We all know people who get up real early in the morning and immediately start checking email and taking care of the little stuff that got piled up the day before. (Hey, wait, we don’t just know them, we are them.)

According to psychology and behavioral economics professor Dan Ariely, doing such “low cognitive” activities first thing in the morning is a waste of one of your most important assets: the ability to think and be smart.

Ariely, participating in a recent Reddit “Ask Me Anything” (AMA) forum, said that the first two hours after waking up are the brain’s “most productive hours.”

Quote:

“One of the saddest mistakes in time management is the propensity of people to spend the two most productive hours of their day on things that don’t require high cognitive capacity (like social media). If we could salvage those precious hours, most of us would be much more successful in accomplishing what we truly want. Generally people are most productive in the morning. The two hours after becoming fully awake are likely to be the best.”

Are you productive in the morning? Share your thoughts in the comments below or on Twitter where we are @smallbusiness or use the hashtag #smallbusiness

(via Lifehacker)