Whilst there is of course a focus in so many of our conversations and thinking at the moment about how we can work smart and be productive, there is the danger that we spend too much of that time considering the tasks, the work itself.

An essential is how we look after ourselves so we are able to focus on being productive. A critical part of this is rest – not just how much we get, but also the quality of our rest.

Some people suffer sleep problems regularly and have diagnosed sleep-related conditions. However, all of us will suffer disruptions to our sleep at some time, and this is often provoked or exacerbated by periods of stress, anxiety or disruptions to routine – those very things we are more likely to be experiencing now. Recent research by the Sleep Council indicates that 43% of us are finding it harder to fall asleep at the moment, and a shocking 77% of us say that lack of sleep is affecting our ability to function well. This is bound to impact on productivity, from decision making to accuracy, creativity to compassion.

There is some great advice around about improving the amount and quality of our sleep. The keys things to think about are about are:

Your behaviour before bed – could you cut down on caffeine, alcohol, screen time and so on before bed? Trying meditation or relaxation techniques.

Your environment in the bedroom – think about temperature, your mattress, light etc, as these factors might be preventing or disrupting your sleep

Your level of physical and mental health overall – if you have any underlying conditions or if you are experiencing stress, this can impact your sleep, so medical advice might be needed, or perhaps a conversation with your line manager to address some of the stress if it is work-related.

If you are after some practical tips then try The Sleep Council or the Mental Health Foundation for a wide range of advice and support. Our wellbeing support partner CiC also have a sleep advice factsheet.

To learn more about sleep then here is a really interesting TED talk about it:

Working well depends on you resting well. Sleep tight!

Juliet Flynn, Organisational and People Development