Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

How to stay awake and alert at work

How to stay awake and alert at work

The compulsion to doze off at your desk has perhaps never been stronger. How can we keep our eyes open when we’re worked to the bone?

This piece is a text reversion of a Business Daily piece from BBC World Service, presented and produced by Laurence Knight. Adapted by Meredith Turits.

There are myriad reasons why many of us are falling asleep at our desks. For instance, in the last year, snagging a good night’s sleep has become an impossibility for some. On top of expanded obligations, stress and endless phone notifications, many are also working longer days and balancing impossible personal tasks as we work at home.

So, although staying awake is perhaps harder than ever, we’ve never needed to do it more.

But without guzzling coffee, or ignoring our responsibilities so we can get into bed earlier, how can we keep focused and sharp? Part of the solution may be re-thinking our attitudes about the purpose of sleep, and taking cues from people for whom staying alert is a matter of life or death.

A cheeky doze


It won’t be surprising to hear that true alertness starts with a real reset, gained from a full night’s rest.

“New research has suggested that sleep really serves as the brain's housekeeper, which helps to clear metabolic waste and toxins from the brain,” says Natalie Dautovich, an assistant professor of psychology at Virginia Commonwealth University in the US, and also the National Sleep Foundation’s Environmental Scholar. “Some of these toxins are similar to what is seen in the development of late-life dementias.”

To get that ‘cleansing’ effect and stay maximally awake at work, Dautovich says it’s important to get those seven-to-nine hours of sleep we so keenly know we need. And it’s not just quantity, but quality, too – which means everything you’ve heard about having a distraction-free sleep environment is valid.

Specifically, she says, “a lot of digital electronic devices today emit light that is of a shorter wavelength – it’s on the cooler end of the spectrum, which helps bring on feelings of alertness”. Additionally, many of these devices can be “cognitively stimulating, and can in fact cue you to start thinking about work and feeling stressed, or feeling activated when you go into the bedroom”. In other words, your phone is keeping you alert exactly when you don’t want to be.

And, although we knowthose eight hours are critical, the less we get them, the less accurately we’re able to judge the effect lack of sleep actually has on performance, says Dautovich. It’s a spiral – one that makes putting our head down on our keyboards all too enticing.

But while many of us are struggling to get that crucial full night’s rest, there is always another strategy: grabbing a cheeky nap. And it has, perhaps, never been more tempting to hop between the sheets midday – especially when your bed may be a few feet from your workstation (or, perhaps, functioning as your desk entirely).

However, to get the best recharge from napping, you need to be strategic.

“The best napping strategy would be to take advantage of that natural dip in alertness we experience post-lunch – so early-to-mid afternoon,” says Dautovich. “You also want to limit a nap to less than 20 minutes if possible, in order to avoid entering the deeper stages of sleep, which can bring about that feeling of grogginess.”

If you're struggling to keep awake while you're working, consider a strategic nap or a responsibility-free break


Of course, napping during work is a cultural staple for some, but in many countries, including the UK and US, stealing midday shuteye isn’t acceptable. (It could even be a fireable offense.) Dautovich says we have a long way to go until we accept napping as “a positive health behaviour that can have beneficial outcomes for productivity”.

Going ‘responsibility free’


It can be draining to stay hyper-focused. Few know this better than air-traffic controllers, for whom staying alert at work isn’t just important for productivity and satisfying the bosses – it’s a matter of safety.

These workers have lots of tactics to stay awake, and 20-minute naps are included. But they have other practical methods that we can learn from, too.

Neil May, the head of human factors at aviation company NATS, emphasises the importance of a “responsibility-free break”. Controllers are limited to working two-hour stretches at a time, after which May says they’re given a 30-minute window to step away. This helps make sure focus is sharp when they return to work, and workers are staying energised to perform their tasks, which need optimal alertness.

May also notes that he’s found that air-traffic controllers perform best when things aren’t either too quiet or too busy. So, you may want to adjust your working environment to find the sweet spot for you, whether that’s the number of tasks you’re taking on at once, or the amount of background noise you’re working in (though air-traffic controllers certainly aren’t listening to music, as you might be).

And, if you’re working well before sunrise or past sunset, there’s another environmental factor to consider, too. “We ensure that the temperature, lighting and so on is consistent throughout the day, so it doesn't matter if it's day or night – it feels the same to the controller,” says May. They use LED light that mimics natural light, so controllers aren’t able to discern the time of day they’re working, and can be optimally alert when early flights begin arriving at Heathrow around 0500 or 0600.

So, although there may not be a magic panacea to staying alert at your desk, there are both quicker fixes as well as bigger goals to work up to. For now, if nothing else, May recommends controllers stretch their legs and have a chat with other controllers.

Perhaps consider having a call with a colleague while you take a stroll. Maybe you’ll even find out that you both snuck in a quick lunch-break nap.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
Intel Reports Revenue Beats but Sees 81% Rise in Losses
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
Tulsi Gabbard Unveils Evidence Alleging Political Manipulation of Intelligence During Trump Administration
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Trump Announces Coca-Cola to Shift to Cane Sugar in U.S. Production
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
Moonshot AI Unveils Kimi K2: A New Open-Source AI Model
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
Western Europe Records Hottest June on Record
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
France Requests Airlines to Cut Flights at Paris Airports Amid Planned Air Traffic Controller Strike
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
×