MediaPace : Setting the pace for business-to-business dialogue

Better Staff? Better Productivity? Better Business? Try Nap Time

One second you’re following your CEO’s PowerPoint presentation on productivity and the next you’re riding over the moon on a purple pony. No, the presentation hasn’t entered a fantasy land, but the sudden heaviness of your eyes has gotten the best of you and you’ve dozed off.

Perhaps you do a better job than me fighting fatigue and don’t slip as far into dreamland. But I know you’re well aware of that lethargic feeling. Typically, offices near and far reach their drowsiness peak around 2-3 pm. It’s about this time during the work day when productivity is at its slowest.; lunch is over and the end of the work day is approaching.

But before you blame your lack of focus on the heavy lunch you just ate, consider that feeling hopelessly sleepy is natural and even to be expected. Though people aren’t actually sleeping during this “after-lunch” down time, their bodies are saying they need to. The body and mind have been up and active since dawn, and The New York Times says “there is a strong biological readiness to fall asleep during the mid-afternoon, even in people who have had a full night’s sleep … The human body was meant to have a mid-afternoon nap.”

If it’s only natural to require a nap, why don’t our schedules permit time to take them? In this hyper-productive and fast-paced industrial society, taking a “break” is a waste of time, as there are always endless amounts of work on our desks. Because we are in a constant state of multi-tasking, slowing down, even if for a few minutes, scares professionals and (especially) their employers.

But just like our computers and machinery must be maintained, so must our bodies. Not only does lack of sleep affect us physically, but mentally and emotionally as well. Taking time for a cat-nap will not only re-energize you, but also puts you in a better mood and clearer state of mind.

AssociatedContent.com reports that employers are now looking at the costs associated with nap-deprived staffs. “The costs to businesses from workers being groggy on the job include increased absenteeism, high turnovers, higher group insurance premiums, and decreased productivity from employees in need of a nap,” they report. Considering the costs and benefits of naps, several companies have instituted “napping” places and times. Some go as far as allowing employees to have beds in their offices.

Though research and nature has assured us of the costs and benefits of naps, the labor force legislation is long from institutionalizing nap time. But when negotiating your next salary and benefits package, it wouldn’t hurt to ask for nap time. A real go-getter may even ask for an office futon and pillow. And if by chance they say no, just ask them to sleep on it.

Posted by Samantha Sims

Death by Blogging?

It may not be an official medical diagnosis yet, but it surely is a sign of the times: We are an overworked, over-consumed society that never stops. We are burning the proverbial candle at both ends in a never-ending need to always be “plugged in” and in-the-know, 24/7.

This recent New York Times article has (oh-so-ironically) sparked tremendous buzz among bloggers and journalists alike. When did it become OK for professional bloggers to die from a heart attack, presumably caused by the ongoing stress of producing content for the always-open Internet? As NYT reports, in addition to two heart attack-related deaths of high-profile tech bloggers in the past few weeks, one survived a heart attack and many complained of weight gain, sleeping disorders and other stress-related symptoms.

But before you retire your keyboard, keep in mind that two deaths is by no means an epidemic (there are riskier things you could do for a living). Yet they do raise an important issue: How much media consumption is TOO much? These devoted online journalists are sacrificing their health and chomping at the bit to be the first to break a story, and it remains to be seen if it’s truly worth the risk – financially, physically and emotionally. With an individual blogger’s stake in the online economy dependent on clicks and comments, the pressure to keep up is intense and exhausting. Until the Internet becomes a 9 to 5 job (in my dreams, of course), these bloggers have to love what they do and keep the coffee and Red Bull flowing. Oh, and turn that $@#$ Blackberry/iPhone/whatever off for once!

And on that note, I’m going to take a nap.

Posted by Jenna Lisanti

Is America Under a (Mis)Spell?

Before I get started, a disclaimer: As a recent college English major and current editor, I admit I can sometimes become a bit of a “Grammar Nazi.”

But my recent spotting of misspelled words and grammatical errors seemingly everywhere – in newspaper and magazine articles, not to mention online in blogs, e-mails and social networks – has really started to bother me. Often people say that “texting” language is the way of the future, but Marc Brownstein’s recent Ad Age blog posed the ultimate question: When Did It Bekome Acxeptable to Spell Incuhrrectly? And why has the media industry become lax enough to allow these errors to go unnoticed?

Brownstein says, “Part of the problem is that we are all writing quickly. Time is precious, and we are all under greater pressure to deliver more content in less time. Another cause is that little, wireless device we carry around on our hips. It allows us to write fast, but often not thoroughly. What's better: fast or accurate?”

Not only do such errors tarnish your personal brand (think cover letters and resumes), but they can also damage your company’s reputation. And according to TextTrust, studies indicate that search engines rank sites better when they’re error-free. There are now online tools available that scan your site’s content for spelling and grammatical accuracy, so there’s no longer an excuse for letting simple mistakes put your brand at risk!

The good news is that there will always be plenty of job opportunities for editors and proofreaders. But it seems this rising trend needs to be nipped in the bud. So what will it take to prevent the “dumbing down of America?” Personally, I think we all need to re-take English 101. And re-reading your work is more important than ever because of the growing reliance on spell-checking software, (though it will never approach the complexity of the human mind).

Until then, check out the most common spelling errors and make sure your work is proofread before publishing!

Posted by Kate Patton