Line drawing of a laptop covered in sticky notes

The Break That Pays for Itself

By Isaac

Being stressed at work, or because of it, is so common we almost expect it. A stress-free week even feels suspicious - like we haven't actually accomplished enough. Yet along with that feeling of productivity comes the inevitable exhaustion at the end of the workday. Worse yet, the desire to end the workday at lunch... because how long can we handle heightened stress levels?

If that sounds familiar, you're in good company. In 2024, 2,000 employees and business leaders were surveyed about their work and mental health. 77% said workplace stress was negatively affecting their health. (1) You may already know, instinctively, that you're one of those 77%.

So is this necessary? Does the workday have to run on stress?

In a 2022 meta-analysis, researchers found that people who took breaks of ten minutes or less felt a little more energetic and less tired. They also did better on creative tasks. (2)

Read that again. The break didn't cost them productivity. It returned it.

Man taking a coffee break at his desk

Think of stress as a clock that ticks up through the day. A short break doesn't just stop the clock - it turns it back. You come back at a lower number than you left.

So do we have to live in the cycle? The research says no. Stress isn't the engine that gets the work done. Recovery is. And recovery asks for less than we think - not a vacation, not a spa day. Minutes.

Sometimes those minutes are a coffee. Sometimes they're a short walk. Sometimes they're two quiet minutes at your desk with something simple in your hands - something that spins, rolls, or clicks - while your mind finds its way back.

I took my own advice before finishing this article - a glass of seltzer and a minute watching my mini Newton's Cradle swing (yes, the one we sell on toyffice.com). That was the whole break. I came back and finished.

The way through the week might be smaller than we thought. Small enough to fit on a desk.

Sources

  1. Headspace, 2024 Workforce State of Mind Report (2,006 employees and business leaders, US & UK): https://get.headspace.com/2024-workforce-state-of-mind
  2. Albulescu et al., "Give me a break! A systematic review and meta-analysis on the efficacy of micro-breaks," PLOS ONE, 2022: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0272460
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