This is good advice:

It’s not just the time difference. Some of the most powerful CEOs across industries and geography, wake up to exercise and read before their day begins: PepsiCo’s Indra Nooyi, Virgin's Richard Branson, General Motors’ Dan Akerson, and Xerox's Ursula Burns. One top media executive notoriously shot off e-mails in the pre-dawn hours until he realized it was off-putting to his staff, and started waiting to hit ‘send’ until the sun was up.

Chances are, your boss wakes up before you do. If you want to reach him or her, strike before the rest of the day piles up. If you don’t want to be caught off-guard with a tough request, as little as 15 minutes can make a difference between being unprepared and poised.

The number one reason to get up early is so you can get the most important thing you're working on finished before the day really begins:

Play Offense, Not Defense

Get a head start on your "to-do list" to ensure you can accomplish your goals before you’re pulled in a million directions. I like to make calls early -- to reach people before they’re distracted, or so I’m the first person they call once they sit down. I love calling sources as they drive into work. I’m not taking up valuable time and invading their work day. Get whatyou want accomplished before you’re too busy to remember what you wanted to do.