I’m coming out…I nap.

There, I said it.

This feels oddly risky to admit in my business blog.
Like confessing to some terrible professional weakness.
Should I hand back my “serious leader” card now?

I remember when power naps first became a thing in the 90s. NASA research with long haul pilots showed that a short nap improved alertness and performance.
Then the books came out.
Since then research also shows that there a significant long-term health gains: lower risk of heart disease and slowing the rate at which your brain shrinks with age.

I quietly dismissed it all.
Naps were for toddlers and pensioners.
Not ambitious professionals.

Real leaders powered through.
Coffee.
Grit.
Slight eye twitch.

For years I wore exhaustion like a badge of honour.
First in, last out. Always “on”.

Then a few years ago my partner persuaded me to try a short nap after lunch.
Twenty minutes.

I woke up feeling… annoyingly great.
Clearer. Kinder. More focused.
Like someone had rebooted my brain.

My experience matched the science.

Which left me with an uncomfortable realisation.
A lot of what we call professionalism is just performative.
Looking busy. Looking tired. Looking committed.

As if visible fatigue equals dedication.
It doesn’t.
It often just means poor decisions and a shorter fuse.

Sometimes the most mature thing you can do is lie down for 20 minutes and stop pretending you’re superhuman.

So yes. I nap.

If that makes me weak, I seem to be a surprisingly productive weak person.