One of the smartest habits to start in 2014

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Naps

I stumbled on an article a few years ago about napping at work. Studies proved long ago that a short power nap can boost creativity and productivity. But I was not aware until a few years ago that some companies actually encourage and facilitate it. Work aside, naps enrich our lives physically, emotionally and spiritually.

This stirred up a few questions for me:

  • Why don’t more companies offer nap rooms / policies? Are they afraid employees would be less productive? Studies prove otherwise.
  • Why don’t I consider taking afternoon naps? If I were to be honest, it’s probably the result of guilt worrying what other people would think.
  • Why would a company consider creating a nap room and policy? Is the motivation for employees to work longer or more productivity? How important should creativity and the value of people play a role in this decision?
  • If a company were to offer nap rooms and encourage naps – what would that look like? Male / female nap rooms? Should there be a time limit?
  • What does a commitment to napping say about what we value most?

These questions have been rolling around in my mind for a few years. Yesterday I had a meeting near my home which ended around 2:00 pm. It was pointless to go all the way back to the office so I decided to work from home the rest of the afternoon. For whatever reason, I was completely zapped and normally I would just caffeine my way through the afternoon. Because I was home, I decided to take a power nap. I slept HARD for about 20 minutes, woke up and felt great! I had a productive couple of hours before a dinner appointment.

The truth is, I would have never taken that nap at work because A) there is not a culture or place to do so and B) I would have felt too guilty. In fact, I have had to push past that guilt to even post this story. The irony is, I work at a place that would not frown on such a practice but because of the lack of organizational clarity and my own insecurity I never do this.

I have amped up my efforts in 2014 to live a more wholesome and intentional life. I have already re-arranged my work schedule and I now plan to talk to our leadership about this issue. You may want to consider leaning into this idea more fully too.

To boost your thinking and courage, read this short blog post of someone who experimented with power napping at work.