15 activities to do in your office break time to keep yourself productive
Focusing concentration. Deep work sessions. Uninterrupted workflow.
You’ve heard it all and you know that these are crucial for productivity, yet most of us misunderstand them. The breaks that we take during work are not helping us out.
It is believed that we should devote hours to a single task to achieve results.
This concept is old-fashioned.
Very few can concentrate for a long period of time without distractions from others or our own selves.
While working on our focus and increasing our concentration are essential and beneficial skills, promising oneself to work one, two, or four hours straight is unrealistic. Our brains have limited bandwidth.
We are not machines. We can only operate at total capacity some of the time. We’re human, and we necessitate rest.
Breaks are required if we are to continuously maintain a high level of performance. Elite athletes do not train nonstop for the whole day. They concentrate almost as much on recovering as they do on performance.
According to Muse and Forbes, researchers have found that some of the most productive people do what is needed for approximately 52 minutes and then rest for 17 minutes.
Let’s focus on how we can enhance our intellectual capabilities by taking good breaks.Â
What constitutes an efficient break (and what doesn't)?
We shall begin with bad breaks — the ones making you feel terrible or resulting in ineffective mental states.
Inefficient breaks:
- Usage of social media (without smart boundaries taking place).
- Watching YouTube, Twitch, Netflix…
- Consuming fast food
- Mindlessly surfing online shops
- Dedicating time to unimportant news.
When you attempt to include these things in your work as a leisure, they typically ruin it.
Everyone realizes how their mind feels after a few hours of scrolling around social media: disorganized, distracted, and hazy. That is detrimental to your productivity. The cruelest scenario is that you get lost and squander the rest of the day.
Throughout your downtime, avoid extremely engaging, addicting hobbies.
Avoid low-effort, high-dopamine pursuits like social networks or Candy Crush or etc.
Rather, find break activities that allow your thoughts to rest.
- Make some tea or coffee.
- Exercise your breathing or meditate.
- Read a book chapter or a blog article.
- Look out a window.
This might be a nice replacement for browsing social media.
- Organize or tidy up an area of your room.
- Close your eyes and take a nap.
- Take a stand and do the stretching.
- Go for a brief walk.
(Studies show that taking a stroll in nature improves your concentration by up to 20% while also lowering your stress levels.)
- Speak with a housemate or a coworker.
- Make a phone call.
- Do some yoga or a brief exercise.
- Wash your face or take a shower.
- Consume a nutritious snack.
- Out of working hours, write down in your block note thoughts and ideas.
Each of those activities enables your thoughts to shift from focus to calmness.
Pick a good activity that does not activate the same area of the brain that you are utilizing for work.
Allowing your thoughts to stray more frequently can lead to new discoveries that would not have occurred to you in a heads-down job mindset. Most creative individuals say they get their finest ideas in the shower, jacuzzi, or when doing mundane tasks.
In truth, taking a snooze is one of the finest ways to take a break from using your intellect.
Source: Getty Images
Snoozing is a fantastic talent to learn.
Many adults dislike napping and sleeping throughout the day overall. They claim that they are always exhausted when they are awakened.
This occurs when they make a deadly napping fault: they snooze for an inordinate amount of time.
When napping, it’s best to sleep for 10-20 minutes, according to a Sleep Foundation Organization study. As a result, we wake up energized rather than exhausted.
Even persons who sleep all night can benefit from power naps in terms of mood, attentiveness, and cognitive abilities (studying, and work).
Source: Getty Images
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- Pick a spot that is peaceful and dark.
- Set a timer on your phone for 25 minutes (it takes a few minutes for you to fall asleep)
(if you don’t want to be distracted by your phone – consider taking your Pomodoro timer) - Lie down and chill (don’t persuade yourself that you must fall asleep since you won’t; instead, try calming your breathing).
- Recharge yourself!
This is how a power nap is done. As well as an efficient break.
How can you improve your snooze? Make a cup of coffee first.
What a strange suggestion?! But listen…
Caffeine takes around 25 minutes to begin functioning. If we take a cup of espresso prior to going to bed, we not only awake healthily revitalized, but also feel energetic since caffeine has entered our blood. This is known as a nappuccino. Test it!
Brilliant performance necessitates frequent rests.
It shouldn’t matter if the break is a little barbell workout, making lunch, or simply glancing out the window and drinking tea; it’s necessary to let the thoughts flow for a moment.
If you desire to focus intensively and regularly, you must also rest periodically.
So, is it time to take a brief break?
Source: Getty Images
Concluding
Follow these fifteen activities in order to make the most of your time and be more productive and efficient than others. Let’s remember some of them – Organize or clean up a section of your room; take a snooze with your eyes closed; stand up, and start stretching; take a little stroll; breathe deeply or meditate; go through a book segment or an article from a blog. Additionally, don’t forget about the power nap, also known as nappuchino. Avoid unproductive breaks. Refer back to this article so you don’t forget all these suggestions as it can be a game changer for you and others.
As well as you can suggest other people reading this article if you’ve found it useful.Â
LUXAFOR HELPS PEOPLE TO ACHIEVE THEIR GREATEST PRODUCTIVITY LEVELS WITH A WIDE VARIETY OF OFFICE PRODUCTS. LET’S BE PRODUCTIVE TOGETHER!
Do you want to build and maintain new habits? Get your free PDF version of the Don't Break The Chain calendar and start today!
Do you want to build and maintain new habits? Get your free PDF version of the Don't Break The Chain calendar and start today!
Author's Bio
Dmitrijs Bazhanov is a writer, editor, and blogger from Ventspils who enjoys an active lifestyle. He works with Australian Writings, and if you need IT assignment help, he is the best person you can ask. He is also into sports, arts, and great time spent.
