An overnight snowfall capped autumn’s golden leaves this morning in Colorado, where our company was born. Even as the snow sparkled in the sunshine, dripping and sliding in slushy clumps to the ground, it reminded us that winter is coming.
Forgive the Game of Thrones reference. The point is that time is limited, and the holidays are nearly upon us. This the time of year when we hunker down for the cold and extended family time, as we do so, take stock of life.
This year, we at Urban Mattress have noticed a distinct trend that we like. It’s a shift in the conversation about rest, relaxation and work-life balance/integration/tension (whatever you call it). It’s a sign of our society’s grappling with priorities around achievement, relationships and quality of life.
Confession: We as small business owners and employers don’t always navigate this perfectly, either. But we try our darnedest to empower high-quality, balanced lives for our customers, our employees and ourselves.
We like other always-busy Americans are processing our cultural norms in light of our experiences and things like work-life balance. Those of us with the luxury of doing so are considering intentionally what we want our lives to look like. And we’re finally giving real credence to the notion that life isn’t all about performance, or at least that the best performance may come out of rest, rather than striving.
For example, NFL teams. Money-making machine and darling expression of American culture, the NFL is not just embracing, but encouraging rest. A recent Monday Morning Quarterback articlelaid out many ways in which NFL teams are encouraging better sleep among their players “in their never-ending quest to find a winning edge.”
Of course, that statement alone carries its own American stamp on why-we-care-about-sleep. We’d take it a step further and argue that quality of life, as well as performance, benefits from good sleep and R&R. But its undebatable that performance benefits. As the article put it, a good night’s sleep is “the most accessible and natural performance-enhancer.”
It isn’t just in sports where we’re seeing a subtle increase in public respect for rest, time off and work-life balance. The New York Times called it “remarkable” that prominent men such as Joe Biden and Paul Ryan recently took a stand publicly to prioritize their family time.
Ryan agreed to be Speaker of the House with the firm caveat that the position would not infringe upon his time with his family in Wisconsin. And Joe Biden said he wouldn’t run for president due to family obligations.
“The politicians acknowledged something that every parent knows: It’s challenging to combine work and family in the modern American economy. But in politics as well as business, it’s often taboo to talk publicly about it — especially when you are trying to get a new, bigger job,” the Times wrote.
Of course, Paul Ryan is among a large number of politicians who sleep short hours on cots in their offices when Congress is in session. He asks for time off only on weekends.
If nothing else, maybe the fact that people are talking about all this means we’re making some small progress. At least NFL players have their employers’ blessing to rest more.
Sleep tight, Urbanites!