Choose Your Moment

How your sense of timing affects your success.

- Sydney Loney 

MOST OF US HAVE a laundry list of to-dos, both small (organize cupboards, take a yoga class) and big (write a memoir). The trouble is that all too often, life gets in the way. But according to Dr. Michael Breus, it’s less about what we’re trying to get done than when and how we do it. His 2016 book, The Power of When, hinges on the notion that there are ideal—and not so ideal—moments to schedule everything you hope to accomplish.

Breus, a clinical psychologist based in Manhattan Beach, Calif.,who is board certified in sleep disorders, got the idea when a patient explained that she didn’t have a hard time falling or staying asleep, she just snoozed at the wrong time. Much like a teenager, she was compelled to stay up late and sleep in.

“I decided to try an experiment,” says Breus. “I asked her boss if she could adjust her schedule to be at work two hours later and stay two hours longer.” The results: the patient was less tired and more productive, and her relationship with her family improved. Breus began to wonder what other timing-related connections he might uncover.

Drawing on more than 200 clinical studies, many exploring circadian rhythms and chronotypes (personal biological clocks), Breus found that when it comes to our health, timing is everything. The information he uncovered suggests you can accomplish everything you want to achieve by lining up your priorities with a schedule that works best for you.

While we don’t all have access to a trove of scientific studies, paying closer attention to our own patterns— and ensuring we take the time to make concrete plans—can go a long way toward helping us tackle that laundry list. Here are some pointers to set you on the right track.