The Power of Napping: How Khaliah O. Guillory’s Restful Revolution is Changing Lives
- The Power of Napping: How Khaliah O. Guillory's Restful Revolution is Changing Lives Devin Thorpe 25:34
I’m not a financial advisor; Superpowers for Good should not be considered investment advice. Seek counsel before making investment decisions.
Watch the show on television by downloading the e360tv channel app to your Roku, AppleTV or AmazonFireTV. You can also see it on YouTube.
When you purchase an item, launch a campaign or create an investment account after clicking a link here, we may earn a fee. Engage to support our work.
Devin: What is your superpower?
Khaliah: I am the queen of Sleep.
In today’s episode of “Superpowers for Good,” I had the pleasure of speaking with Khaliah O. Guillory, the dynamic CEO and founder of Nap Bar. Despite her high-energy demeanor, Khaliah’s secret to maintaining such vigor lies in something deceptively simple: napping.
Khaliah’s journey to creating Nap Bar, the world’s first black queer woman-owned luxury sleep suite, is rooted in her personal practice of prioritizing sleep. From her early days in corporate America, she scheduled daily naps, often finding unconventional spots like unused conference rooms or her car to recharge. This habit not only kept her energy levels high but also laid the groundwork for Nap Bar.
One striking statistic Khaliah shared is that one out of every two Americans is sleep-deprived. This widespread issue underscored the need for a dedicated space where people could get quality rest. The data is compelling: a NASA study found that a 26-minute nap could increase productivity by up to 34% and alertness by 54%.
Khaliah’s vision for Nap Bar goes beyond providing a place to sleep. She aims to create eco-friendly, luxury sanctuaries where people can experience restorative sleep, even in the hustle and bustle of an airport. With partnerships with brands like West Elm and Lululemon, Nap Bar offers a home-away-from-home feel, complete with bamboo pajamas and high-quality sleep gear.
Her recent success includes securing a ten-year contract at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, showcasing the growing recognition of the importance of sleep. Khaliah’s commitment to raising awareness about sleep health extends to her Wefunder campaign, a crowdfunding effort to expand Nap Bar’s reach and impact.
Khaliah’s story is a testament to the power of prioritizing rest and the transformative impact it can have on productivity and overall well-being. As she continues to advocate for sleep health, her journey inspires others to invest in rest, ultimately leading to healthier, more productive lives.
Nap Bar is currently raising capital on Wefunder.
tl;dr:
1. Introduction of Khaliah O. Guillory and Nap Bar: Devin introduces Khaliah O. Guillory, the CEO and founder of Nap Bar. Despite being a very high-energy person, Khaliah emphasizes the importance of sleep and naps for maintaining her energy levels.
2. Importance of Napping and Rest: Khaliah highlights the benefits of naps and restorative sleep, citing a NASA study that supports increased productivity and alertness from even short naps. She shares her personal routine of scheduling naps and the impact it has had on her success.
3. Founding and Success of Nap Bar: Khaliah explains the inception of Nap Bar and its growth, including securing a ten-year contract to open a luxury sleep suite at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, Texas. She discusses the challenges and successes in the journey of establishing Nap Bar, including MVP testing and adapting during the pandemic.
4. Expansion and Business Models: Khaliah details various business models for Nap Bar beyond airport rest stops, including partnerships with West Elm and Lululemon and potential collaborations with airlines, hospitals, college campuses, and sporting venues. She mentions efforts to scale Nap Bar through innovative solutions like the Metasnooze virtual reality experience.
5. Crowdfunding Campaign on Wefunder: Khaliah talks about the ongoing crowdfunding campaign on Wefunder, emphasizing its importance in making the company visible and accessible even in the context of limited VC funding for black women founders. Devin provides details on how viewers can participate and support the campaign.
How to Develop Prioritizing Rest As a Superpower
Khaliah’s superpower is her commitment to prioritizing rest and sleep. By integrating restorative sleep practices into her daily routine, she maintains high energy levels and productivity, enabling her to tackle the demands of entrepreneurship effectively.
In 2017, while working in corporate America and facing high stress and long hours, Khaliah decided to change her bedtime habits. She moved her phone away from her bedside to avoid the temptation of checking emails first thing in the morning. This small change significantly improved her mental well-being, demonstrating how prioritizing rest can lead to better performance and a healthier mindset.
Tips for Developing the Superpower
Schedule Naps: Make napping a non-negotiable part of your daily routine.
Bedtime Ritual: Establish a consistent bedtime ritual to signal your body it’s time to sleep.
Limit Caffeine: Cut out caffeine ten hours before bed to avoid sleep disruptions.
Avoid Late Meals: Refrain from eating or drinking alcohol three hours before bedtime.
Work Cut-Off: Stop working at least two hours before bed to let your brain wind down.
Reduce Screen Time: Avoid screens and social media one hour before bed to minimize blue light exposure.
Skip the Snooze: When your alarm goes off, get up immediately to avoid grogginess from disrupted REM sleep.
By following Khaliah’s example and advice, you can make prioritizing rest a skill. With practice and effort, you could make it a superpower that enables you to do more good in the world.
Remember, however, that research into success suggests that building on your own superpowers is more important than creating new ones or overcoming weaknesses. You do you!
Guest Profile
Khaliah O. Guillory:
Nap Bar
Website: napbarnow.com
Wefunder: wefunder.com/napbar
Biographical Information: The creative mind behind Nap Bar™ is Certified Sleep Coach Khaliah O. Guillory. As a previous Vice President at a Fortune 100 company, she knows a thing or two about handling stress.
Nap Bar™ is the first white-glove, eco-friendly, luxe rest sanctuary in the world. We offer communities and companies onsite and en-suite custom suites infused with virtual reality experiences to help sleepy humans rest and charge.
Nap Bar’s™ mission is to turn sustainable rest into sustainable productivity for not only health-conscious professionals, entrepreneurs, stay-at-home parents and travelers but sport venues, airports and corporations.
Khaliah has been featured in a plethora of national publications not limited to Forbes and Essence.
She is also the recipient of the prestigious President Biden’s Lifetime Achievement Award, amongst many others.
Based on her philanthropic work in the community, Former Mayor Sylvester Turner declared October 29 as Khaliah O. Guillory Day.
Upcoming SuperCrowd Event Calendar
If a location is not noted, the events below are virtual.
SuperCrowdHour, July 17, 2024, at 1:00 Eastern. Each month, we host a value-laden webinar for aspiring impact investors or social entrepreneurs. At this month’s webinar, Pooja Mehta, crowdfund investor and advisor to entrepreneurs, will join us to share her dual perspectives.
Impact Cherub Club Meeting hosted by The Super Crowd, Inc., a public benefit corporation, on July 16, 2024, at 1:00 PM Eastern. Each month, the Club meets to review new offerings for investment consideration and to conduct due diligence on previously screened deals. To join the Impact Cherub Club, become an Impact Member of the SuperCrowd.
Recently, we created an AI GPT to help you learn more about The Super Crowd, Inc., a public benefit corporation, and our upcoming events. Click here to try it.
Community Event Calendar
Successful Funding with Karl Dakin, Tuesdays at 10:00 AM ET – Click on Events
Business Showcase Series, July 16 at 5:30 PM ET, Spark Coworking, 8 Market Place, Baltimore, MD 21202
Community Capital Live: Lisa Nutter of Community Impact Investments – Virtual Event: July 17, at 2 pm ET
Community Capital Live: Betty Francisco and Aliana Piñeiro of Boston Impact Initiative – Virtual Event: July 31, at 2 pm ET
Crowdfunding Professional Association, Summit in DC, October 22-23
If you would like to submit an event for us to share with the 8,000+ members of the SuperCrowd, click here.
We use AI to help us write compelling recaps of each episode.
