Workaholism invades sleep, with Lionel Richie

Posted by Daniel Welch

The fact that more than half of small business professionals dream about their work – according to a study by office-supply retailer Staples – is hardly surprising. If anything, it’s a surprise this number isn’t higher, with as all-consuming as the profession can often be. (The fact that 70 percent of these dreamers put their nighttime visions into action is slightly more strange, and could in fact explain those days when the boss comes in effusive with the latest loopy idea.)

This article in the Wall Street Journal is worth reading on this phenomenon, if only for the bizarre dreams some small businesspeople have: One woman scheduled Lionel Richie for a keynote address, only to have him bail and find him hanging out in the Australian outback. Another woman saw her life flash before her — in PowerPoint. The font? Helvetica Bold.

But so what? Many of us have crazy dreams. A lot of them deal with our daily life, including work. Everyone knows small businesspeople work hard. Why is this news?

Kudos to Staples for making it news. This “study” appeared in niche-market publications (like Inc., Entrepreneur and even American Drycleaner), as well as dailies across the country.

This may seem out of place with Staples’ bread and butter, which is selling supplies like paper and ink. But the small business market is huge for the company, and it’s clearly decided to inject its name into the conversations circulating among this population – and boosted its brand in the process.

Staples is generating news where there isn’t really anything there, and attaching its name to it. Could your company benefit from doing the same?

One final note on the study: More people said they got their best ideas from lying in bed or sleeping (6.3%) than brainstorming sessions (6%) or the workplace itself (5%)!

UPDATE: If following Staples’ lead isn’t working, you can always pay someone to dress up in a chicken costume and wave at traffic.