Strategic Napping
You may have caught this headline in the NY Times: “The Army Rolls Out a New Weapon: Strategic Napping.”
As an experienced napper—some would say a connoisseur of napping—I was intrigued.
The Times article highlights this recommendation from the new Field Manual 7-22 Holistic Health and Fitness:
“Soldiers can use short, infrequent naps to restore wakefulness and promote performance. When routinely available sleep time is difficult to predict, Soldiers might take the longest nap possible as frequently as time is available.”
Of course, the idea that sleep is important to one’s performance isn’t new. What’s interesting is just how frankly the field manual deals with that fact.
“Sleep is necessary to sustain not only alertness, but also higher order cognitive abilities such as judgment, decision making, and situational awareness. In short, sleep makes Soldiers better at being Soldiers.”
Even more pointed: “Effective leaders consider sleep an item of logistical resupply like water, food, fuel, and ammunition. Planning for sleep in training and tactical environments is a leader competency.”
That last point about the role of the leader in setting the conditions for sleep success is an interesting one. The Times article highlights the cultural challenge for the Army:
“‘The Army has always had an internal dynamic that real men don’t need sleep and can just push on, and it’s incredibly stupid,’ said Lt. Gen. David Barno, who was commander of combined forces in Afghanistan from 2003 to 2005. ‘Combat is a thinking man’s business and your brain doesn’t function without sleep.’”
The Way We’re Working Isn’t Working, which argues that humans optimize performance by shifting between periods of intense focus and renewal activities (e.g., sleep, exercise, meditation, play), also highlights the role of leaders in setting a culture that enables individuals to manage their energy effectively.
The book’s author, Tony Schwartz, writes, “Napping will take hold in organizations, we believe, only when it is viewed as part of a broader and more systematic effort to build cultures that recognize renewal as a crucial component of performance.”
On the other hand, despite organizations’ lofty goals for work-life balance, employees respond to direct signals. “Employees, knowing they’re rewarded for putting in the maximum number of hours, have no incentive to work more efficiently.”
In any case, I’m fully on board with more napping for greater effectiveness. The Field Manual confirms everything I’ve always wished were true.
Now, when my wife discovers me during my 10am nap and asks, “Don’t you need to be working and trying to build your business?” I’ll respond, “I am building it...the U.S. Army way.”
To support your efforts to implement strategic napping into your schedule, here’s an example from my calendar that might provide inspiration. :)
A QUOTE I’VE BEEN THINKING ABOUT
“I always keep in mind a lesson taught to all young infantry lieutenants: ‘Don’t run if you can walk; don’t stand up if you can sit down; don’t sit down if you can lie down; and don’t stay awake if you can go to sleep.’”
General Colin Powell, It Worked for Me
(I said that line in front of my 3-year-old daughter. A day later, when I was standing and eating dinner, she quoted it back to me.)