Why taking a break is the most productive thing you can do

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“We will be more successful in all our endeavors if we can let go of the habit of running all the time, and take little pauses to relax and re-center ourselves. And we'll also have a lot more joy in living.” - Thich Nhat Hanh

Ponder this…

"I can't take a break; I just have too much to do!"?

"How can I take a break when everyone else around me is working?"

Sound familiar? Despite mountains of evidence that taking a break during the workday helps us think and work more productively, many professionals grind away for hours without stopping. When you have too much to do and not enough time to do it, it can feel like the only way to get it all done. You worry others might see you as weak or slacking off, or that if you stop, you might lose momentum. Perhaps you think that every precious minute will make a difference (it won’t).?

When you resort to this reasoning, it’s a sure sign that you need to stop and take a break.

Here’s why:

1.? Breaks help us accomplish the most critical things in the best way. Taking a break forces us to step away from our work. When we pick it back up, we're forced to think more globally about what we're aiming to accomplish. This "goal reactivation" helps keep our focus on the larger picture of what we're trying to achieve. Without a break, we lose our perspective, making it much easier for us to get lost in the weeds.?

2.? Breaks improve our decision-making. Working without breaks can lead to decision fatigue and compromised reasoning. A famous study showed that judges were far more likely to grant parole to incarcerated people after taking a break. The percentage of granted paroles dramatically dipped from approximately 65% after a break to nearly 0% after working for a few hours. In this case, the judges defaulted to the safest and easiest parole ruling: just saying no. Consider the many decisions you make each day. What might you get wrong, jeopardize, or regret if you fall victim to decision fatigue? It’s a compelling reason to take five.

3.? Breaks allow for breakthrough thinking. Why does it seem like we always get our best ideas in the shower? Research has shown that for complex problems that require creative thinking and ideas, a particular brain state is optimal. We need to be in a positive, relaxed state and allow our prefrontal cortex to release its hyperfocus and quiet down a bit. The “shower effect” demonstrates how a wandering mind is also a creative one. Rather than slogging away at your desk trying to solve that thorny problem, take a break! It may be the fastest track to the answer or idea you're seeking.?

The science shows why taking a break may be the most important thing you need to do when you have too much to do. Changing behavior is hard, though, so here are four simple, proven strategies from other busy professionals to help you more easily create this new habit.?

1. ?Schedule breaks ahead of time. Schedule at least one short break in both the morning and afternoon. Put it on your calendar and treat it as you would an important meeting. If you need additional accountability, recruit a colleague to join you or ask your assistant to hold you to it.?

2. ?Set a timer. If your work allows for more extended, uninterrupted periods of focus, try out one of the popular productivity methods, such as the Pomodoro Technique or the 52/17 rule . Experiment with a variety of different methods to discover which will be most natural to adopt.?

3.? Schedule your meetings to start 10 minutes 'late.' There's no logic to the default start times and standard lengths of meetings. So, rather than scheduling them to start on the hour or half-hour, start them at :10 and :40. Work inevitably fills the time you give it. Scheduling your meetings to start at ten minutes past the hour will help you get ahead of those times when you're in back-to-back meetings, ensuring you have time to switch gears and reenergize between sessions.

4. ?Add a break in the middle of any longer meetings. If your meeting must last beyond 50 minutes, take a break in the middle. Put it on the agenda as you would any important task. Let everyone know in advance of the scheduled break, which will help them better sustain their focus until then.? This allows everyone an opportunity to refresh their attention.

When it comes to the ideal way to spend your break, research shows that moving beats stationary, being with others is better than going solo, outdoors trumps inside, and fully detaching beats semi-detached. Taking a short, cell phone-free walk outside with a colleague you enjoy is an A+. But most critically, something beats nothing. Even micro-breaks can be restorative. The best break is one you take.

Taking a short break can keep you focused on the right thing, lead you to better ideas and improve your decision-making. Breaks are a strategic move of the smart and informed, not a cop-out of the lazy.

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