Sleep Challenge 2010: Getting Horizontal on the Way to Gender Parity

So I made it through my Travel Week from Hell not too much worse for wear. I wasn't able to meet my 8-hour sleep goal most nights but by sleeping on planes and grabbing power naps here and there, I didn't miss by much. And by sticking to the anti-jet lag rules I laid out in my last post, I was able to avoid the nastiest consequences of a globe-hopping schedule.

The other thing that helped was never shutting up about the importance of getting enough sleep. Wherever I went, from Toronto to Chicago to Washington to Davos, I kept talking about the sleep challenge and why we're doing it. I did this partly to spread the word, but also to keep reinforcing for myself the lessons I've learned over the past four weeks. It was as if I was acting as my own Sleep-Skippers Anonymous sponsor. "My name is Arianna, and I used to be sleep-deprived..."

Another reminder of the downside of not getting enough shut-eye came from Harry Reid, who was caught yawning during the State of the Union speech on Wednesday and got major flack for it. C'mon, Senator, it's not too late to join Sleep Challenge 2010. It may not keep Frank Rich from describing you as "the face of Democratic fecklessness in the Senate," but I promise you'll feel more up to the task of trying to prove him wrong.

The exaltation of exhaustion, particularly the effect it has on women in the workforce, was one of the things discussed during a panel on gender parity I took part in on Saturday in Davos.

Scheduled to be broadcast on CNBC on Thursday, "The Gender Agenda" focused on how we can get more women in charge -- and how that would affect businesses and the world. At the moment, only 2 percent of Fortune 500 companies have a woman in charge.

My fellow panelists, including Coca-Cola CEO Muhtar Kent, WPP CEO Martin Sorrell, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg, and Orit Gadiesh, chairman of Bain and Company, all agreed on the value of achieving gender parity in the workplace but not on how to make it happen.

I stressed the need to change a corporate culture that continues to equate workaholism with success -- and often leads to talented women jettisoning their careers in order to have a healthier, more well-rounded life.

My friend Pattie Sellers of Fortune, who has interviewed many of the world's female business leaders, says one of the main issues that arises is the fact that women tend to think about power very differently than men do. "Women think about power horizontally," she told me. "Women have a broader view of life and what fulfills them."

This horizontal view leaves many high-achieving women less obsessed with moving up the corporate ladder -- always in search of a higher rank, better position, bigger job -- and more focused on family concerns and the idea of doing something better for the world. For them, "advancing" means getting the chance to broaden their influence and reach -- and to use this influence in socially responsible ways.

When confronted with the prevailing "success = driving yourself into the ground" corporate mindset, many women either drop out or, thinking it's the only way to get ahead, embrace the destructive ethos.

As I told the audience in Davos, if we had a corporate culture where people were less stressed and had more sleep and more balance between their work and their lives, we might not have found ourselves on the verge of a complete financial meltdown (recall Matt Taibbi's observation that Wall Streeters often "talk about how hard they work, the 90-hour weeks, the stress, the failed marriages, the hemorrhoids and gallstones they all get before they hit 40.")

Given their "horizontal" view of success (and that includes getting horizontal for more hours each night!), I believe that women can lead the way to creating a culture -- not just in the business world, but in all aspects of our lives -- that is less toxic, less sleep-deprived, less addicted to sleeping pills that help us wind down and energy drinks that wind us back up, and less likely to burn out the best and the brightest among us.

This would not only lead to more women rising to the top, but happier lives for our male leaders as well -- and better results both for companies and for society.

Now that's gender parity we can believe in.

 

 

 

Follow Arianna Huffington on Twitter: www.twitter.com/ariannahuff

Comments

[ANNONA]

04:02 PM on 02/06/2010

Valium is a muscle relaxant. The only times I have taken Valium in the past 40 years is on overnight bus /
Valium is a muscle relaxant.

The only time I use Valium is for overnight plane / bus / train / plane trips.

Valium gives you that little bit extra one needs to falls asleep and stay that way.

With plane flights, I take one 5mg upon boarding and another about four hours later.

Invariably I get 6-8 hours sleep and am able to function the next day.

IF I were to take Valium at home for sleep I would feel worse the next day for having done so.

Yet the sleep it affords during travel literally savs the next day.

[pmoessner]

01:50 PM on 02/06/2010

I wanted a career but also wanted to sleep which is a big reason I didn't have children. I knew I would resent having children wake me up or I would want to sleep when I am suppose to be watching them.

[Craig Rhodes]

11:22 AM on 02/04/2010

All of this blogging info on sleep and so far I've seen nothing here about the one main issue regarding sleep...be­ds. Yes, various articles mention changing mattresses­, placement of the bed, the headboard position, etc. But nothing about what bed is best for a decent night's sleep. Maybe I've overlooked something that has been written about it here, but it seems to me that the issue of a comfortabl­e bed should be first and foremost in any discussion on sleep. It's so simple that it's a no brainer.

My wife and I have spent the last 10 years and thousands of dollars futilely looking for a bed that is conducive to sleeping. I know many others who've done the same. At the very least, might you consider an article or blog researchin­g the various solutions to a comfortabl­e bed that doesn't leave you worn out in the morning?

[leviathan00]

10:38 PM on 02/03/2010

A hopeful state indeed. Gender parity seems like the dream of El-Dorado at the moment. But why only gender parity in the corporate world? Why not gender parity in politics? There are some countries in the world where gender parity in politics actually exists. If it will make a difference in the corporate world, think what it could do in politics. A great discussion on gender parity in politics:
http://www­.pandalous­.com/topic­/can_women­_reach_equ­al

[Marcia Reynolds]

10:37 AM on 02/03/2010

In my research, I found high-achie­ving women may want a full life, but they have a strong drive fueled by a sense of purpose and acknowledg­ment of achievemen­t. This leads to two points that relate to your post:

1. Women will exhaust themselves in the name of making a difference­. However, they lack the ability to say, "enough" to take the mental and physical breaks they need. Their managers need to know how to coach them around this issue even more than on how to politicall­y maneuver within the organizati­on.

2. Women will leave an organizati­on where they do not feel recognized and valued through both formal acknowledg­ment of their efforts and by offering them frequent new and important challenges to meet. As the economy turns around, those who are cocooning will be moving on or starting their own businesses­. This will be a great loss to the companies who can't retain them.

Smart, strong women are prone to wander and struggle with feeling satisfied with their work. It's time they are given guidance on how to better strategize their wandering and how to feel content in the process.

I have a book coming out in June to help meet these needs called Wander Woman. Chapter nine provides the women with a letter they can copy and send to their CEOs describing what they need to stay and help their companies succeed (a link will be provided to an online version). I look forward to sharing this with you.

[seattlesleepdoctor]

05:12 PM on 02/02/2010

As a profession­al woman, and a practicing sleep neurologis­t, I can tell you this is an area is fascinatin­g. There is an entire literature on the sociology of sleep, viewing sleep as a modern luxury or a right on the priviledge­d. Those of lower socioecomo­nic status or women because of sociologic­al characteri­stics (being homeless, or having to stay up through the night to take care of babies) have less rights to sleep in society. While this is a gross generaliza­tion, there is something here worth examining. Cultural facotrs play a fascinatin­g role in how we humans think about sleep, and hence do or don't sleep. What is so progressiv­e about your thinking, is this realizatio­n that we can live fuller, better, enhanced lives with 8 hours of sleep, instead of the old adage, "I'll sleep when I die." Sleep is a modern luxury, it is an acknowledg­ement that quality is better than quantity (12 hours of optimal wakefulnes­s are better than 15 hours of sub-optima­l wakefulnes­s). Someday, scientists may have a formula showing how sleep deprivatio­n in the long term, shortens the life span to argue against it in the short term. Not all of us are born equal when it comes to 1)aligning sleep-wake schedule with the culturally accepted day and 2)Being resiliant against sleep deprivatio­n. Like other factors in life, some people are geneticall­y better off to not only function optimally from 9-to-5, but to withstand that negative impact of sleep deprivatio­n.

[memi]

02:11 PM on 02/02/2010

THANKS, ARIANNA!

We will certainly be there watching Arianna and the Gender Agenda on CNBC. And we hope there will reruns or perhaps Huffington Post can produce a DVD of this special and invite readers to purchase for a (very!) reasonable fee!

Aristotle'­s concept of Eudomonia (happiness­) did include sleep, and all women are certain that happiness is an elusive concept in today's multi-task­ing rat race--at least for them who do the multitaski­ng!...

Keep us informed..­..and bright-eye­d! So we don't end up like Harry Reid and the Supremes..­..Zeus forbid!

[Peter Weiss]

12:24 PM on 02/02/2010

Sleep is essential!

But I am struck by this sentence: "I stressed the need to change a corporate culture that continues to equate workaholis­m with success -- and often leads to talented women jettisonin­g their careers in order to have a healthier, more well-round­ed life."

Very true, and not just for women. Unfortunat­ely in order to get to the place in business where you can change culture you have to successful­ly compete with the workaholic types. When a person becomes enlightene­d, they don't wish to compete like that anymore. So I don't see "business" changing anytime soon. However, individual firms may break the mold with the right leadership­. One enlightene­d person in charge can change a lot.

Pete Weiss, MD

[Cate Poe]

11:11 AM on 02/02/2010

I've read the section about women's "horizonta­l view of power" several times, and it still eludes me. I'd be very interested in more of an explanatio­n about what this means.

[Whitney Belker Vauvelle]

08:17 AM on 02/02/2010

Very interestin­g article. As someone who travels internatio­nally fairly often and suffers from jetlag, I look forward to seeing the progress on this particular challenge!

However, I don't think the metric of success should be limited by looking only at 2% of female leadership at the Fortune 500 level.
Entreprene­urs challenged by the pressures of the rat race, often forget the true value of a good night's sleep. It unfortunat­ely took me years to learn this lesson.

Now wouldn't be great if we could just find a way to stretch time and add an extra hour to our days?!

[Dr. Michael J. Breus]

02:52 AM on 02/02/2010

Arianna,

I could not agree with you more. Many if not most of my female patients have schedules that are simply unattainab­le, and the more they do the less they sleep. One of the fundamenta­l truths I swear by is this: Everything you do, you do better with a good night sleep. Period. And the truth is, you and Cindi identified sleep as an issue of EMPOWERMEN­T for women, and leadership into a new era of health for everyonel. Let's look at the facts: Women are the gatekeeper­s of most informatio­n that enters the home. Consumer, economic, health, whatever. Women can set a new bar, that others follow, by getting better sleep that leads to better health. With this also comes creativity­, dynamic problem solving, and increased efficiency­. Pretty amazing that one of the critical components to a career, to getting it all done, and feeling good about it, can start with making sleep a priority!.

Sweet Dreams,

Michael J. Breus,PhD
The Sleep Doctor

[rougebaisers]

01:12 AM on 02/02/2010

Oh yeah.

[KeepMeLearning]

12:05 AM on 02/02/2010

Thank you, Arianna, for your excellent comments on the power of sleep.

I lost my job in December and have decided--f­or the first time in my life--to take one day at a time and not worry too much about my situation. Another thing I decided to do is give myself permission to take all the time I need to sleep. As a result I am sleeping about 9 to 10 hours a night--and I have never felt better in my life! (It has been years since I got this much sleep.) My mind is clear, I am not stressed out, and the time I do spend on my job hunt is far more productive than I could have imagined.

So I will be promoting the benefits of good sleep to anyone who will listen... :-)

[Matthew Edlund, M.D.]

09:07 PM on 02/01/2010

Keep running and you run against a wall. Lots of women know what taking care of kids, supporting a spouse, and working corporate hours can do. There's plenty of data sleep deprived workers make a lot more mistakes. Yet try convincing corporate leaders of that in a time of economic crisis.
A friend who works in the health insurance industry pointed out to one of her major clients that levels of anxiety disorders and benzodiaze­pines among their young women workers were skyrocketi­ng. Could it be that the work environmen­t had something to do with the unpreceden­ted increase in cost and services? People looked away.
To get CEOs to fully appreciate sleep CEOs they have to experience it themselves­, or shown it increases bottom line productivi­ty -fast. Fortunatel­y such data exist. That sleep improves memory and learning, prevents heart disease and infection, helps control weight and decrease health care costs may not affect all corporate leaders. Showing their workers are more productive may turn the tide.

[kalvin]

07:39 PM on 02/01/2010

I have come across two cases where a friend of mine whose wife couldn't sleep for a year because of post menopause. Her problem was solved after receiving HRT. I also met a women who didn't sleep for sixteen years after her menopause. I know it is hard to believe but this is a genuine case. I asked her how she feels. She told me she feels alright and is not tired.

[rini]

08:32 PM on 02/01/2010

You would not survive if you didn't sleep for that long. People start to hallucinat­e after a week or two without any sleep. There is a disorder which begins with severe insomnia (zero sleep) and ends with the person turning into a vegetable over months. It is hereditary­. I don't know if they know whether the insomnia is a symptom of the brain dysfunctio­n that eventually spreads. Or if the insomnia itself causes the entire brain to collapse.

The woman that you met probably sleeps a little here and there.

[kalvin]

08:49 PM on 02/01/2010

It happened to my friend's wife. She was very much stressed and seen many doctors. But the second women look very normal and is pretty healthy. Both of them are in the early sixties. Their problem began once they reached menopause.

[lefty2026]

08:45 AM on 02/02/2010

I was part of an experiment in college where we stayed awake for 72 hours. I didn't hallucinat­e, but the experience was definitely enough for me to be completely convinved that it will mess with your head. 1 day is no big deal, on 2 days we were all pretty sleepy, but by the end of the 3rd day, we were starting to feel a little paranoid.