If we don’t take breaks, our brains will eventually become tired and prone to mistakes and procrastination. Breaks allow our brains to rest and refresh. The best breaks are:

• Restful:
  • Avoid doing anything too stimulating or challenging. The aim is to give your brain time without concentrated focus.
• Pleasant:
  • Do something easy and enjoyable rather than another form of work or chore. Having pleasurable breaks increases the likelihood that you will take them and will increase your productivity when you return to work.
• Different:
  • Aim to rest in a manner different to the work that you are taking a break from. If you work at a screen, avoid screens during your break. If your work is physical, rest in stillness. If your work requires sitting, try moving around. The more different the break is to your work, the more likely it will be restful.
• Easy to stop.
  • Avoid doing anything compelling or addictive on your breaks that could suck you into taking a longer break than you had planned.
  • Social media and computer games are not great for breaks as they are designed to capture and hold your attention. They make it much harder to go back to work once the break period is over and can lead to procrastination.

There are countless ways to take a break. Testing a few to see which breaks work best for you is worthwhile. Here are some examples:

• Go for a walk.
• Eat a healthy snack.
• Talk to someone for a few minutes.
• Listen to a guided meditation.
• Focus on ten breaths.
• Exercise, for example: pushups or jumping jacks.
• Green break: look at something natural, like a tree, for a few minutes.
• Practice eye strain relief exercises.
• Have a cup of tea.
• Write the things that have been worrying you down on paper.
• Contact a person you’ve been thinking of.
• Send a thank you note.
• Do filing.
• Write a journal entry.
• Clear drawers.
• Organize your desk or computer desktop.
• Plan a holiday.
• Plan to do something you enjoy after work or on your weekend.
• Make a work music playlist.
• Close your eyes and listen to a song you love.

The time you should take for a break will depend upon your energy levels and your ability to concentrate on the particular task. Try a 5-minute break every 25 minutes of work or a 10-minute break after every 50 minutes. As you work over an extended period, your brain will start trying to pull you towards something else. When you notice that happening regularly, that is a good time to take a break.

If you are prone to get lost in your breaks and take longer than anticipated, it can help to set a timer to tell you when to return to work.