Pay Your Employees to Sleep on the Job

Be honest: You know you’ve thought about taking a nap at work. Or better yet, you’ve actually done it. While napping on the job isn’t something you’d want your boss to catch you doing, is a 15-minute power nap really that bad?

According to a recent report, drowsiness on the job actually costs U.S. businesses $18 billion a year in lost productivity. While Americans are reportedly getting more than the necessary eight hours of sleep every night, they’re still working an average of 122 more hours than their British counterparts. Clearly, sleep deprivation is a very real problem for many dedicated professionals.

Now let’s factor in the acceptance of “nap culture” in other countries around the world. Snoozing at work may be frowned upon in your U.S.-based office, but in Japan, napping at work isn’t just acceptable, it’s actually a sign of dedication. And in Spain, afternoon naps are so common that local businesses shut down daily for the occasion.

Whether you’re a CEO, manager, or even a mid-level employee, taking a power nap after lunch may have more benefits than you originally thought. Even Arianna Huffington knows how much a midday nap can impact job performance -- The Huffington Post now offers two office nap rooms for employee use.

Here are six reasons to make napping at work -- yes, taking a paid nap -- part of your daily routine:

1. It may be your secret weapon for a boost in productivity. Many workplace cultures are harboring an always-on, overwork mentality. When you’re not at work, you’re working from home, thinking about work, or checking your email. But what happens when your passion for your job begins outweighing sleep? Your productivity takes a nosedive.

In a poll by the National Sleep Foundation, 43 percent of Americans claimed they don’t get enough sleep. Fortunately, a short nap can be highly efficient to temporarily compensate for a lack of sleep. In a recent napping study, a 20 to 30 minute nap consistently improved performance on cognitive tests in the hours after snoozing.

2. It’s a quick fix for upping your information intake. Whether you’re attempting to prepare for a presentation or just doing a bit of research, fatigue can get in the way of not only your memory, but your understanding. Sleep helps transport new information from your brain’s hippocampus to a permanent storage area known as the neocortex. Without enough sleep, you’re left feeling forgetful and out of it.

To test the impact of sleep on information intake, researchers from the University of Lubeck in Germany asked volunteers to study an assortment of pictures, poems, and algebra equations. Participants who took a 40 minute nap after going through the material performed up to 85 percent better on a memory test than their sleepless counterparts.

3. You’ll spark more creativity. If you’re looking to give the right side of your brain a jolt, then napping may be just what you need.

A recent study by a professor at Georgetown University’s Center for Functional and Molecular Imaging looked at 15 at-rest individuals. It showed the activity on the right side of the brain -- the hemisphere most associated with creativity -- chattered busily to itself and to the left hemisphere, which remained relatively quiet. Getting some rest may be more crucial than pushing through the times when you’re creatively challenged.

4. You’ll feel more engaged and happy. No matter where you work or what you do, everyone could use a little mood boost. While you may experience some grogginess and impaired alertness immediately after a 30-minute nap -- this is called sleep inertia -- it will be followed with mental improvements for up to 155 minutes.

Finding a quiet place to rest during half of your lunch break may ensure you’re a happier and more engaged team member, especially when it comes to undertaking a challenging task later in the afternoon.

5. It’s downright healthy. Most days, improving your focus and productivity means relying on caffeine and sugar. We all know this isn’t exactly healthy, but sometimes it’s all we can do to stay alert.

But naps may be just what the doctor ordered. According to a study by Harvard School of Public Health, a 20-minute power nap three times a week can reduce the rate of heart disease in healthy individuals by 37 percent.

6. You may boost company revenue. So napping aides productivity, creativity, engagement, and health -- all essential factors in driving revenue at a company. As stated above, sleep deprivation is taking a huge chunk out of many U.S. businesses. By establishing a napping policy or nap room, you and the company you work for (or own) may be able to drive revenue -- and you don’t need to have a Google-sized budget to do it. All you need is a designated quiet space with comfortable seating.

Napping isn’t something to be ashamed of, and it’s not just for kids. Napping has plenty of benefits for the adult workforce. What if all U.S. employers felt the same way?

What do you think? Should paid napping be an element of the workplace?

Image courtesy of Jasra; Flickr

About Ilya Pozin:

Founder of Ciplex and Open Me. Columnist for Inc, Forbes & LinkedIn. Gadget lover, investor, mentor, husband, father, and '30 Under 30' entrepreneur. Follow Ilya below to stay up-to-date with his articles and updates!