your brain into a state that’s better for creative endeavors.”
Using this methodology at Socialike helps our agency work more efficiently and deliver the consistent creativity our clients need for effective campaigns. Here are a few ways we incorporate this approach into our daily routine:
- Use morning hours for working independently on assignments and administrative tasks
- Schedule meetings and client calls in the afternoons when creativity is higher
- Hold brainstorming sessions at the end of the day when inspirational thinking is best
You can learn more about our optimized workflow in our recent post, Being Creative is Not Easy- We Look To Ayurveda.
It’s so interesting that one of the world’s leading neuroscientists confirms what an ancient wisdom tradition has been saying for 5,000 years. Understanding how nature’s rhythms affect us and leveraging those natural patterns to increase flow and boost productivity helps us achieve the highest standards for our clients. Our ability to consistently deliver the creativity and innovation needed for successful social media marketing is made easier through our intentional, optimized workflow (one whose efficacy is backed by scientific research). And it’s the incorporation of this scientifically-supported, holistic approach to our work that sets us apart in our field.
