Ahh, our good ol’ friend – the circadian rhythm. It’s taken quite a beating lately, what with the end of daylight savings and the onset of shorter autumn days. For the uninitiated, “circadian rhythm” refers to the internal clocks that keep our bodies and minds in line with a typical 24-hour cycle. The winding back of the clocks earlier in April might have meant an extra hour of sleep (hurrah!), but it also may have thrown your sleep schedule out of whack. Add in a dash – or a whole crapload – of darkness as the nights grow longer, and you’d be forgiven for feeling a li’l bit sleepy… all of the time.

Fret not – we’ve got some tricks up our sleeves to help you make the most of shorter spells of daylight and maintain your productivity at the maximum.

HERE COMES THE SUN One of the biggest ways that the shortage of daylight can mess with our productivity is that we’re not receiving enough vitamin D. While the sun likes to play a bit of hide and seek during the cooler months, believe it or not, it hasn’t disappeared completely. Heading outside in the middle of the day – even when it’s cloudy – can give you a good dose of that precious sun-drug. To really capitalise on days when the UV Index is below 3, roll up your coat sleeves or hitch up your trousers – exposing your skin directly to the light is the quickest way to absorb it (however, remember to always be sun smart). Being physically active outside also helps boost vitamin D levels, even if it’s as simple as going for a wee walk on your lunch break. When your vitamin D levels drop, so too can your mood. Bad mood? Bad productivity.

SPRUCE UP YOUR WORK SPACE You know how you rethink the garms that you don on colder and darker days? Your desk is begging for the same aesthetic attention, too. Not only is zhuzhing up your work station fun to do, but adding a sense of brand-spanking-new charm to your desk can also help draw you to the novelty of it, tricking you into spending time there when you’d rather not. Forget forking out for a new laptop – it could be as simple as some fresh stationery, or a pretty notebook to jot down your ponderings. It doesn’t really feel like work if you’re using a Miffy-themed pencil to do it, does it?

TINY GOALS GET BIG RESULTS Grab your to-do list, scrunch it up into a paper basketball and shoot for the bin. (Paper aeroplanes are also acceptable.) Now, let’s start again. The key to getting big things done when the weather is making you feel sluggish is tricking your brain into doing little things. Whether that’s breaking down a larger project into each and every tiny step, or even just listing mundane necessities like “brush teeth” and “take the rubbish out” on a wee sticky note, every time you cross something off the list, your brain gets a juicy hit of dopamine – aka, the feel-good hormone. Once you get a taste of that bad boy, you (ideally) won’t be able to stop. Before you know it – little by little – things are getting done.

IT'S HOBBY-O’CLOCK As tempting as it may be to roll away from your desk at the end of a workday – night-time somehow already upon you at 5pm – and roll straight into bed, scrolling your telephonic device under the covers until it’s time for sleep, those precious hours between work and bedtime may just be the perfect pocket to unlock a new hobby. Finding things that keep you creatively motivated or actively entertained outside of work can help fill you up with a sense of personal gratification. A hobby doesn’t need to require skills or goals, either. Invest in a swanky colouring-in book or get crafty with some old issues of frankie and a pair of scissors. If you’re feeling fulfilled by the fun life that you’re living around work hours, it makes it easier to be productive without the burden of your work meaning everything. Plus, it helps you avoid that pesky black hole of burnout.

WEAPONISE THE DARKNESS Good productivity and a good night’s sleep are like a match made in heaven – that is, if heaven is the delightful duvet wrapped around you as you catch some z’s. Shorter daylight hours can often mean fewer social plans or events to keep you up late at night. And what that can mean is a healthier sleep routine. Embrace the early fall of night with an earlier bedtime – or, at least, more rest time in the evenings. A steaming cuppa and a ripper book after supper sounds pretty darn lovely, if you ask us.

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