Are frequent breaks at work really beneficial for performance?

This week, when running a workshop, I appreciated the opportunity to dive into human characteristics and limitations. As an old friend and mentor usually told me; “Before managing others you must manage and understand yourself.” When we are immersed in our activities (work or studies) our brain is constantly fighting distractions and trying to focus. ?It is all concentrated in our prefrontal cortex who is responsible for focus, ability to concentrate, and logical thinking. However, keeping this effort on concentration, demands energy and consequently we need to rechange. It means, not only nourishing the brain, but also give it the chance to flow energy along several areas, which cannot happen when you are fully concentrated or stressed with something.

But, what is an interesting paradigm, is that including regular breaks can, in fact, make us more productive and creative than working or studying breakless. It is visible, especially in activities which demand memory, the longer you try to acquire information without breaks, the less you can retain information.

What is fundamental to understand, however, is the fact that breaks must be functional. This is also reinforced by Zetlin, in her article (For the Most Productive Workdays, Science Says Make Sure to do This). It means that some breaks at work, instead of leaving you feeling replenished, can bring opposite effect and leave you feeling even more depleted. Good examples are scrolling on your phone or surfing the internet can?overload your prefrontal cortex?with decision-making, and can become addictive.

Bellow, I just collected three simple examples of non-effective breaks:

·??????? Scrolling through and posting on social media

·??????? Reading and responding to emails

·??????? Surfing the internet

Effective breaks help you distance yourself from work-related thoughts and facilitate an experience that will leave you feeling more refreshed. It can help to start by asking yourself, “What do I expect out of my break?”

Effective breaks push you away from complexity and taking decisions effort. In other words, a real functional break will incorporate something you?want?or like to do.

Leaders chasing ways to make their teams more productive should understand basic brain functionalities and use it in alignment with business expectations.

Reference:

• Zetlin, Minda - For the Most Productive Workdays, Science Says Make Sure to do This, 2019.