Supercharge your productivity by taking breaks
Some of you might laugh at the title of this thread and think “how the hell can taking a break allow me to get more work done? He’s insane!” But there is hard backed evidence that taking breaks not only makes you more productive, but happier and smarter as well!
Let me walk you through it..
Firstly, breaks help refrain you from becoming bored or unfocused with your work. I’m sure we’ve all had a time when we simply looked at the work we had to get done and just gone over to Facebook or Reddit instead. And then we think, “ohh, I really should get some work done” and we do a little more half-assed work before catching ourselves goofing off again. Well how about instead of that just take a proper break and do something active, then sit down after 10 or 20 minutes and get stuck into it again.
Alejandro Lleras, Professor of Psychology at the University of Illinois, said “Deactivating and reactivating your goals allows you to stay focused. From a practical standpoint, our research suggests that, when faced with long tasks (such as studying before a final exam or doing your taxes), it is best to impose brief breaks on yourself. Brief mental breaks will actually help you stay focused on your task!”
Another important factor in taking breaks is that they actually help us remember the information we’ve just learned. Have you noticed that you often get ideas or breakthroughs when you’re in the shower? Or just before bed? That’s because our brain uses this ‘relaxation’ time (also known as Diffuse Mode) to try and solve some of our toughest problems.
And finally, breaks help us re-evaluate the direction that we are taking. When you focus on a task for a long period of time we often lose ourselves within it and may even start focusing on unimportant tasks. So taking a break allows us to step back for a minute and clear our minds, we can think about our overarching goals and re-evaluate what we are currently working on.
So there you have it, taking breaks helps us in many areas of our work. Try it out, take a break when you find yourself getting frustrated or if you’ve been working for over 2 hours and you won’t regret it.
If you learned something new here please give it a thanks or if you have any questions just write a comment!
Cheers, Zach.
EDIT: Thanks to WrikeAffiliate for adding this little infographic about taking breaks at work.
https://www.wrike.com/blog_images/37...nfographic.jpg
Let me walk you through it..
Firstly, breaks help refrain you from becoming bored or unfocused with your work. I’m sure we’ve all had a time when we simply looked at the work we had to get done and just gone over to Facebook or Reddit instead. And then we think, “ohh, I really should get some work done” and we do a little more half-assed work before catching ourselves goofing off again. Well how about instead of that just take a proper break and do something active, then sit down after 10 or 20 minutes and get stuck into it again.
Alejandro Lleras, Professor of Psychology at the University of Illinois, said “Deactivating and reactivating your goals allows you to stay focused. From a practical standpoint, our research suggests that, when faced with long tasks (such as studying before a final exam or doing your taxes), it is best to impose brief breaks on yourself. Brief mental breaks will actually help you stay focused on your task!”
Another important factor in taking breaks is that they actually help us remember the information we’ve just learned. Have you noticed that you often get ideas or breakthroughs when you’re in the shower? Or just before bed? That’s because our brain uses this ‘relaxation’ time (also known as Diffuse Mode) to try and solve some of our toughest problems.
And finally, breaks help us re-evaluate the direction that we are taking. When you focus on a task for a long period of time we often lose ourselves within it and may even start focusing on unimportant tasks. So taking a break allows us to step back for a minute and clear our minds, we can think about our overarching goals and re-evaluate what we are currently working on.
So there you have it, taking breaks helps us in many areas of our work. Try it out, take a break when you find yourself getting frustrated or if you’ve been working for over 2 hours and you won’t regret it.
If you learned something new here please give it a thanks or if you have any questions just write a comment!
Cheers, Zach.
EDIT: Thanks to WrikeAffiliate for adding this little infographic about taking breaks at work.
https://www.wrike.com/blog_images/37...nfographic.jpg
Want to learn how to EFFECTIVELY advertise online? Check it out!
Perfect Money, Bitcoin, Payeer, Skrill, Neteller, WMZ, Monero... Payments
With my degree in Psychology I've made sure it's packed with all sorts of strategies and studies for increasing human efficiency naturally. Stop getting distracted and Work Smarter, Not Harder.
With my degree in Psychology I've made sure it's packed with all sorts of strategies and studies for increasing human efficiency naturally. Stop getting distracted and Work Smarter, Not Harder.
Join Wrike Affiliate Program and earn up to $200 per sale http://www.wrike.com/affiliates/
With my degree in Psychology I've made sure it's packed with all sorts of strategies and studies for increasing human efficiency naturally. Stop getting distracted and Work Smarter, Not Harder.
With my degree in Psychology I've made sure it's packed with all sorts of strategies and studies for increasing human efficiency naturally. Stop getting distracted and Work Smarter, Not Harder.