Why taking microbreaks is better than ‘powering through’
It’s Monday and I’m sure you have a lot to do today. I certainly do…
But this week, try and be more mindful of how you go about your work. You might think that you’ll get more work done by skipping breaks, or eating lunch at your desk while working, but you’re actually more likely to be productive if you take that break.
Break time isn’t lost time…
When I first started my remote job, I wanted to take advantage of the flexibility we have with our working hours. This meant that I never took a break because I wanted to finish earlier.
At first, this felt like a cheat code but I quickly found that not taking a break exhausts you physically and mentally. Short-term you feel really tired, but long-term the symptoms get even worse. The time you think you gained from not taking a break is then spent trying to regain the extra energy you used to power through.
You’ll actually learn more if you take breaks…
Research shows we retain information better when we give our brain time to process it. Instead of cramming our brain with information for 2 hours straight, turn this into 30 minute chunks, taking short breaks in between to let the information sink in. Whatever type of person you are — a yoga guru, a meditator, a walker, a runner, a music lover, etc. — you could do any of these things during learning breaks to help facilitate learning.
This video explains how being mobile during your breaks can vastly improve your health, and overall quality of life.
What if I’m stuck on a problem and I need to get it solved quickly?
Good question.
Instead of cramming more information into your brain, give it some space to work and the solution is more likely to come to you. As a software developer, I’ve experienced this so many times when stepping away from a seemingly impossible bug. I walk away and then the solutions pops into my head. (This isn’t magic by the way, it’s science).
The takeaway: Less can be more
We all want to work fast and find solutions but maybe we already have the solution, just not the brain space to process it. Take the break. Give yourself this space.
