Nap your way to success

Much has been written in the papers recently about people napping on the job or at their desk. How dare they do this? They are being paid to do so many hours of work a day, and napping isn't Work.

People are working ever more long hours. Their contract may not stipulate the 'long hours' they actually work, but the expectation is there nevertheless. The perception is that if you are not at your desk, you cannot be working. The reality. however, is that you are probably putting in the hours at home, when your children are asleep in bed. If your work involves shift patterns, this can cause havoc for some individuals who have a more pronounced circadian rhythm, and affect their sleep. Everyone is aware that sleep deprivation is damaging to our health and ability to think cognitively.

Such social and work pressures must take some responsibility for the current concerns raised about the number of people who have mental health issues. In this busy world of information constantly at our fingertips, all this information bombarding our minds is also clouding our ability to see things clearly and objectively. The inclination is to respond immediately to a message, email or post without necessarily reflecting on what we want to communicate. "Fake News" is now common parlance and attributed to many sources of information. This can have negative consequences on relationships and decisions made either in your personal or professional life.

Being able to take time to reflect on what is being said, will often result in a better response; especially if you are in a stressed or frazzled state of mind when receiving the information in the first place.

Someone who is dealing with issues which are affecting them emotionally, will not be able to respond effectively, if they do not take the time to pause and reflect on the information received and the consequences of their 'emotionally charged' response.

Sarah Mckay gives a very interesting Ted talk on the power of 'napping'. This is a 14 minute talk and the link is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xiXZVDKRe00

Winston Churchill wrote in his memoirs: "Nature did not intend mankind to work from 8 in the morning until midnight, without the refreshment that comes from blessed oblivion, which even if for 20 minutes is sufficient to renew all the vital forces."

Power napping for certain people, has been shown to provide them with a greater ability to deal with the daily challenges they face. Surely then, it can only be valuable to allow your circadian rhythm the 10 or 20 minute power nap it craves. If this will recharge your batteries and help you perform at your optimum best, that can only be good for your mental health. It will also improve your work performance and your ability to serve your clients, customers and stakeholders.