Does hot weather decrease productivity?

As I’m sitting here in my study writing this article, I’m actually sweating. OK, this is summer you might say, but then I might say that this is England, the land where Summer never comes, and when it does it lasts for a few days before it rains.

The temperature is about 33 degrees Celsius, which for all you non-metric folk out there is around 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Here in the UK, Im not really used to this weather, but I know most of you guys must be experiencing this quite frequently. As a result, the humidity makes me feel trapped, and I actually think that its having an effect upon how Im thinking today.

I am unable to think of any new entrepreneurial ideas, instead I just feel like sleeping. I’ve also lost my appetite as all I’m doing is drinking bucket loads of water. For businesses here, this must be affecting revenue, especially if the employees don’t have access to air-conditioning. And I hear that this hot weather is going to be continuing throughout the rest of the coming week!

So is hot weather actually linked to a decrease in productivity? Well I did a search in Google and managed to find out that heat can cause heat stress. Effects of this may include,”…heat-related illnesses, disabilities, mental acuity (you can’t think properly), decrease in physical work capacity and even death due to dehydration.” The key I’m regularly told by parents and teachers is to drink lots of fluid to keep your brain active. And as most of use entrepreneurs know, our brain is essential when it comes to thinking up new business ideas and strategies to build up our business empires!