Ways to Incorporate Napping at Workplace and its Benefits
Once considered a taboo, Napping on the job is now promoted due to its several benefits. Today, more and more companies are encouraging employees for a mid-shift snooze. And it’s a wise practice. According to a survey, 29% of workers reported falling asleep or becoming dizzy at work, and a lack of sleep results in lost productivity. On the other hand, a short nap of twenty-minute can really boost alertness as well as improve performance at work. Several companies with a strong commitment to employee wellness recognize the benefits of napping at work. It is an amazing way to reset your mind and body necessary in boosting your alertness and work performance.
Benefits of napping at work
Improves Alertness
As the day passes by, you may find it difficult to concentrate on the task at hand as your brain becomes tired and your alertness admits a major blow. The finest way to restore alertness is to take a break and have a nap. Napping at work gets your brain refreshed just like you’ve woken up in the morning. According to a survey, a short nap of 20 to 30 minutes at work improves alertness and performance at work.
Improves Productivity
According to various studies, employees who take naps during the course of their regular chores are have turned out to be more productive as compared to their counterparts who don’t. According to the study conducted in the year 2002 at Harvard University, it was found that a 20-30-minute nap boosts employees performance at work, scaling back their productivity levels to the start-of-the-day levels.
Helps Fight Exhaustion
As you perform your routine tasks at the office or home, your aim is to complete them in time and then move to the next task. Our bodies are naturally created to take breaks and rest between our chores. If you keep on racing all the time you might end messing up things around you. This can result in exhaustion, stress, or frustration. You can reboot your system at the office by taking a small nap of 20-30 minutes to feel energized and refreshed. This will help you to relieve stress which was already piling up and you can tackle the pending tasks more efficiently.
Lowers Risk of Heart Disease
Various studies have shown that people who take regular naps, at midday for at least three times a week, are 37% less likely to suffer from heart disease as compared to those who don’t.
Tips to sneak in nap time at work
Drowsiness in the daytime can affect accuracy, concentration, mood, creativity, and productivity. Employees who are sleep-deprived are at greater risk of a variety of health issues, like, depression, hypertension, and diabetes. When we talk about boosting employee productivity, taking a quick power nap at work might not be such a bad idea after all: A brief power nap may contribute to a greater level of alertness for several hours.
Keep It Short But Significant
A short snooze of approximately 20 minutes is probably the easiest to take at the office since it fits into the lunch break schedule. And since it is a power nap you tend not to fall into a deeper stage of sleep, ultimately preventing you from feeling groggy. According to various reports “power nap at work” can even increase your job performance by 34%. But before you go for a quick nap be sure to set your alarm, so you wake up on time.
Get the Right Location
Find a space that is relatively private and quiet as it will help you feel relaxed. If you’re in the office your office—you can shut the door of your cabin and hang a sign that reads “will be back in a short while.” Or you could also grab a quick nap on an outdoor bench or in your car. These days some companies are even offering napping areas for employees in the office.
Try a Prop
Carry with yourself something that you associate with your sleep, this will help you doze off faster. If you feel like you can even listen to a soothing soundtrack with your headphones on, or even try dabbing the aromatic lavender oil on your pulse points. If you wish you can sleep in your cubical or just get out and try to get a nap in your car. A neck pillow, a fuzzy blanket, and an eye mask can also help you lull you into dreamland faster.
Never Nap after 4 PM
A power nap is a really good thing when you do it correctly. Obviously, taking a nap after 4 PM isn’t good for your overall health. Taking a nap late in the afternoon will make you lose your comfort sleep at night, or worst could make you are very low instead of keeping you energized in the afternoon.
Avoid Napping if Insomniac
If you’re an insomniac you already face difficulty in falling asleep and maintaining your sleep. In such situations, if you opt for a power nap, awakening too early may cause restless sleep experience and might turn out bad instead of good. So, if you’ve difficulty in falling asleep, don’t opt for a power nap instead take a short break and listen to some soothing music or go out for a refreshing walk.
Don’t forget to set an alarm
A power nap ideally should not be of more than 30 minutes. So whenever you’re ready to take a nap, don’t forget to set your alarm to avoid oversleeping. As sleeping for a longer duration of time can make you groggy and you’d end up feeling worse.
Ways to allow your employees to take a power nap at work
Allow Break Time
Give employees 20-30 minutes of break time for a power nap. This will help them stay active and in turn, will boost productivity at work.
Provide a quite Space
Employers can offer a quiet space to employees for a quick power nap. It can be in any section of the office where there is less noise. Also, some soothing music can be played to cut noise and help employees doze off.
Turn off technology
Employers should allow employees to turn off their e-mails, phone, and messages during their power nap. Any kind of disturbance will not help employees sleep well and reap the benefits of the nap.
Allow napping at the desk
If there isn’t a napping space where employees can take a nap, then in such situations employees should be allowed to nap at their desk. While their power nap, they can put a card saying “will be back in 20 minutes”, so no one disturbs them.
Allow employees to choose their nap time according to their comfort
Everyone feels a little dizzy at a different time. For some people napping just after the lunch does the job, while for others nap time starts late in the afternoon. Therefore, it is good if employees are given leverage to choose their nap time, so they can doze off when they’re actually feeling a bit dizzy.
Provide education on how to nap in the right manner
Employees should be given proper education about the benefits of napping at work and what they should do for a sound nap. They must be educated that feeling tired while working is natural and it is okay to take a nap to feel rejuvenated and better. This will not only improve their mood but will also increase their productivity at work.
So, if you want to boost the productivity of your employees at work and know more about how to implement the power nap sessions at the workplace to get the desired outcome, don’t’ hesitate to reach our wellness experts.