Five Things I Learned from Arianna Huffington at VeeCon
What a treat to hear Arianna Huffington speak at VeeCon. She wasn’t on my radar before this event. I knew she started the HuffPost, but I didn’t realize she also started Thrive Global (not to be confused with Thrive Market).
At the VeeCon event, Arianna talked about five scientifically proven things to improve our health and focus, which are necessary to succeed in business and thrive in life.
#1) Sleep
Arianna said medical experts recommend 7–9 hours of sleep per night. My 21-year-old grandson, who has a handyman/construction business, attended VeeCon with me. He said good luck getting that much sleep when building your business. He related more to Kevin Plank, founder of Under Armor and another speaker at VeeCon. Kevin said he often worked around the clock when he first started his business.
Arianna said Elon Musk, notorious for working long hours, admitted to being more productive when he gets more sleep. She said the clichés surrounding sleep are harmful, such as “I’ll sleep when I’m dead.” I used to say that all the time, but I have noticed the older I get, the more sleep I need to focus and have the energy to pursue my dreams. Arianna said she asked Jon Bon Jovi to change the lyrics to his song from I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead to I’ll Sleep When I’m Tired.
#2) Food
Arianna said she doesn’t debate popular diets such as paleo, keto, or vegan. Instead, she recommends doing two simple things everyone can agree on — eliminating excess sugar and processed foods.
As someone with Type 2 diabetes, I can relate to this one. Sugar seems to be in everything, especially processed foods. So, we can kill two birds with one stone by eliminating them both! I know it’s easier said than done. But, if we want to reverse disease and feel our best, we must do it. How? Good question.
