Napping-A Problem Solving Tool

Posted by Mick Kopp | June 13, 2008 .

Until recently, naps haven’t been very popular.  People who have taken them have been seen as unable to perform well, weak and even lazy.  However, studies have shown that taking what is called a “power nap,” a 10-20 minute nap during the day, can actually boost productivity. Napping, along with benefits such as improving your mood, enhancing your ability to learn, and lowering stress, can also help you solve tough problems that you are having trouble with.

Why take a nap to solve your problems?

Have you ever awakened from a dream with a great idea?  Or been meditating and found some great insight into your life?  How about a stroke of brilliance when you were just sitting around not thinking about anything at all.  Why don’t these amazing ideas and insights come to you when you need them during the day?  Well it’s not because you aren’t smart or that you don’t concentrate or think about your problems enough.  It’s simply because you don’t usually have direct access to your subconscious mind while you are awake.

Your subconscious mind is the part of your mind that is working under your conscious, or waking mind.  It contains all of your memories and things you have experienced, whether you were paying attention to them or not, and uses them to form your perceptions and ideas, based on the things that you have already experienced.  It has access to things that you cannot access while you are awake or things that you have forgotten.

When you nap, you have access to your subconcious mind.  Problems that you may have trouble solving while awake, can be worked on by your powerful subconscious.  Your subconscious mind can help you form connections that your waking mind may have trouble forming. This relaxed, but still functioning state of mind, is more open and aware of answers to problems that your conscious mind may be shut off to.

Here is how it works. When you take a nap or go to sleep altogether, your brain starts to enter lower frequencies.  The one we are most interested in is called the alpha state.  It’s at this state that you are resting, but may still be somewhat alert. Once in this state, you should be much more able to remember things that your subconscious mind might show you.

Taking a nap is very easy to do for most people, and of course requires no special knowledge at all. You really don’t even have to go to sleep to get the benefits of being in the alpha state.  As a matter of fact, unless you are really tired you probably won’t even be able to fully go to sleep, in the 10-20 minutes this kind of napping lasts.

A word on napping vs meditation

You can use meditation instead, if you like. I’ve found that napping is more effective for me, because when I meditate I’m likely to go to sleep anyway. When I nap, I know that I’m already planning on going to sleep anyway, so I am not consciously trying stay alert, as I am when meditating. This causes me to relax more quickly and makes the process more enjoyable.  Don’t get me wrong, I think meditation is great.  It’s just not for me, and you may find it’s not your cup of tea either, when it comes to solving problems.

More than a few successful people used to take naps.

Some of the most successful and ingenious thinkers of our time took naps. A few of these people are Napoleon Bonaparte, Winston Churchill, Salvador Dali, Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein, and Presidents Kennedy, Reagan, and Clinton, to name a few.

So, lets a take a nap.

To start with, grab yourself a pen and some paper.  You’ll need this to write down anything that comes to mind, very quickly, once you awaken.

Then find a nice quiet place where you can relax.  You can do this at your office, in your car, at home, or where ever works the best for you.  You could even go outdoors, if that relaxes you more quickly.  Sit down, in preference to laying, because you want to cat nap, not go into a deep sleep.

Set your watch or an alarm clock for 20 minutes.  Sleeping any longer than this may produce grogginess, and cause you to be unable to remember anything that your mind may try to show you. You won’t need the alarm clock for long, though.  After doing this for a while, your mind will just know when to wake you up.

Now, get relaxed.  Focus on your problem and what you want the outcome to be.  If you can’t do this, it’s okay.  Just focus on the problem the best way you know how.  Then shut your eyes and let it go.

Once you wake up, write down whatever you saw, even if it doesn’t make any sense right now. Be open to what messages you might receive.  If you don’t understand them, don’t judge them.  Just write them down so that you can look at them later.  Some will make sense to you, and others won’t.

Just because you take one nap does not mean you can solve world hunger.  You might get a good idea that can help, though.  Or maybe that little missing step that you needed along the way.

What to do if you can’t nap.

If you can’t nap, because the environment you are in prohibits it, then learn to take a break from your problem if you can.  Just walk away from it for the moment and turn your attention to something else.  This gives your subconscious mind some time to work the problem out for you.  When you return to the problem, you may receive new insight.

These techniques I’ve described work most of the time.  If, however, you  find that you don’t get anything from it the first time, then just keep at it.  It may be that you just aren’t used to receiving these messages. Just remember to relax, let your mind go, and let your subconscious mind work for you.


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