Greatreporter.com has a lengthy piece on sleeping at the office, which is now an accepted practice at a few big U.S. companies, and even has a couple of entrepreneurs pushing nap spas and sleep pods.
The ostensible reason for this story is that last Monday was National Sleep at Work Day, a whimsical holiday proclaimed in the wake of losing an hour when the clock springs forward.
Americans aren’t supposed to nap during the day, at least after kindergarten. But when I was in Taiwan, it was common to see people crashed out at the office during lunch. Siestas there are an accepted part of business culture, and the Taiwanese are nothing if not energetic about work.
The trick is how long is too long?
Babycenter has a post recommending 10 to 20 minute naps for those most sleep-deprived of folks, new parents.
Library quest is less certain of the value of naps.
In To nap or not to nap, naps are seen as useful, though best in the 15 to 30-minute range.
At the worst, it’s a cheap perk companies can give employees. Unless they actually buy an EnergyPod for the office. That’ll set you back more than $12,000, according to this Fast Company article on Metronaps.
