Apple CEO Tim Cook is a Morning Person
Wakes Up Early, Checks Emails for an Hour, Then Exercises
22-Year-Old Foreign Correspondent Tries It for a Week
Says It Was Good at First but Became Very Tough in the End
This photo is for illustrative purposes only and is unrelated to the article content. [Photo source=Pixabay]
A foreign journalist’s experience of following the daily routine of self-proclaimed morning person and Apple CEO Tim Cook has become a hot topic.
On the 1st, the US Business Insider reported on its female journalist Mikenna Manias’s week-long trial of CEO Cook’s morning routine. In past interviews, Cook has said he wakes up every day between 4 and 5 a.m., spends an hour checking emails, then turns off his phone for an hour to exercise. He said, “I spend an hour at the gym usually doing strength training, and during this time I don’t want to be disturbed by anyone, so I don’t work. I absolutely do not check my phone.” Afterward, Cook showers, drinks coffee, and has breakfast consisting of scrambled eggs, sugar-free cereal, unsweetened milk, or bacon before heading to work. The 22-year-old Gen Z female journalist, fresh out of college, said, “I was happy to start a week-long challenge to see if following CEO Cook’s routine would help improve my productivity.”
Photo for article understanding purposes only, unrelated to the article content [Photo source=Pixabay]
Before this, Manias used to sleep between 11 p.m. and midnight and wake up around 7:30 a.m. She changed her schedule to set an alarm for 4:45 a.m. and go to bed by 10:30 p.m. Before sleeping, she did household chores in advance and prepared leggings to match her early morning wake-up and workout. She also refrained from using her phone and watching TikTok at night. Manias found it difficult to spend an hour checking emails. Unlike CEO Cook, she didn’t receive a mountain of emails from customers and employees. He values email checking so much that he compares it to a religious ritual.
On the other hand, Manias said, “Since my inbox was nowhere near as full as CEO Cook’s, I checked emails filled with advertisements and read a few Slack (collaboration tool) messages before falling back asleep.” Then she woke up again at 6:20 a.m., immediately put on workout clothes and contact lenses, and headed to the living room to exercise. Instead of a personal trainer like CEO Cook, the journalist watched Pilates videos. She said, “Even though it was only about 30 minutes, it helped me wake up and felt good to push myself by trying something new.” Watching the sun rise over New York City was also a special moment that gave her a sense of accomplishment. She showered and got dressed. Meanwhile, she said, “I thought I had a lot of time because I woke up so early, but I actually felt like I didn’t have enough time.” In the end, she was late to the office and skipped breakfast.
Photo for article understanding purposes only, unrelated to the article content [Photo source=Pixabay]
By the afternoon, she felt a bit tired but thought the first day was a success. Having already finished exercising and returned home to rest comfortably, she started the day productively. On Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, she continued the routine of waking early, checking emails, exercising, eating, and going to work. Sometimes she tried more strenuous workouts like strength training. She said Thursday was the most energetic and she felt the best. Friday was the worst day. Increasing the workout intensity caused fatigue to hit her in the morning. She felt as if all the adrenaline and internal motivation that had pushed her throughout the week had collapsed. She ended up in a slump over the weekend.
Apple CEO Tim Cook is taking a selfie with other attendees at the China Development Forum 2024 held in Beijing, China, on the 24th. Apple has been struggling recently as iPhone sales have sharply declined in the Chinese market. 2024.03.25 [Image source=Yonhap News]
Manias wrote, “I don’t plan to become the CEO of a multi-billion-dollar company anytime soon like 60-something CEO Cook. He was 50 years old when he took over as Apple CEO,” adding, “It would be a waste to compare myself to someone with much more life experience and resources. Instead, this challenge helped me understand that my life as a journalist doesn’t need to start at 5 a.m. to be ‘productive,’ but exercising and enjoying the morning is really beneficial.”
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