What’s Your Chrono Animal and How to Make It Work for You

Recently a friend shared an Instagram video that talked about your chronotype and how you can use it to your advantage when it comes to productivity. A bit of a backgrounder here – people typically fall into one of four chronotype categories: Bear, wolf, lion, and dolphin. Each of these types is loosely based on the animal’s sleep patterns and habits.

You can watch the video here.

So which chronotype are you and why does understanding it help you be more productive? Essentially, each animal chronotype corresponds to your activity levels – when you are most productive and focus, and when you’re likely to hit the sack and call it day. The good thing about knowing your chronotype will help you not only boost your productivity but also better understand what you need to be more focused and energetic.

Let’s take a look at each chronotype.

The Bear Chronotype
About 55% of the population falls into this chronotype and the typical work schedule is most suited to this chronotype. Those in this category usually doesn’t have much trouble waking up in the morning or sleeping through the night. You are most likely to go to be at 11pm and wake up at 7am. Sometimes, you love a nap, especially after lunch.

Your most productive hours? Between 10am to 2pm so to get the most out of it, make sure to schedule your important meetings and tasks during these hours. Tip: If the bear chronotype fails to get enough sleep at night, you will feel lethargic throughout the day. So make it a habit to hit the sack at the same time consistently to keep those energy levels up all day.

The Wolf Chronotype
You already know that wolves are most active at night so here is the night owl of the chronotype categories! You’re lucky to have two bursts of productivity – one around noon to 4pm, and the second around 6pm till midnight when everyone’s calling it day. As such, a traditional work schedule may not suit you but if you know how to work around it (such as scheduling in your toughest assignments right after lunch), you won’t fall far from the productivity zone.

You also fall into the category if you love hitting snooze in the morning. This is because you need to sustain all the energy you need for the day!

The Lion Chronotype
Roar – you’re most alive in the morning with your energy levels peaking before noon! You normally go to bed around 10pm and wake up at 6am. Typically, you’re able to complete the load of your tasks before lunch and after that, you hit a slump of non-productivity. With this in mind, schedule all your meetings and discussions first thing in the morning to get the most out of them!

Because your energy dips as the day progresses, it’s important for you to have an evening wind-down routine to decompress before calling it a night. Most lion chronotypes need around eight hours of sleep to sustain your high energy levels in the early mornings.

The Dolphin Chronotype
Did you know that dolphins sleep with half of their brain on at a time – this helps them stay alert and aware of predators? If you belong to the dolphin chronotype, it basically means you don’t really have a fixed sleep pattern and can easily wake up throughout the night when you’re disturbed by a light or noise – just like the dolphin!

Your irregular sleep schedule can be a problem for your energy levels and productivity – it’s no surprise those of the dolphin chronotype are often seen as a lazy bunch. But hold up, when you have a burst of energy, oh my watch you go! Many dolphin chronotypes have a window of productivity between 10am to 2pm so make this your focus hour.

Bear in mind though you may identify with more than one chronotype – perhaps you have surges of creativity at night like the wolf or maybe you have the morning rush of a bear. In truth, not everyone falls squarely into one chronotype category. But knowing how you feel most days will help you determine how to best schedule in work for your most productive hours.

So which animal are you? Share with us @Graduan and tell us how knowing your type has helped you with your productivity!

Photo by Mark Basarab on Unsplash.