Sleep by Design: Build Lasting Sleep Habits That Work Without Willpower

John Ward is a sleep and habit design coach, writer, and the creator of the Sleep by Design method. For more than a decade he worked in high-pressure product roles, surviving on coffee and heroic late nights, until chronic exhaustion sent him searching for a better answer — and he found one not in another miracle product, but in the science of how habits and environments shape behavior. He spent the following years studying sleep science, circadian biology, and the behavioral research behind habit formation, then built a practice helping exhausted professionals, new parents, and recovering chronic scrollers redesign their evenings one small practice at a time.

His work has been featured in health and lifestyle publications, and his coaching clients include founders, clinicians, and shift workers who had long concluded that good sleep simply wasn't in the cards for them. He writes and speaks on why willpower fails, why environment wins, and how ordinary people can build sleep systems that run on their own.

Above all, John is a believer in the evidence-based truth that sleep is not a luxury or a reward for a hard-working week — it's the foundation everything else is built on. He lives with his family and one very early-rising dog, and he practices every principle in this book nightly, including the days it doesn't go perfectly. He is always glad to hear from readers who have reclaimed their nights, and he can be found online at his website and newsletter, where he shares a short, practical sleep habit each week.