Bank CEO shares optimal amount of sleep: "5 hours, functional but cranky"

What is the appropriate amount of sleep when you have a demanding job in banking? Our recent lifestyle survey suggested the average person working in financial services gets 6.72 hours a night, with people aged between 31-35 being the most sleep-deprived (6.56 hours a night) and people aged between 36-40 being the most sleep-indulged (6.8 hours a night).

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Writing on Instagram, Richard Handler, CEO of Jefferies, says seven hours' sleep is "perfection." Five hours' sleep means he's "functional but cranky." Six hours' sleep is "decent but not ideal." Eight hours means he has too much energy. More than eight hours means he's ill.

Handler's comments come after he donated $10k to the fund for Leo Lukenas, the Bank of America associate who died last Thursday. There have been suggestions that Lukenas worked long hours prior to his death. However, these have not been substantiated and he died of natural causes. 

Writing on Instagram in March, Handler said young people in banking must ultimately own their working hours. "You must take control of your own life choices," he admonished. "Nobody else can or will do it for you. Businesses will allow you to work non-stop if you allow unfair demands, guilt, imposter syndrome or an 'over respect for authority' to rule your life."

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