There seems to be an increasing body of research showing that breaks are essential for personal productivity and performance. A good overview is presented in the book by Daniel Pink ‘When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing‘.
For example, it seems that “frequent short breaks are more effective than occasional ones . 18 DeskTime , a company that makes productivity – tracking software , says that “ what the most productive 10 % of our users have in common is their ability to take effective breaks””.
Also, “When […] students had a twenty – to thirty – minute break “ to eat , play , and chat ” before a test , their scores did not decline . In fact , they increased . As the researchers note , “ A break causes an improvement that is larger than the hourly study“.
Therefore, taking good breaks periodically is good for personal productivity – with the condition that those breaks really involve thinking about something else. When do you start?
