Reaching your breaking point on meeting fatigue? Help is on the way.

As we’re all adjusting and adapting to a remote or hybrid workplace, meeting length and frequency is on the rise. On a positive note, technology has allowed us to find and maintain connection with one another, even when working remotely or time shifted. But it’s also created a concerning trend: meeting fatigue.

At Microsoft, we’ve been studying this trend within our own employee population and alongside our customers. Our research shows that one year into the pandemic, the global workforce is undeniably exhausted—with meeting fatigue being a notable driver of this exhaustion. Meetings are running 10 minutes longer and workers worldwide are spending 148% more time in Teams meetings on average each week. Bottom line: we’re spending more time in back-to-back meetings than ever before, and the continuous nature and format of those meetings is challenging brain function in new and wearying ways.

Creating space for breaks and self-care

Our latest brain research from the Work Trend Index shows that when we skip breaks, stress levels steadily increase and our ability to focus and engage suffers. Marathon meetings are leading to a lack of individual self-care, and this is not a positive direction for our employees, partners, or customers.

But the research also uncovers encouraging news—and at least one simple solution. We’ve found that short breaks help resiliency and endurance during the workday, and they’re incredibly powerful in improving the ability to focus and engage in meetings.

 Our Microsoft 365 teams have taken the fatigue trend to heart, and along with many of the incredible innovations they’ve launched over the past year—Virtual Commute, Together Mode, Headspace integration and more—they’ve developed research-backed wellbeing solutions.

Starting today, new settings in Microsoft Outlook will make it easier to carve out essential breaks between back-to-back meetings—allowing for time to get a glass of water or a snack, take a walk or mediate before the next meeting. Employees can automatically create space for breaks by turning on a default setting to shorten all meetings they schedule in Outlook. For example, a team leader could determine their scheduling settings to allow 5-minute breaks for meetings under one hour and 10-minute breaks for meetings an hour or longer, allowing 5- or 10-minute breaks between meetings. Any company using Outlook can take advantage of the settings, which can be implemented individually, or on an organization-wide level to operationalize breaks into the routine of their employee’s workday. This new feature will help employees gain back that much needed time between meetings, allowing our brains to take that short break to reset and recharge.

But beyond technology innovations to create more space between meetings, we’re also encouraging our managers and employees to look for ways to make meetings more meaningful and effective. Some of my favorite tips for focused and engaging meetings include:

Shift your mindset. While it might feel more productive to power through back-to-backs, research shows the opposite is true. View breaks away from your computer as an essential part of your workday.

Find break activities that calm your mind. Meditation is one effective way to relax and recharge between meetings, but other studies show that physical activity such as walking is also beneficial. Past Microsoft studies suggest that doodling or reading something enjoyable also bring benefits. 

Create even more time for breaks by considering other modes of communication. Before scheduling a video call, pause and ask yourself: Do we really need a meeting on this issue? More dynamic, creative, or emotional topics may require a meeting, while status check ins and informational subjects may benefit from document collaboration, a Teams channel, or email. Other simple tasks may be handled via chat. Learn more

Make meetings more intentional. The best—and often shortest—meetings are more intentional. Best practices like creating and sending an agenda ahead of time, being thoughtful about who attends, starting and stopping on time, and transitioning to a recap for the final five minutes will make it easier to accomplish your goals in less time. Learn more

Keep participants engaged and energized. In virtual meetings, it can be hard to chime in remotely. A moderator can help ensure remote participants are included. Features like Raise your hand, Whiteboard, Polling, and Breakout Rooms in Microsoft Teams are great ways to use technology to elicit creative and strategic conversations.

Take vacation and wellbeing days. In addition to these important short breaks, it’s also incredibly important to take time off to reflect and recharge. Make sure you’re taking your vacation or wellbeing days to ensure you can get the rest you need.

We didn’t expect this past year—adapting and adjusting to a global pandemic—but it created new ways of work and innovation. As we celebrate our resilience, let’s remember to make time to prioritize care for ourselves and our colleagues.