Society wears sleep deprivation like a badge of honor. Meanwhile, science frames sleep deprivation as a badge of misplaced priorities.

In one landmark study, people who got six hours of sleep nightly for two weeks performed as poorly on attention tests as if they’d gone without sleep for two nights straight. The participants thought they were “tired but fine.” They weren’t.

That means many of us may be walking around cognitively impaired without realizing it.

So, how can we use rest to power our success?

Let me tell you about the 3-2-1 Sleep Formula.

SUPERHUMAN SCORING

In every edition of System Sunday, I assess the featured system across three superhuman dimensions: impact, setup, and maintenance.

Unlike your typical review, I focus on factors that influence personal growth. Get to know the evaluation system.

Impact (9.5/10)

Sleep is a top-of-funnel activity. It influences your energy, focus, mood, decision-making, and physical recovery.

Improve your sleep, and you improve the conditions for almost everything else you do.

That makes sleep one of the highest-leverage areas you can optimize.

Setup (7.0/10)

The 3-2-1 Sleep Formula, popularized by performance coach Dan Go, is simple:

• 3 hours before bed, no food.
• 2 hours before bed, no liquids.
• 1 hour before bed, no screens.

Here’s why this works:

No food: A full stomach can cause discomfort that makes it harder to fall asleep and stay asleep.

No liquids: Avoiding large amounts of fluid close to bedtime can reduce bathroom trips that interrupt your sleep.

No screens: Screens can keep your brain engaged when you want it winding down. Their blue light can also suppress melatonin, the hormone that signals it’s time to sleep.

Maintenance (7.0/10)

Now some tips for maintaining these 3 habits:

3 hours before bed, no food: Time block dinner earlier in your calendar or set a “last meal” reminder. Social plans will occasionally get in the way. Go for progress, not perfection.

2 hours before bed, no liquids: Front-load your hydration earlier in the day. If you’re thirsty at night, sip lightly rather than chugging a full glass.

1 hour before bed, no screens: Charge your phone outside the bedroom. Then replace the habit rather than just removing it: keep a book or journal on your nightstand instead.

BRINGING IT HOME

That’s a wrap for our system insight of the week! Now you can eat, breathe, AND sleep personal growth.

All systems go,

P.S. If you want to go deeper on better sleep, Year of Systems includes more practical upgrades—including a few changes I’ve made to my bedroom that have noticeably improved my sleep. You’ll get the full course free when you pre-order my book. Thanks so much to everyone who has supported it so far. 🙏