At least half the participants in my Get to the Message workshop raise their hands when I ask, “How many of you slept less than six hours last night?” What’s wrong with this? Here are some characteristics of people who do not sleep enough. Many sleep-deprived people have racing thoughts, talk rapidly, are easily distracted, in a state of mania, and have trouble focusing on the details and big picture at the same time. What do sleep-deprived presenters do? They create too many detailed slides that do not present a cohesive message. They work really hard but the end result is an unpersuasive, rambling set of slides. They cannot answer these important questions: What story are you telling? What are your three key messages? How does each slide advance your story and messages? Don’t waste your time going around in circles with your presentation—instead, sleep so you can be focused. And if you haven’t had enough sleep but are putting together a presentation? Stop! Don’t dive right into the slides. First organize your key messages and storyline, and then create the slides.

Sleep Checklist–Do One This Week

1. Turn off all electronic devices an hour before you go to sleep.
2. Do something calming before bed: deep breathing, stretches, a cup of herbal tea.
3. Take a walk outside.
4. Create a short bedtime ritual, for example, a cup of tea, four minutes stretching, five minutes meditating.

For more ideas: Huffington Post “37 Science-Backed Tips for Better Sleep Tonight”