From baking to painting to getting outside, here’s how our Dropboxers have been taking breaks while working at home
When the lines between the office and your home are blurred, it can become easy to forget one important truth: you need a break! As Dropboxers around the world have adapted to their distributed work environments, we’ve enjoyed seeing the different ways they’ve found to take a few hours, minutes, or even seconds out of their day to unplug and unwind. Here are some of our favorites!
For some of us, food is a very real love language — one that we can also pass on to our families. Kate Kruizenga baked up some delicious banana-oat cookies with her son this week, using the opportunity to practice new words and teach him how food is made. Julie Taheri also pulled her kids into the kitchen to have fun cooking new meals while they’re home from school.
Many other Dropboxers have been getting their hands dirty with their loved ones during their breaks — but with paint, markers, chalk, and colored pencils instead. Megan Ward has been keeping busy during her breaks coloring with her two sons while Jenna Hall has been learning how to watercolor with her pup keeping watch. And following suit, Neda Bajwa has been using watercoloring as a way to calm her daughter during some of her wilder toddler moments, and is even planning on having some of the pieces framed to put in her bedroom.
A little bit of movement, whether it’s indoors or outdoors, also helps to distract from stressful work days. As Melanie Collins, VP of People, shared in an internal email, “You have explicit permission to proactively block time on your calendars for breaks, snacks, exercise, etc. That takes discipline, but it’s critically important to ensure sanity and balance.”
Emmaline Nabors has been making space in the middle of her day for a 30 minute meditation and stretching session with other Dropboxers. Gaby Marciano has been soaking up a little sun and a great view from her apartment. And outside, Mel Sweet has been keeping both her mind and body happy by biking around while Mariama Eghan has been walking the shores of Lake Merritt, and Anna Clegg has been enjoying the quiet springtime beauty of the UC Berkeley campus on walks with her dog.
Speaking of dogs, we love how working from home over countless Zoom calls has given us the chance to get acquainted with so many of our team members’ co-woofers! And there’s never a better excuse for getting outside or taking a break than to play with your dog. Constance Wu and Brisket have established a regular catch routine in their backyard, while Meg Bird has been introducing her dog Loomis to some of her favorite records.
While many of us have been working harder than ever before in the past weeks, we’re hopeful that Dropboxers around the world can continue to practice healthy balance in their lives by taking the breaks they need to recharge!
