“All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.” I bet you heard of this saying at least once in your childhood. What did you make of it? For most of us, it did have relevance in childhood, but as we grew into adults, it eluded from our memory. Or perhaps we undermined it because we thought it could hamper our productivity.
That’s the thing about productivity, whether you’re an entrepreneur or working a 9 to 5 job, being productive is one quality that would take you a long way.
It’ll not only help you meet your targets but also help you grow both personally and professionally. As a hard-working individual, I bet you don’t disagree.
However, at the same time, if you happen to think breaks hamper your productivity, you’re wrong. On the contrary, the fact is, taking breaks can make you more productive.
Shocked? Felt smashed by a cannonball? Well, that’s understandable. But just so you know, It’s nothing but the truth. Breaks are important, and I’ll tell you why.
Why taking breaks can make you even more productive!
The big reset
Quality thoughts produce quality output. When you are working continuously for hours without breaks, your thinking process gets affected for the worse. Your mind feels blocked, and your brain stops producing thoughts that could be a game-changer for you.
That’s why you need breaks for the big reset. By big reset, I mean rewiring your brain to think fresh and better.
Once you provide yourself with the breaks you need, give your mind the time to relax, you’ll be back with a bang.
So, don’t think that taking breaks after excessively working for hours would hamper your flow.
On the contrary, breaks would provide you with a better, powerful, and fresh flow to your stream of thoughts.
Recovery and Recharge
Body and Brain
The point is in relation to the former, and thus the argument remains the same – your brain and body needs rest not only for increased productivity but also for sound mental and physical health.
Although working and thinking may not be physical activities, your mind and body can still get tired.
You might say that you cannot get tired because you work at a desk. Well, the truth is, it doesn’t matter.
Yes, doing a physical activity would get you excessively tired, but sedentary working would do the same because even if your body is at rest, your mind isn’t.
Think of it like this – when you walk too much or run excessively, you get tired. But once you take a few moments to relax, you’ll start with more energy and stamina. This is how your brain and body work.
So don’t go hard on yourself. Your work surely matters, but your health matters too.
Give it a priority, not only for yourself but also to be productive in the true sense. It’s better any day to start afresh and get done with a task in a while rather than sitting for hours, waiting for quality thoughts to knock on your door.
Refocus
You might think that taking a break would affect your focus for the worse, but that’s not how it works.
As mentioned before, your mind needs a reset to think efficiently. It needs to refocus to work efficiently.
A break in that regard can significantly help because it allows your mind much-needed rest.
If you’re taking hours to do some brainstorming, but to no avail, what if rest and refocus actually help you do that?
What if you take a break, and the next time you sit doing your work, you’ll get the thought and spirit you had been waiting for?
Screen breaks
School and science taught you that gadgets are not good for your eyes. Now, imagine the damage you do to your eyes and brain when you constantly sit around your computer, staring at the screen and working more than you need to.
Now I know, work is important. You cannot quit your job or abandon your projects to give your eyes and mind a rest.
But what you can do is give them a little break to reduce the damage to an extent.
Here’s what you can do – give yourself a 10 minutes break after every hour of work.
While you are at it, go out near the window or out for a short walk to seep in sunlight (Vitamin D).
You can also do some eye exercises as well. One of the most effective ones is staring at a point on the wall for a minute and then removing it.
Try it, and give your eyes the much-needed rest.
I hope you now understand the utter significance of breaks.
If your goal is to be more productive than ever – then you don’t have to include mail reading time in your schedule – but breaks.
Do you take many breaks? How does that help you?
Feel free to share your stories and encourage our readers to understand the importance of breaks. See you there in the comment section.