They Sleep We Grind

Not every person works in the same manner as the other.  Why is a 9-5pm work day the staple if your best time to get work done is at 11PM?  It's almost as though corporate america expects this staple to fit every person the same way.  Do you really do your best work in the hours of 9 and 5pm?

For those that know me, they know that I am mostly a night owl.  My business partner and best friend is always surprised when I respond to an email at 8 or 9am in the morning because he knows that I mostly work till 3 or 4am and then sleep until 9 or 10am then reset.  I have been criticized by others that say I am not getting enough sleep or I'm working myself to death and at times I get concerned and ask myself am I really doing myself a disservice?  I run a small business with an outstanding team but even with the team there just isn't enough hours in the day to get everything done so I push myself to complete tasks.  

When I was working in corp in exec positions I found it frustrating that I would get criticized if I wasn't looking busy during the 9 to 5pm time when in actuality I would take the work home and crank it out on my desk in my office without several distractions etc.  Everytime I utilized my method my work was outstanding but the opposite was true when I was in a cubicle that provided no creative juice.

So now with running my own business, I work at the most optimal time that is most comfortable to me.  Sadly, not everyone on my team works the same way which means they have to adjust to me when I send emails at 2am.  So am I creating my own culture and forcing those that work with me to work from 10am - 3am?  Probably.  So maybe I am part of the problem.