How Napping Can Increase Productivity and Creativity (Part I)

Peter was sitting at his desk staring at a laptop screen. The noise of the big city was coming through the half open window. He liked his small home office where he could work and relax. But this time he was concerned because John had given him a very challenging task: prepare a presentation on the advantages of napping in the work place. Napping was a frequent topic Peter and his colleagues liked to discuss. Peter looked at the pile of papers on the desk – articles about napping that he had copied and prepared for the presentation. He took one of them and read “experts recommend at least eight hours of sleep a night, 33 percent of adults are getting only 6.5 hours or less.” He read it again and thought: “Well, a lot of my colleagues commute and sleep even less than 6 hours. Some of them have health problems. What is even worse they have little time for sport activities. Hmm... commuters should have better working conditions. Who else should profit from napping?” He spent half an hour trying to find an answer but was stuck. Lacking the energy to create ideas, Peter went to the kitchen, found a bagel, ate it slowly, and called Ruth. He knew she was the right person who could help him. “Hi Ruth, please excuse me but I need your advice. As you know I am preparing a presentation on napping. Do you think it should be a topic for commuters only? Who else could profit?” Peter asked Ruth. “Peter, I am glad to help you. Absolutely, there are a lot of commuters in our company. I guess lot of working mothers could also need a short nap. Young people who work and study could profit too. What do you think?” Peter was happy – that was like an “aha” moment that he needed. “Brilliant, Ruth. I’ve forgotten mothers and young people. I can add working fathers too… One more question… Do women really like to nap? I’ve read a lot of scientific papers. Some of them confirm that women don’t like napping.” Ruth was puzzled: “Hmm.. This is a very good question. Well, I try to avoid taking short naps because I have to tidy my hair and refresh makeup. It’s time consuming. Maybe I am the exception. You should find pro and contra opinions and present them…” It took Ruth and Peter at least forty minutes to discuss napping. After the conversation Peter went back to his desk, looked at the pile of papers again, took one from the bottom, and read: “a napping day…” Ruth’s words still echoed in his head. He slumped down in the chair, closed his eyes, and wondered: “Will it be easy to convince the company management to implement a napping policy adding it to the corporate culture?