Do Ambitious people sleep less ?

“3 -4 hours of sleep; that does it, for me.” says Shah Rukh Khan…

A close second, Margaret Thatcher, the “Iron Lady of Britain” ruled over her country with as much. On TV, Jay Leno tickles your funny bone with, yes you guessed it right, four hours of snooze, while the “Material Girl” Madonna belts out chartbusters with just 3 – 4 hours of slumber.

Benjamin Franklin, mirrored Thomas Edison’s contempt for longer sleep…saying, “there will be sleeping enough in the grave”. Dozing for a mere 2 – 4 hours every night, he gave us the famous wise quote, “early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise”

While a person would require on an average 6 -7 hours’ sleep, one wonders if ambitious people are programmed to restrict their visit to the slumberland.

“I do not know if there is any conclusive evidence that suggests one or the other but it certainly appears that ambitious people do sleep less. Perhaps we are all influenced by the popular phrases that we learn in school such as 'the early bird gets the worm' or 'burning the midnight oil'!” observes Vikram Raizada, Executive Director Marketing, Retail and Business Development, Tara Jewellers

Adds Suchna Hedge Shah of Away and Beyond…” They are always thinking about 'what next'…I keep thinking of ways to achieve my goals so an over active mind is the prime reason…”

However, some driven and successful entrepreneurs could think otherwise. Aditi Talreja(Director-Deliverychef.in) puts it: “I don’t believe ambitious people sleep less. It is true that they do constantly think about growth and improvement, but rest is essential to all. A good night’s sleep freshens up the mind to face new challenges head on. When I have adequate sleep, I’m able to be objective and give my 100% to my work.”

Melinda Beck, a health columnist with WSJ, explains why for some people getting a full night of sleep is a waste of time. Known as “short sleepers”, they are energetically, effortlessly packing in a lot to do in a day, often multi-tasking and also keep finding more interesting things to do than sleep. The inventor Nikola Tesla was known to get only three hours of shuteye, but often missed even that if engrossed in a project. He wrote of his work: “Such emotions make a man forget food, sleep, friends, love, everything”! Ah well….

Zzzzzz on this:

•Florence Nightingale slept for just four hours…hence the name….

The famous painter Salvador Dalí would often doze off in his chair, holding a spoon above a pan. When he fell asleep, the spoon would drop and the clatter would wake him. These forty winks sustained him for many years.

• While Napoleon Bonaparte, a short sleeper, could sleep at will, Albert Einstein slept ten hours a night, although if he were busy he would take 11. He thought dreams allowed him to think more clearly!!

Insomnia v/s short sleepers

“Insomnia is a condition where one wants to sleep but cannot. An insomniac either can’t get sleep or wakes up early. And the fact that one can’t sleep is bothersome, causing needless worry. They tend to suffer from depression …whereas short sleepers always wake up vibrant and refreshed and it doesn’t disturb the overall quality of their life. “They function well on 4 hours of sleep.” explains Dr.Dayal Mirchandani consulting psychiatrist

Sleep deprivation lowers brain activity and results in poor physical and psychological health and in some cases early death.

But short-sleepers, suffer none of these ill-effects. They are active, energetic and healthy. They barrel through the day without needing to take naps or loads of caffeine. It finally boils down to how well you can function during the day. Oddly enough, people who slept for more than eight hours during the day ran a slightly higher risk of death.

Runs in the Family…Genetic basis….

Scientists have long thought it likely that human sleep patterns are linked to genetics, and a tendency to sleep for longer or shorter periods often runs in families. Several genes have already been identified that prove such sleep patterns affect whether people are likely to be up with the lark or be a night owl.

“My dad was in the defense forces so he certainly kept a tight routine. And the same is true for most of my family so it's probably true in our case.” Says Vikram Raizada, whereas Suchna Hegde Shah’s family is of deep sleepers.

Its 4 a.m…. got an idea….

Michelangelo was convinced that aboriginals and highly creative people rarely slept for more than 4 hours at a time…

“I do wake up with an idea in the middle of the night. But no I don’t have a diary to jot them down, or else I would never go back to bed. I do get a lot of ideas in the quiet hours of the morning when I wake up and that gives me some time to think them through.” reveals Dilip Kapur of Hidesign.

On the other side of the fence, capturing their creative outflow in their balckberry are Vikram Raizada and Suchna Hegde.

Got burnt out?

Vikram Raizada explains “The nature of our current ecosystem is such that it seems impossible to fit all of one’s activities into a single day! Finding an appropriate work, home balance requires one to expand one’s day to the extent possible.”

These days life is such that people naturally get less sleep. An average man watches late night shows on TV, or on Skype’s with his relative or surfs the net. But ambitious people are focused. They don’t fritter away their time and are fresh with a few hours of sleep.

“Have be a clear line between work and leisure. Followed religiously the chances of a burn out are quite reduced…” says Suchna Hegde Shah helpfully.

“Yes I do at times get burnt out,” differs Dilip Kapur of Hidesign “then I like to take walks with my dogs, read a book or simply travel a bit.”

Devote “My Time” to yourself and be passionate about it. Do anything that will help you relax and unwind….

So to conclude….

As Dr.Dayal Mirchandani sums it up perfectly “Human sleep needs differ. Gets sufficient sleep necessary for optimal daytime performance and wellbeing”. True, slumber for 4 hours or doze off some more, as long as your overall health is good and your are able to function well mentally, you are a winner. After all, its more than beauty…