Tired at work?
By CareerBuilder blogger on Mar 5, 2008 in Fun stuff, Office Etiquette, Work
Aren’t we all? Getting up for work is hard enough for some people – but what about staying awake while you’re there?
About one-third of 1,000 people surveyed said they had fallen asleep or become very sleey at work in the past month, according to a survey by the National Sleep Foundation. The survey also found that participants averaged six hours and 40 minutes of sleep a night on weeknights, even though they estimated they’d need another 40 minutes of sleep to be at their best.
Workers know they aren’t performing up to par during the work day, but work is what’s keeping them up at night, according to the survey. Another finding is that workdays are getting longer and time spent working from home averages four-and-a-half hours each week.
The average wake-up is at 5:35 a.m. People spend about two hours and 15 minutes at home before heading to work; on average, people go to bed at 10:53 p.m., according to the survey.
No one wants to wake up, go to work, come home, go to sleep and wake up the next day to relive the same pattern, no matter how tired you are. That’s why people are trying to squeeze in more personal time for themselves and their families – at the cost of getting less sleep.
- Blame work. Say, “I’m so exhausted; I was here until midnight last night!” Do not attempt this if your boss works late and you do not.
- Blame medication. Claim that your new allergy medicine has been making you drowsy. Say, “Those antihistamines just knock me out!”
- Blame lunch. Say, “Wow, I guess I should not have eaten that turkey sandwich. Triptophan really makes me sleepy!”
