Sleep: the most powerful performance drug in the world
If there's a performance drug you can take every day completely legally that will dramatically improve your ability to make money, find a partner, be a better parent and make good decisions, that drug is sleep. Brian Johnson, the entrepreneur who achieved eight consecutive months of perfect sleep, has scientifically demonstrated that there's nothing more powerful you can do for your performance than optimize your nightly rest.
Johnson's research revealed a direct connection between deep sleep and willpower. When he had 35-45 minutes of deep sleep versus 1.5-2 hours, his impulse control ability plummeted. This means that if you don't sleep well, your probability of resisting temptations like that bag of chips or pint of ice cream is practically zero.
Become a professional sleeper
The first fundamental change you need to make is to reframe your identity: you are a professional sleeper. This means treating sleep with the same seriousness as your work or any skill you want to master.
Most people are capricious about sleep. They think they can just put their head on the pillow and it will either happen or it won't. But you need to invest in establishing habits and hygiene around this, perfecting the art of rest.
Consider this: if you have a meeting at 9:00 AM and arrive at 9:04, you apologize for being late. Even a 4-minute infraction violates a social norm. However, if your bedtime is 10:00 PM and you go to bed at 10:04, it's not customary to apologize to yourself for being late.
You should approach sleep with the same level of social rigor you would have in a meeting. If your bedtime is 10:00 PM, be punctual. If you arrive a few minutes late, acknowledge that it's a lack of respect toward yourself.
The key metric: resting heart rate
Johnson has built his entire life around one number: his resting heart rate before sleep. This simple but powerful metric determines what he eats, when he eats and how he structures his evening routine.
The principle is straightforward: everything that elevates your heart rate before sleep is bad for sleep. Everything that reduces it is good. When you eat close to bedtime, your heart rate goes up and sleep quality goes down. If you have a fight right before bed, your heart rate goes up and sleep deteriorates.
To measure your resting heart rate, put your head on the pillow, take a few deep breaths and use a wearable device or simply place your fingers on the side of your neck. Count the beats for six seconds and multiply by 10.
Establish your baseline tonight and make your goal in 30 days to reduce your resting heart rate by 10%. If you measure 60 beats per minute tonight, aim for 54 in a month. Johnson typically reaches 44-46 beats per minute before sleep, just 2-3 beats above his lowest during sleep.
The 10-step protocol for perfect sleep
1. Professional sleeper identity
Take sleep as seriously as your work. Invest in creating the perfect art of rest.
2. Last meal 4+ hours before bed
Experiment with 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or 7 hours. Johnson eats his last meal approximately 8 hours before bedtime. This allows your body to fully digest and reduces heart rate.
3. 30-60 minute relaxation routine
You can't finish working and 30 seconds later put your head on the pillow. Your body needs time to calm down. Turn off screens and read a book, meditate, walk or call a friend. Evidence shows that reading a book is as effective as a sleeping pill.
4. Immediate morning light
Get morning light within the first 5-30 minutes of waking. Johnson uses a 10,000 lux light at home since he wakes before dawn. This sets your circadian rhythm.
5. Consistent sleep schedule
If your bedtime is 10:00 PM, go to bed at 10:00 PM every night. During his eight months of perfect sleep, Johnson went to bed at 8:30 PM with ±1 minute precision. Consistency allows your body to develop a predictable rhythm.
6. Be careful with stimulants
Caffeine has a half-life of approximately 6 hours. A cup of coffee at 4:00 PM equals half a cup of caffeine at 10:00 PM. Consume stimulants early in the day to give your body time to process them.
7. Appropriate nighttime light
Avoid blue light in the evenings. Use red and amber lights. If you must use screens, use tools like F.lux that eliminate blue light, or activate red mode on your mobile device.
8. Cool temperature
Keep your room between 18-21°C (65-70°F). Johnson uses a temperature-controlled mattress. Sleeping hot is very challenging for sleep quality.
9. Quiet environment
Minimize noise. If you live in a noisy area, use a white noise machine or earplugs. Place your sleep area in the quietest part of your home.
10. Use a wearable device
Apple Watch, Oura Ring or Whoop will help you create insights about how your daily activities affect your sleep quality. This allows you to build habits based on real data.
Sleep saboteurs to avoid
Certain factors can significantly elevate your heart rate:
- Anxiety, stress and rumination: 5-25 additional beats per minute
- Alcohol before bed: 5-10 additional beats per minute
- Evening exercise: 4-10 additional beats per minute
- Late eating: Especially heavy carbohydrates like pasta or pizza
- Intense screens: Exciting or stressful TV shows
- Work until the last minute: Checking emails or working until bedtime
The first discovery people make with wearable devices is that alcohol completely ruins their sleep. The second revelation is usually the devastating impact of eating late.
Sleep environment optimization
Three additional tips that can make a difference:
Keep your phone away from the bed: Charge it in another room or across the room to resist the temptation to check it one last time.
Practice evening journaling: Writing down your worries, gratitudes or reflections of the day helps process anxiety and transition to sleep mode.
Reserve the bed only for sleeping and sex: This cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia technique trains your brain to associate the bed solely with rest.
Sleep determines everything in your life
Sleep is not just about health; it's about everything that matters in your life. It affects how much money you earn, whether you get that promotion, your ability to find a partner, be a good parent and make good decisions. When you're sleep-deprived, your executive function deteriorates so much that it's equivalent to being legally drunk.
The irony is that we live in a culture that glorifies lack of sleep and associates success with sleeping little. This is completely wrong. Successful people who don't sleep could be even more successful if they slept well. They are successful despite their lack of sleep, not because of it.
If you truly understand that sleep is the most powerful performance drug you can take daily, then it's worth reorganizing your life around it. Because when you master sleep, you master everything else.