Who doesn`t like a quick trip to dreamland? Especially in the middle of those busy workdays when you feel low on energy and motivation.
The good news is that science has your back!
An average of one-third of adults does not get enough sleep. The average adult should be getting between seven and nine hours of sleep, but most of us get less than six hours a night. Lack of sleep can be uncomfortable or even dangerous. Not sleeping for 24 hours slows your reaction time so much that it’s roughly equal to having a blood alcohol level of 0.10 — well over the legal limit. A daytime power nap might just save the day! But for most of us, that is the middle of our work schedule.
A growing body of research finds that a short daytime nap holds benefits for employees and employers. Naps offer improved working memory, better performance and reduced anxiety, improved creative problem-solving skills and enhanced logical reasoning.
A power nap lasts between 10 and 30 minutes and is all most people need to feel refreshed and focused. Longer than that and people are more likely to enter into deeper sleep stages and feel groggy when waking up. Ideally, if an employee is able to rest for 30 minutes, they will make up for that lost time with increased productivity for the rest of the day. Clearly communicate a 30-minute maximum. This can be as simple as allowing employees extra time at lunch if they plan on napping.
There already are multiple companies which have adopted this practice. Among them are companies like Google, Uber and the Huffington Post. Larger companies have invested in dedicated napping areas, couches and even nap pods. Smaller employers probably can’t afford those extras but may be able to repurpose a conference room or unused office space. If you have absolutely no unused space, you can simply support employees’ decisions to rest at their desks or in their cars.
Research has also shown that taking a power nap in the afternoon is more effective than drinking a cup of coffee. The effect of taking a nap lasts much longer than caffeine and has the added benefit of having no crash at the end. Whether or not you’re getting enough sleep, a nap in the afternoon can be much more effective than loading up on caffeine to get you through the rest of your workday.
So, if you are struggling with your sleep schedule and feel constantly tired at work, you might as well talk to your employer and give power napping a chance! If you get an hour for lunch, try finding a comfortable place to take a 20-minute nap – a chair in a quiet office is usually enough. Make sure you set an alarm for 20 minutes though so you don’t oversleep and end up getting in trouble. Pop in your headphones, find a quiet music station and rest. You may find that it doesn’t help at all, but you could also discover that it greatly improves your work productivity.
