Learn Hardcore German: Jedes Hindernis im Alltag lässt sich leichter bewältigen, wenn ich ausgeschlafen bin. - Every obstacle in everyday life can be overcome more easily when I have slept well.

In the sentence, Jedes Hindernis is the subject, so it is in the nominative singular. The correct nominative singular form of jed- for a neuter noun is jedes:

jeder – masculine nominative (e.g. jeder Tag)
jede – feminine nominative (e.g. jede Aufgabe)
jedes – neuter nominative (e.g. jedes Hindernis)

So Jedes Hindernis literally: every obstacle (as the subject).

What does im Alltag literally mean, and why do we use im instead of in dem or am?

Im is a contraction of in dem:

in
- dem (dative article for masculine/neuter singular) → im

Alltag is masculine (der Alltag), and here it is in the dative case because in is used with a location / state (not movement).

So:

im Alltag = in dem Alltag = in everyday life / in daily life

We do not use am here:

am = an dem, usually at the (time or place), e.g. am Montag, am Tisch
in dem → im is natural for the idea in (the context of) everyday life.

Which case is Alltag in, and why?

Alltag is in the dative singular:

Preposition: in
Meaning: a static situation (in everyday life, not into everyday life)
With static location/state, in normally takes the dative.

So:

in dem Alltag → im Alltag (dative)
If it were movement into something, we’d use the accusative (e.g. in den Park gehen).

What is going on with lässt sich ... bewältigen? Why this structure instead of a simple verb?

Lässt sich ... bewältigen is a common German structure that roughly corresponds to English can be dealt with / is easy to deal with.

Grammar:

lassen (here: lässt) = to let / to allow / to leave, but also used to form a kind of “middle voice” or alternative passive.
sich = reflexive pronoun (here like an “impersonal” reflexive).
bewältigen = to cope with / to overcome / to deal with (infinitive at the end).

Pattern:

etwas lässt sich (leicht) tun
≈ something can (easily) be done / is easy to do

So:

Jedes Hindernis ... lässt sich leichter bewältigen
≈ Every obstacle can be overcome more easily / is easier to deal with.

It sounds a bit more natural and idiomatic than using a formal passive every time.

Could we also say Jedes Hindernis im Alltag kann leichter bewältigt werden? How is that different?

Yes, that is grammatically correct:

Jedes Hindernis im Alltag kann leichter bewältigt werden
= Every obstacle in everyday life can be overcome more easily.

Difference in nuance:

lässt sich bewältigen
– sounds a bit more neutral and idiomatic in spoken and written German, often used for things that are manageable / handleable.
kann ... bewältigt werden
– standard passive with a modal verb, a bit more formal or “textbook-like”.

Both are fine; you’ll hear lässt sich very often in real-life German.

Why is bewältigen at the very end of the main clause?

In the main clause, lässt is the finite verb and must be in second position:

Jedes Hindernis im Alltag → first position (the “Vorfeld”)
lässt → second position (the conjugated verb)

The infinitive that belongs to lassen (bewältigen) goes to the end of the clause. German often uses this “sentence bracket”:

Left bracket: lässt
Right bracket: bewältigen

So the main-clause structure is:

[Jedes Hindernis im Alltag] [lässt] [sich leichter bewältigen]
with bewältigen at the end as the infinitive.

What exactly is ausgeschlafen here? A past participle or an adjective?

Formally, ausgeschlafen is the Partizip II (past participle) of ausschlafen.

But in the sentence wenn ich ausgeschlafen bin, it functions adjectivally, meaning:

ausgeschlafen sein = to be well-rested / to have slept enough

So here it behaves like an adjective:

ich bin müde – I am tired
ich bin wach – I am awake
ich bin ausgeschlafen – I am well-rested

It’s not a perfect tense form here; it describes a state, not an action.

Why is it wenn ich ausgeschlafen bin and not wenn ich ausgeschlafen habe?

There are two different uses:

ausschlafen (Verb, Perfekt)
- ich habe ausgeschlafen = I slept in / I finished sleeping properly (action, completed event)
ausgeschlafen sein (Adjectival state)
- ich bin ausgeschlafen = I am well-rested (state / condition)

In your sentence, the idea is:

Every obstacle is easier to deal with when I *am well-rested
→ a *state, so bin ausgeschlafen is correct.

If you said wenn ich ausgeschlafen habe, it would focus on the completed action of having slept enough, not directly on the resulting state of being rested. It’s possible in some contexts, but here bin ausgeschlafen is the natural choice.

Why is bin at the end of the wenn-clause?

Wenn introduces a subordinate clause in German. In subordinate clauses:

the finite verb goes to the very end of the clause.

So:

ich bin ausgeschlafen (main clause word order)
wenn ich ausgeschlafen bin (subordinate clause: bin moves to the end)

This verb-final word order is standard for clauses introduced by wenn, weil, dass, obwohl, etc.

Can we switch the order of the two clauses and say Wenn ich ausgeschlafen bin, lässt sich jedes Hindernis im Alltag leichter bewältigen?

Yes, that is perfectly correct and very natural:

Wenn ich ausgeschlafen bin, lässt sich jedes Hindernis im Alltag leichter bewältigen.

When a subordinate clause comes first, it is followed by a comma, and then the finite verb of the main clause still has to be in second position:

[Wenn ich ausgeschlafen bin], [lässt] [sich jedes Hindernis im Alltag leichter bewältigen].

You’re just changing the information order / emphasis, not the grammar.

What is leichter here, and why is it before bewältigen?

Leichter is the comparative form of leicht (light / easy), so it means “more easily / easier”.

Word order:

In German, adverbs and adjectives that describe how something is done (manner) often come before the infinitive:
- etwas leichter bewältigen
- etwas schnell machen
- etwas gut verstehen

So leichter comes before bewältigen:

lässt sich leichter bewältigen = can be dealt with more easily

You could also say einfacher (simpler / easier), but leichter is very common here.

Why does the sentence use ich and not man? Could we say wenn man ausgeschlafen ist instead?

Yes, you can say:

Jedes Hindernis im Alltag lässt sich leichter bewältigen, wenn man ausgeschlafen ist.

Differences:

ich – personal, subjective: for me personally
man – general, impersonal: for people in general / one / you

So:

With ich: You are speaking about your own experience.
With man: You are making a general statement about people.

Both are grammatically correct; choose based on whether you want a personal or general tone.