“Your hand opens and closes, opens and closes. If it were always a fist or always stretched open, you would be paralyzed.”— Jelaluddin Rumi
We found this bee sound asleep on the flower. When she awoke, she continued her wonderful work.
I read a study performed by a team at the University of Rochester Medical Center. It confirmed what most of us understand intuitively. The researchers found that sleep is analogous to rebooting a computer which has been running too many processes for too long.
These researchers discovered that sleep cleanses the brain of toxins. This detox process aids in fixing the brain’s memory and improves the quality of a person’s ability to learn.
It also greatly decreases the likelihood of mistakes in creative work. I have found in my own work in writing software that working too many hours results in more mistakes – mistakes that made the project take longer. If I had taken the time to sleep more, the project would have finished sooner.
Getting sleep, taking vacations, and conscientiously keeping your energy high is vital to exceptional leadership and exceptional work.
Would you rather follow someone who is trudging lethargically through work or someone leading a great cause with playfulness and joy?
Yours in the calm pursuit of excellence,
Alan Willett
