Working for any longer can cause cognitive boredom. ![]() Why does this work? There’s a number of reasons:īy knowing you have a break coming up, you’re more likely to stay focused and work with purpose. But just how long should these bursts be? While the Pomodoro technique advocates for shorter sprints of 25 minutes followed by a 5-minute break (with a longer break after every 4 ‘sessions’), research from the team at DeskTime came up with a different number.Īfter analyzing 5.5 million daily records of how office workers are using their computer (based on what the user self-identified as ‘productive’ work), they found that the top 10% of productive workers all worked an average of 52 minutes before taking a 17 minute break. ![]() And to keep our focus and concentration strong all day long, we need to treat our willpower like the muscle it is.įor years, productivity methods like Pomodoro have suggested that working in a series of short bursts or ‘sprints’ followed by short breaks are the best ways to keep yourself on track. You resist checking emails when you’re working on a projectĪll these moments of resistance add up. You resist the urge to surf the web when you’ve got work to do Yet they’re constantly under attack and used up resisting the ‘bad’ choices that surround us. Instead, to get the most out of our workday we need to treat it like a series of small battles, not an all-out war.Ĭoncentration and focus are our ultimate productivity weapons, and need to be protected. But unfortunately, those moments of blissful flow are few and far between. We’ve all had those moments where time slips away and we’re in the zone for hours on end. So how do you take a proper break? Here are 7 science-backed studies can help you maximize your downtime. Ironically, the more time we take off, the more we’re able to work. Done properly, breaks can reduce mental fatigue, boost brain function and creativity, and actually keep us on-task for longer periods of time. And not just as temporary escapes from the pressures of work. We physically can’t work at 100% capacity, 100% of the time. Even a recent Apple ad celebrated entrepreneurs working so hard, they’re not able to see their children.īut this style of working is unsustainable. In our always on, 100% hustle, productivity at all costs culture, it’s hard to justify taking a few minutes to yourself during the workday, let alone a full lunch hour. I quit that job, but working in startups and now as a freelancer, the habit unfortunately stuck. Instead of sitting around a communal table or going out for a leisurely lunch hour, my colleagues would bring microwaved leftovers to their desk or sprint down to the local grocery store to grab a sandwich and chips before plopping back down and resuming their work. ![]() It wasn’t until moving to London that I started eating lunch at my desk.
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