Sleep is a sign of success and a prerequisite for performance and excellence, writes Chris Surel.
(Photo: Unsplash / Damir Spanic)
Christmas time is also bedtime. Many people look forward to the holidays because they can finally switch off – and sleep in. In the business world in particular, sleeping is often considered a waste of time. Many managers boast of how little relaxation they need.
Two new guides dispel this myth. “Fortunately, the realization that sleep is a very important factor in motivation,” writes Martin Schlott in his book “Success Factor Sleep”.
And Chris Surel even speaks of sleep as a new status symbol in his work “The Deep Sleep Formula”. “Sleep is a sign of success and a prerequisite for performance and excellence.” The authors advise executives, competitive athletes and top politicians on all things to do with sleep.
20 to 30 percent of Germans are affected by sleep disorders, and six percent even suffer from chronic sleep disorders, according to figures from the German Society for Sleep Research and Sleep Medicine. According to the US think tank Rand Corporation, a lack of sleep causes the local economy to suffer an annual loss of around 40 billion euros – from accidents, sick leave or reduced productivity.
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The authors agree: Employees and managers are more successful when they sleep properly. A lack of sleep leads to the fact that the brain is not as energetic and one is more easily distracted, more unbalanced and in a bad mood.
Chris Surel: The deep sleep formula.
Herder publishing house
Freiburg 2021
304 pages
24 euros
Adults who sleep an average of less than five hours a night are more than twice as likely to have a stroke or heart attack than people who sleep seven to eight hours. Studies have shown that people who sleep well are more beautiful, smarter, more creative and can notice things better.
But what is the secret of good sleep? Anyone who wants to find a quick answer in the books will be disappointed. Schlott needs 240 pages and Surel even more than 300 to write down the tips. The tables of contents also hardly offer an overview because the chapter headings are kept very essayistic. The advice that is hidden between the prose is very well-founded and easy to implement. Read the most important findings here.
Sleep duration: two hours of deep sleep are sufficient
In order to find out how much sleep you need, the author Schlott recommends measuring the time from falling asleep to waking up while on vacation without setting the alarm. In this way you can better assess when you should go to bed in everyday life in order to be able to get up well rested.
The bedtime can be divided into intervals of 90 minutes. These are divided into the falling asleep, deep sleep and dream sleep phases. One should sleep in multiples of 90 minutes. Six hours of sleep is better than six and a half, because otherwise there is a high risk that the alarm clock will ring during the deep sleep phase.
Deep sleep is particularly important for performance. In each of the 90-minute intervals, people can sleep deeply for 30 to 40 minutes, especially at the beginning of the night. With four cycles, i.e. six hours of sleep, you can “get the right amount of deep sleep,” writes sleep coach Surel, who used to be a consultant and himself had sleep problems. He assumes that two hours of deep sleep is enough. But many of his clients fail to find their way into deep sleep. Whether that will work or not is decided before you go to sleep.
Better to go to bed: Don’t sleep late on the weekend
15 to 20 minutes is completely normal to fall asleep. Anyone who needs less than five minutes should be alarmed because that speaks for permanent fatigue. And if you need more than 30 minutes, you should by no means take sleeping pills, but rather heed this advice: We sleep best when it is calm, dark and not warmer than 20 degrees, 16 to 18 degrees are better. Surel recommends using earplugs even in quiet residential areas.
For evolutionary reasons, the body suspects even the smallest noise – and that endangers deep sleep. Schlott recommends wearing a sleep mask because light inhibits the production of sleep hormones. This is especially true for the bluish light from smartphones. Those who check emails shortly before going to sleep tend to sleep worse. The night modes of the cell phones can avoid this, but it is by no means beneficial for relaxation to think about work shortly before going to sleep.
Martin Schlott: Sleep as a success factor.
Ariston Publishing House
Munich 2021
224 pages
20 Euros
What improves the quality of sleep: Don’t eat anything three hours before going to sleep – and if you do, it’s better to use proteins or pulses than carbohydrates. Exercise should also be avoided for a long time to calm the circulation.
Anyone who drinks an espresso after dinner should know that it takes the body five to six hours to break down half of the caffeine. This prevents us from sleeping deeply. And: don’t drink alcohol. Although this helps to fall asleep, it affects the deep sleep phase.
Fears and worries keep many people from sleeping. The authors advise to think about beautiful things in the evening by noting three things for which one is grateful on that day. Breathing exercises can also help: Surel recommends the 4-8-4 rule: breathe in through your nose for four seconds, breathe out through your mouth for eight seconds – four times. The heartbeat slows down and stress is reduced.
The most important thing: to get used to regular bedtime and wake-up times in order to program the internal clock. Surel even advises not to sleep any longer on weekends. “We believe that sleeping in is a reward. But it’s a punishment. ”The sleep rhythm is so disrupted that we move into a different time zone and the effect of jet lag arises.
Wake up better: turn off the snooze function
Hit the alarm clock, turn around and be woken up again after a few minutes? Both authors advise against the snooze function. If you fall asleep again, you often fall back into the deep sleep phase, from which you are then woken up again. The result: “You are totally exhausted after getting up,” writes sleep coach Schlott, who is also chief physician for anesthesia and intensive care medicine. Anyway, people who have slept well don’t need an alarm clock. “If your alarm clock has to wake you up, that is a sign that the sleep phases are not over yet.”
If one is needed, Schlott recommends a daylight alarm clock because light helps you wake up. It is useful to open the curtains and switch on the ceiling lights right away. Further advice from the authors: take a cold shower or at least alternate between warm and cold, drinking up to half a liter of water or tea, stretching and stretching, thinking of something positive – and not checking the work emails straight away. To activate the circulatory system, Surel advises the 3-1-40 rule in the morning: Breathe in quickly through your nose in one go and count to three, then breathe out vigorously through your mouth with one push – and do this up to 40 times .
Better to stay awake: espresso before nap
In times of the corona-related home office, many employees also use their bedroom as a work space. A mistake, says Schlott. You have to program your brain so that it knows: “When you enter the bedroom, it’s all about relaxation and regeneration.” That is why you shouldn’t use the bed to read, eat or watch TV.
While the siesta is normal in southern parts of Europe, it is frowned upon in this country to take an afternoon nap in the office. But a power nap can increase productivity and alertness in the afternoon.
The afternoon nap should take place before 3 p.m. in order to be tired again in the evening and should not last longer than 25 minutes, otherwise there is a risk of being woken up during the deep sleep phase. Schlott advises drinking an espresso beforehand because the caffeine needs this period of time to take effect – “an extra kick of energy right after getting up”.
Both experts recommend getting enough exercise during the day because this creates messenger substances that make you tired in the evening. Regular “micro-breaks” are also good to counteract the constant stress of two to five minutes, as Surel advises. This helps to clear your head in the evening.
Both authors give similar tips in their books. Schlott quotes many facts and studies and refers to the original sources in the appendix. He lets managers or professional athletes have their say in extra texts. Schlott sometimes writes colloquially, Surel sells the topic in a more exciting way. The latter, with many graphics, gives deeper insights into the functioning of messenger substances and their effects on our sleep. He reports on his own sleep experiences and those of his clients, there is additional material online to make the advice easier to implement.
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