For a night owl, studying during the day can be a challenge. Whether it’s because of a busy schedule or simply personal preference, many students choose to study during the night.
Table of Contents
What is a Night Owl?
A night owl is a person who usually tends to stay up late at night, sometimes to the very early hours of the morning. This also means that night owls do not have their optimal energy levels at the same time as most people do!
Night owls may operate best in the evening, which can make it very difficult for them to work or study in the earlier hours of the day.
Being a night owl can also have its advantages, such as a quiet environment and fewer distractions. However, it’s important to develop effective study habits that allow you to study smarter, not harder.
In this article, we’ll explore some tips and techniques that can help you maximise your nighttime study sessions.
The Characteristics of a Night Owl:
Night Owls Tend to be More Creative
Those who wake up later in the day are usually labelled as unproductive and lazy, but this is not necessarily the case at all.
Research shows that night owls tend to be more creative than those who wake up earlier in the day!
There are actual differences in our DNA which result in the time we wake up and sleep. This is possibly responsible for the increase in creativity in night owls.
So, the next time you feel lazy for waking up late, just remember this fact!
Night Owls Wake up with Less Energy
Everyone has their own specific time where they feel they have the most energy throughout the day.
Still, the usual optimal time for most people is during the morning until the early afternoon. Night owls do not have their peak levels at the standard time, which makes it a little harder to wake up in the morning.
A night owl’s peak levels begin from the late afternoon and carry on to the evening! That means that their energy levels in the morning are at their lowest, which makes it really hard to undertake tasks during that time frame.
They Might Feel Foggy in the Mornings
For night owls, brain fog in the mornings is a real thing. Brain fog usually feels like you are working at half your capacity! It literally feels like there is fog in your brain.
Of course, this ties in with the previous point as the morning is not the optimal time for a night owl!
How to Study as a Night Owl
1. Find your Optimal time to Work
As a night owl, you have to see which times fit best for you! It might be a good idea to experiment a little here. You can try to plan a study session during the late afternoon, and another in the evening. Then, see which worked better for you, and keep it in mind for the next step!
It’s important to remember that a night owl won’t function as well in the earlier hours of the day.
For this reason, you should NOT listen to anyone who says you should force yourself to study at those times. Study at the times that work best for you.
2. Create a Schedule to Study
Now that you have confirmed your optimal work times, you can create an effective schedule that will boost your productivity levels.
The questions you should be asking are things such as ‘What will I be studying?’ or ‘How long should I study for?’. Without the answers for these questions, you cannot plan an effective schedule!
The idea here is to set some time aside to focus on your work, but at the time that is right for you! A schedule is great because it keeps you on track, which is something you definitely need when you operate outside of normal hours.
Try to fill up your early morning/afternoon with relaxing and less complicated activities. You need to save your energy levels for the more taxing things you will be doing later on in the day.
Remember to keep your routine consistent so that you can get into the habit of studying regularly!
If you’d like to know more about creating a schedule, check out my other article all about it!
3. Eliminate Distractions
Studying at night can be a particular challenge. Although the night time may be less distracting because there is less noise, you have other distractions working against you.
Since you’re working outside of the standard hours, chances are everyone else might be relaxing or going out.
This could really demotivate and discourage you, so make sure that you take the necessary steps to avoid this.
Find a quiet place, consider switching off your phone and wear noise cancelling headphones (if you have any).
Check out my entire post on getting rid of distractions right here.
4. Avoid Blue Light
Since most of us use digital devices, it is really important to limit the amount of blue light we receive during the day. Blue light is a type of light found in most smartphones, TV’s and Tablets, which can cause some difficulties sleeping if used close to bed time.
In fact, too much blue light can be a big strain for the eyes. This is something you definitely don’t want when you’re studying at night!
There are many applications that actually limit the amount of blue light on screen as the day goes by.
I usually use f.lux because it gradually lessens the amount of blue light as the sun starts setting!
Sometimes it can be really intense at night because the screen looks a little yellow/orange, but whenever I disable it at night I have loads of problems sleeping and focusing!
5. A Night Owl Needs a Consistent Sleep Schedule
There are actually various health risks associated with being a night owl. Reports of mood disorders, anxiety and type 2 diabetes (amongst others) have been found in this study.
To make things even more alarming, the same study shows that even if a night owl gets their 8 hours of sleep, the same health risks still apply. In fact, the real problem is actually the time in which one sleeps.
As a rule, you should sleep no later than 2.AM. Anytime later, and you’re risking your health!
This is especially important if it’s exam season! Doing so will ensure that you are mentally prepared to study whilst keeping your health in check!
Plan to keep a consistent sleep schedule and try to sleep at the same time every night. It might be hard, but it’s worth it for your health!
6. Set up a Good Study Environment
A good study environment is the bread and butter of your studying routine. Without a great study environment, you will have a lot more difficulty studying towards the end of the day.
This is because as we mentioned earlier, there are quite a few things working against you at night.
Firstly, a lot of the natural light (from the sun) is not present anymore at night, which means you’ll have to use artificial light.
For this reason, the type of lighting you use will be very important! Do not use dim lights because they tend to make it easier to zone out. Instead, go for bright lights – ideally neutral – to keep you engaged.
Also, a quick but very important point…do NOT study in bed. Your bed should only be used to relax and sleep, not to work! You’re more likely to be demotivated and distracted like that. So, I repeat, no one – especially not a night owl- should study in bed. Make your life easier, and just use a desk.
7. A Night Owl Still needs Sunlight
Sunlight affects our circadian rhythm, which regulates our behavioural, mental and physical changes throughout the day.
Something you might not know is that all of the processes I mentioned are actually influenced by the amount of light and darkness we receive!
That essentially means that you need both sunlight and darkness in order for your body to function normally.
So, getting enough sunlight is extremely important if you want to be able to study efficiently in the evening! Just getting 30 minutes of sunlight a day is already a great start!
Conclusion
Being a night owl doesn’t mean that you cannot find academic success. By following these tips and techniques you can make the most out of your night time study session! You’ll soon be on your way to achieve your academic goals and maximise your potential as a night owl student.
Other Articles
Note-Taking 101: Strategies for Making the Most of Your Time
