Why the Brain Needs More Downtime (2013)

tim_sw | 436 points

I've been noticing that I'm more tired and need more downtime in days where I make, (or forced to make), critical decisions.

If I start the day by knowing what to do, then I don't really feel the burnout. For example, if I'm designing either a piece of hardware or firmware, and I know how to tackle the problem and it is just the matter of implementing it, I can code/design for 10 hours straight and when the workday ends, I still feel full of energy.

However, if the day is full of "decisions" (engineering or managerial), at the end of the day, I feel exhausted (and irritable, according to my family)

laydn | 7 years ago

I find that I struggle with offices... you're stuck there for 8+ hours (even if you don't work that way, you need to create an impression), but after several hour of intense focus and the noise and chaos of an open office, I can feel drained and anxious. Some days I'll walk to a nearby park with wifi after work, meditate for a short bit, and then code from there. My focus and creativity comes right back after a bit of downtime in a relaxing space.

jmcgough | 7 years ago

I noticed I can be intensely focused for about 4 to 6 hours max, after that I'll be "washed out" and I become error prone for complicated tasks

Unfortunately the 9 hour in office format constrain me to stay on my seat, so I'll try work on easier things at that time while beeing quite unproductive

How to we bring this fact to companies? It seems only the most ""progressive"" companies like Facebook or Google really understood this

ihateneckbeards | 7 years ago

"Some researchers have proposed that people are also physiologically inclined to snooze during a 2 P.M. to 4 P.M. “nap zone”—or what some might call the afternoon slump—because the brain prefers to toggle between sleep and wake more than once a day."

Anecdotally, Thomas Edison was said to sleep only 3-4 hours a night and take frequent (very frequent) naps throughout the day.

https://www.brainpickings.org/2013/02/11/thomas-edison-on-sl...

dodorex | 7 years ago

I'm ambivalent about this. I have a friend whose a Harvard math major, I've seen him work. He sleeps late and wakes early; when we work together, he always messes up my schedule by calling me in the middle of the night. I'm all tired and groggy the next day, and he's totally fine.

I think some people just inherently have more energy than others.

danreed07 | 7 years ago

I think I get a good six hours of actual work in the office. And then I need to check out and take a shower. Something about that after work shower just brings my focus and clarity right back. But if I have to crank with my team for a 12-15 hour day, after max 8 hours, we're all just physically there, but mentally have checked out long before that.

On sleep, 5-6 hours is optimal for me. Too much can be bad, I feel groggy and have brain-fog the rest of the day. I can get by on fewer for one day, but more than that and it becomes painful. I think a lot of this also has to do with lifestyle. How often and when do you eat, have sex, get sunlight, drink water, go out doors, etc. Many levels can be played with here.

Would be interested in hearing any hacks for getting by on less sleep.

uptownfunk | 7 years ago

Best option I experienced was working remotely from PST on EST schedule. So start at 6am done at 3 eat + have a drink take 1 hour nap and you have 8 hours which after nap fills like a whole new day.

qaq | 7 years ago

I'm having a hard time organising and especially switching tasks and getting meaningful work done when multiple things that are unrelated fall together. Having a single thing do to and beeing able to just leave work would be great but at the moment I'm freelancing and having multiple jobs and doing sysadmin-style work, learning theory and programming in a new language really just kills me and I'm not getting much done. Once I get traction in a certain task it's okay but the constant switching is killing me.

nisa | 7 years ago
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| 7 years ago

Great article. I remember seeing these ideas on Cal Newport's book, "Deep Work". I need more discipline to execute my "downtime plan".

pedrodelfino | 7 years ago

I've always had a hard time sleeping/waking on time. What you might call a "night owl".

I'm starting to notice that on weekdays I actually perform better with 6 hours of sleep rather than 8 or 9. Then on the weekend I would "sleep in" to make up for the lost sleep time.

For some reason, if I sleep for 8 or 9 hours, I wake up feeling like I don't want to do anything. I don't feel sluggish or anything. I just feel "satisfied". Like there's nothing to be done. I can just "be". I can't bring myself to focus on any specific task. Nothing feels urgent.

When I sleep 6 hours, somehow I can focus more.

This is combined with not consuming caffeine. If I drink coffee after I have slept only for 6 hours, it makes me tired and sluggish.

hasenj | 7 years ago

What I find disheartening is the need to be "more productive" rather than confront the idea that work is eating too much of our lives. What percentage of overworked people can afford to go alone on a silent retreat for 92 days?

mr_isomies | 7 years ago